Doctor Kuramoto was pressed close to the cargo bed.
Without climbing up, he shouted to the doctor performing first aid and asked,
“What are the current vitals?”
“The vitals are…”
“They’re too low.”
“They’ve been staying where they are. The problem is, even holding on is reaching its limit.”
The doctor administering first aid raised his voice.
His face was filled with that much urgency.
It seemed Doctor Kuramoto hadn’t boasted to Doctor Schmidt for nothing.
He quickly turned and shouted,
“What about the operating rooms? Is there an available spot?”
They had made several operating rooms, large and small.
But he didn’t know which one could be used right away.
That was why he was asking.
At that moment, an answer came from a nurse holding a cell phone.
“They say all the operating rooms are full right now.”
“Wait time?”
“They say at least two hours. They say it’s absolutely impossible.”
“Damn it. But it’s not as if we can treat him here.”
Doctor Kuramoto’s face turned troubled.
“Damn.”
The way things were unfolding seemed different from what he had expected.
But he wasn’t the only one thinking that.
Everyone was the same.
“To buy time, we need to stop the bleeding…”
“Look at that location. It’s not a spot where hemostasis will be easy.”
“They said there’s no operating room we can pull him into right now.”
“Even if we clear one out, we’ll need time to replace everything.”
The other doctors racked their brains too, but they were going in circles.
Then Taesu’s eyes shifted, and he abruptly raised his voice.
“The school.”
“What?”
Whoosh.
Everyone’s gazes focused on him.
Taesu ignored them and continued shouting.
“I’m talking about a classroom at the school.”
“What about it?”
“While we cover all sides with plastic sheeting, we can move in the anesthesia machine and ECG.”
At Taesu’s idea, everyone’s eyes lit up.
“Would that be possible?”
“There’s a field specialist among the volunteers.”
This time, Jeong Minsu answered.
At the hopeful mood, the medical staff’s eyes shone.
“That’s one thing. What else?”
“Mm, if we add in everyone else’s help… Yes, ten minutes should be enough.”
Jeong Minsu answered after doing his own calculations.
Ten minutes was, in truth, an incredibly long time.
But it was more reasonable than waiting blindly for an operating room.
And if more people moved, the time could be shortened.
Everyone’s thoughts quickly tilted toward Taesu’s side.
“As expected, emergencies mean Doctor Choi.”
“Stop stating the obvious.”
At that moment, Doctor Talon called out coldly.
“Everyone, quiet.”
“…”
“Doctor Choi, then what exactly are we doing? Organize it for us.”
Doctor Talon relied entirely on Taesu.
When it came to emergency patients, he trusted him more than anyone.
And Doctor Talon was not the only one.
“Doctor Choi.”
“Doctor Choi.”
Starting with Doctor Hassan, many of the medical staff called for Taesu.
Everyone was acknowledging the grit Taesu had built up all this time.
At that sight, Doctor Kuramoto’s expression twisted as if he had bitten into something foul.
“That thorn-in-my-side bastard.”
As the one who formally held control, being pushed into the background made his displeasure deepen.
But he was a fox—no, a weasel.
His eyes immediately shifted, and he too called for Taesu.
“Doctor Choi.”
“Yes, Doctor Kuramoto.”
“What are you doing? Everyone is waiting.”
“…”
Taesu only looked at him with a bewildered expression.
Doctor Kuramoto paid no heed to that gaze and spoke to Taesu with earnestness.
“If we can save the patient, what wouldn’t I do?”
“Well, yes, but…”
“I’ll help too. No, all of us Japanese medical staff will help. Please, hurry and tell us.”
Doctor Kuramoto’s expression, voice, even his eyes.
He was an actor through and through.
And there were medical staff who fell for that acting.
“Doctor Kuramoto, should I say, as expected?”
“He’s already proven his skills several times, and now his character too?”
“Impressive. Really impressive.”
Some of the medical staff even had sparkling eyes.
Taesu didn’t care either way.
“We’ll move first. Doctor Jeong.”
“Let’s go.”
Tap-tap-tap.
Taesu and Jeong Minsu immediately turned and ran.
But their expressions as they headed for the medical tent were not exactly bright.
“Just what won’t a person do?”
“Saving the patient comes first.”
“Yeah. Damn it. Let’s save him. Let’s save them all.”
“That’s it.”
Right now, thinking about anything else was a luxury.
They didn’t even have a moment to spare.
The instant they arrived at Medical Tent 3, the two of them became busy.
Taesu first took out his cell phone and called Kim Hyeokgwon.
Ring, ring.
“Pick up. Hurry.”
Taesu urged him from the start.
Fortunately, Kim Hyeokgwon soon answered the call.
His sharp remark came first.
“What’s with all the honking? Why is it so noisy over there?”
“Emergency.”
“Why are you telling me that?”
Kim Hyeokgwon’s grumbling, familiar voice instantly sharpened.
It was because he had already declared that there would be nothing for him to do during this medical volunteer work.
Taesu remembered that too, but he called him heavily without the slightest hesitation.
