“How do you do?”
Taeho also greeted Mama Aisha.
For now, she was the only person who could teach him the traditional healing methods of this region.
Then Mama Aisha said something to Aminata in Mandinka.
Aminata asked Taeho cautiously.
“Mama Aisha says she knew a doctor from across the distant sea would come today. But she says she would like to read the omens once more first. Would that be all right? You don’t need to feel burdened; it’s just a simple ritual.”
Taeho had never put much faith in such things to begin with, so it did not particularly matter to him.
“Please go ahead.”
Mama Aisha slowly knelt on the cloth spread across the floor. Before her was a small incense burner made of black wood, and bakhur incense was rising from within it. The fragrance grew thicker and thicker, and before long the room had blurred hazily, like the boundary between reality and illusion.
In a low voice, she gestured for Taeho to take a seat. Aminata translated into English from between them.
“She says to sit here.”
When Taeho sat down across from her, Mama Aisha closed her eyes and slowly raised both hands over her chest.
A quiet chant began. The sound flowing from between her lips was like an ancient spell with a distinctive cadence.
The flame in the incense burner flickered.
Dried herbs, stones, and a piece of bone smaller than a palm were neatly laid out on the floor before her. Mama placed her hands over them.
She whispered softly.
“Ancestors. Show me the one who has crossed the distant sea. The fate that will change at his fingertips…”
Sweat began to bead on her forehead as her eyes remained closed.
The light in the room seemed to tremble for a moment.
Mama Aisha suddenly raised her hand high. With her fingertips, she groped through the air as if grasping something invisible.
Then she abruptly stopped.
“I see… black smoke… children crying… A burning hospital… streets covered in blood… And… you, standing in the middle of it all…”
Mama Aisha murmured words that were difficult to understand, and even Aminata, who was interpreting between them, turned pale in shock.
“No, Mama Aisha, what are you…?”
But Mama Aisha could not hear her. She was staring into the distance with an expression close to horror.
A little while later, Mama Aisha’s eyes slowly opened.
“I… have seen too much.”
She murmured weakly and lowered her hands. She looked exhausted, as though she had gone on a long journey in a very short span of time. The wrinkles etched into her face seemed deeper than they had been moments before.
“Doctor who crossed the distant sea, are you ready to hear my words?”
Aminata translated.
Taeho nodded.
“The first thing I saw was nothing but death.”
Taeho looked at her without a word.
The air sank heavily. Mama Aisha’s voice began to tremble more and more.
“Streets stained with blood, and countless deaths.”
She slowly rose and approached Taeho. Then she carefully took his hand.
“Those who survived. The people who still breathed amid despair. Faces reaching out toward you with the last of their strength.”
The corners of her eyes grew moist. Whatever she had seen in the vision moments ago, one thing was certain: she truly believed what she had witnessed.
“You are the one who will save them in an age of calamity.”
Aminata’s eyes widened as she relayed the words to Taeho. Perhaps because of what Mama Aisha had said, the way she looked at Taeho had clearly changed. She had never seen Mama Aisha tell anyone such an omen before.
To Aminata, Taeho was changing from a grateful doctor who had listened to her opinion into a great figure destined to do something extraordinary.
Taeho’s reaction was different.
It was an interesting story, but that was all.
Taeho smiled and replied.
“An age of calamity? And I am only a doctor.”
Mama Aisha quietly shook her head.
“No. You are different from other doctors. You possess the ‘hands of salvation.’”
She clasped Taeho’s two hands tightly and lifted her eyes.
There was faith in her gaze.
“Countless people will come to owe their lives to you. You must prepare yourself to accept that fate.”
Taeho thought for a moment about how he should answer, then continued.
“I don’t know what this means, or whether I truly am someone with such a fate. But if someone reaches out their hand to me, I will take it.”
Mama Aisha stared at him quietly, then smiled for the first time.
“That is enough.”
She gently let go of Taeho’s hands and returned to her seat.
“Then I will trust you and tell you how to save Ibrahim. First, you must know why Ibrahim came down with this illness.”
At last, Taeho was able to hear the words he had wanted.
Mama Aisha slowly began to speak.
“Ibrahim became ill after drinking water from the Chari River in northern Chad.”
The Chari River originates in the Central African Republic and flows into Lake Chad. It was one of the important rivers in inland Africa.
“But he drank it at the wrong time and in the wrong way, and so he was cursed. Western medicine can only treat the sickness of the body. It can do nothing about the evil dwelling in the soul. That is why every treatment failed.”
Taeho quietly gave Rema an order in Korean.
“Rema, give me a comprehensive analysis of the Chari River’s environment.”
Rema displayed a 3D map before his eyes.
-I will first analyze the environmental data of the Chari River basin in northern Chad.
-This region once had French uranium mines, and even now, heavy metal contamination remains severe. In particular, concentrations of uranium, lead, and cadmium are fifteen to twenty times higher than WHO standards.
Taeho nodded.
“What effect could those heavy metals have on parasites?”
-Exposure to heavy metals can induce genetic mutations in Trypanosoma parasites. In particular, uranium radiation can alter the structure of the parasite’s antigen proteins by approximately 15%, causing resistance to existing treatments to increase sharply.
So there was an effect after all.
When Taeho asked Mama Aisha again, Aminata translated.
“Then how can Ibrahim be treated?”
“It can only be undone through the method our ancestors used in ancient times. To break the curse of the Chari River, we must borrow the power of the kigelia tree.”
“The kigelia tree?”
“Kigelia is a sacred tree. Its fruit and bark hold a special power that drives away evil.”
When Taeho tapped Rema, Rema showed him the search results.
-The kigelia tree (Kigelia africana) is one of Africa’s representative medicinal plants, famous for its sausage-shaped fruit and its various traditional and modern medical uses.
-It is known to have various effects, including benefits for skin diseases and women’s health, as well as antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anticancer effects…
As expected, they also had a traditional method of treatment. They might not know exactly what compounds were in the kigelia tree, but they knew the causal relationship: those components treated the illness.
But to actually apply this, he needed to know the specific method.
“How is it used in traditional treatment?”
“You cannot use it carelessly. The kigelia tree must be steeped in a special way.”
Mama Aisha spoke while swaying her body rhythmically from side to side.
“On the night of the full moon, you gather the purest fruit and roots, steep them in a silver bowl, and pray to the ancestors in the exact order and at the exact times.”
Taeho nodded and asked Rema.
“Analyze the chemical components of the kigelia tree’s fruit and roots.”
Complicated chemical structural formulas appeared before his eyes.
-The fruit and roots of the kigelia tree contain the following active components:
-Flavonoid compounds: powerful antioxidant activity
-Iridoid glycosides: anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects
-Phenolic compounds: heavy metal chelation
-Steroidal saponins: enhancement of cell membrane permeability
Taeho’s eyes flashed.
“Chelation? Then that means it can remove heavy metals?”
-Yes, that is correct. And there is also scientific basis in the traditional preparation method Mama Aisha described.
Soon after, Rema showed him a chart of the moon’s phases.
-The lunar gravity during the full moon optimizes the movement of water and nutrients within plants. At this time, the concentration of active components in kigelia rises by 30% compared to normal.
“What is the reason for using a silver bowl?”
-Silver is a natural antibacterial agent and also has excellent chemical stability. The compounds in kigelia are preserved without oxidizing.
It was becoming more and more interesting.
“Then can the fruit and roots of the kigelia tree really treat the mutated parasite?”
-Theoretically, it is possible.
-The treatment success rate calculated based on current data is 67.8%.
He was surprised. It was higher than he had expected.
At this level, if he adjusted the figures more precisely and combined it with modern medicine, it was a success rate worth trying in practice.
But there was still another obstacle left.
Dr. Whitman.
He would never agree to a method like this.
Mama Aisha silently watched the Oriental doctor who kept talking to himself, then slowly rose and approached him.
“Remember. The path before you will be very lonely.”
She gathered Taeho’s two hands in hers and spoke solemnly.
“Behind you are countless helpers, and before you are countless enemies. Many people will praise you, and many others will envy and condemn you. Especially doctors like you may attack you even more fiercely.”
Taeho gave a bitter smile. He had already experienced that several times.
“But you must never give up! Only then can a true miracle occur. Remember just this one thing. You will rescue countless lives from hell.”
She placed a warm hand on Taeho’s forehead. A warmth like a grandmother’s touch passed into him.
“May the wisdom of the ancestors be with you!”
Mama Aisha chanted a blessing in Mandinka in a low, deep voice. Taeho could not know its exact meaning, but he felt as though his heart had grown calm.
“Thank you.”
“You are the chosen one. Do not forget that you are not alone. With those precious hands that will save countless lives, now save Ibrahim.”
Taeho nodded and rose from his seat. It was time to return to his lodging and study Gambian traditional healing methods in greater detail.
Taeho bid farewell to Mama Aisha and stepped outside the door. Aminata followed after him.
Just before the door closed, Mama Aisha suddenly shouted from behind him as if something had occurred to her.
“You must be careful! The white-haired doctor will never believe you. There is a deep darkness in that man.”
“Do you mean Dr. Whitman?”
“Yes. A shadow of blood has fallen over that man’s soul. That blood is gnawing away at his heart even now!”
They were still words that were difficult to understand rationally.
But Taeho did not simply let them pass.
What had happened to Dr. Whitman in the past?