“Mr. Hyeokgwon.”
“Damn it. So what?”
“Clear out one classroom and turn it into an operating room. Quickly.”
“How quickly?”
With ghostlike intuition, Kim Hyeokgwon immediately asked in a serious tone.
Taesu knew him well, so he could make the request at ease.
“Ten minutes.”
“You son of a— you’d call roasting beans in a flash of lightning too slow.”
“Ugh…”
“Damn it. Hanging up.”
Click.
Along with the stinging scolding, the call ended.
As Taesu flinched and took the phone away from his ear, Jeong Minsu asked,
“What did he say?”
“Damn it.”
“You’re dead.”
“The patient’s chances of living will go up. Grab what we need first.”
Taesu’s voice, which had been shrinking, suddenly turned sharp.
Now they didn’t even have time to joke.
As soon as they entered, Taesu and Jeong Minsu nimbly split left and right.
Swish.
Then they hurriedly began gathering the basic supplies needed for surgery.
If counted in detail, there were quite a lot of surgical supplies.
It was easier if they divided the work to some extent.
“Minsu, focus on dressing supplies…”
“Okay. You handle the injections…”
The commotion in Medical Tent 3 did not stop.
But the two of them alone couldn’t gather everything needed for surgery.
“We’re here too.”
“We’ll gather things quickly.”
Nurse Casey and Nurse Ellen actively stepped forward.
And it wasn’t only them.
The other medical staff were already moving as well.
They were NGO medical staff.
No interest or relationship came before a patient, especially an emergency patient.
Above all, everyone had already acknowledged Taesu and Jeong Minsu when it came to handling emergencies.
That was why Doctor Talon asked loudly,
“Doctor Choi, what are you gathering over there?”
“I’m packing injectables, and Doctor Jeong is focusing on dressing supplies.”
“Okay. Then Tent 2 will focus on emergency surgery kits…”
Doctor Talon deliberately announced the support supplies he would gather out loud.
It was to reduce confusion.
When he finished speaking, Medical Tent 1, Medical Tent 4, and the other tents also shouted out the supplies they would support with.
“Tent 1 will handle suction and Bovie…”
“Tent 4 will handle sanitary supplies…”
Taesu shoved that information into his head and picked out what was missing.
“Ah, IV fluids. Is anyone calling the pharmacy?”
“I am.”
The voice came from nearby.
Whoosh.
When he turned, Nurse Casey was already holding her phone at an angle.
She seemed to be listening carefully in case there were additional orders.
Taesu expressed himself with action rather than words.
O.K.
When he signaled with his hand, she nodded and continued the call.
“Albumin, electrolytes, blood transfusion packs, as many as possible… If there aren’t any, we have guardians here, so we may be able to receive blood donations…”
Not only was she handling the necessary fluids, her response to improvisation was excellent.
She was comparable to Nurse Song Hyeonmi of Ijambak.
That was how sensible and quick-witted a nurse she was.
Because he knew that, he hadn’t given any separate additional orders.
That thought lasted only an instant, and he immediately turned his head to look for Nurse Ellen.
“Ellen, are you busy?”
“Go ahead.”
“Please check whether we can secure an anesthesia machine and ECG.”
“Yes.”
Nurse Ellen also picked up her cell phone.
Taesu’s orders were not limited to the two of them.
He had said ten minutes himself.
It was a promise for life made with an emergency patient.
To keep it, he had no intention of weighing or calculating anything.
Kim Hyeokgwon would have the classroom side firmly in hand.
So Taesu only needed to focus on this side.
No matter what, all the minimum supplies needed to make emergency surgery possible had to be procured.
For that, it didn’t matter who it was.
He had to be able to put everyone in sight to work.
Taesu had the resolve and nerve to do that.
Thump.
He pushed his way out in front of Medical Tent 3.
Then he looked around overall and shouted orders.
“Doctor Statham, over there, in addition…”
“Nurse over there, please support that side…”
Even so, it wasn’t enough.
His field of vision was limited.
Taesu quickly looked around and found a folding chair.
‘This is it.’
Taesu immediately grabbed it and climbed onto the folding chair.
Thump.
It was only one step higher.
But his field of view itself changed.
He could see wider, farther, and in more detail.
At the same time, he began giving precise orders in earnest, pointing people out with gestures.
Within that were all the medical experiences he had gone through in harsh environments up until now.
In the mountain village on Everest, he had even set up an operating room by himself.
Even if the scale was different, with this many people here, if they couldn’t do it, that would be the bigger problem.
The ones who found it amazing were rather the NGO medical staff.
When Taesu pointed out even the smallest things, their eyes went round.
“He remembers all of this?”
“The fact that he thought of using a classroom in the first place was no ordinary thing.”
“When it comes to emergencies?”
“Doctor Choi.”
That was enough.
Within the whispering voices was the feeling that they were looking at Taesu anew.
But the praise they shouted did not seem to reach Taesu’s ears.
“You two over there, we don’t have time.”
At the sharp reprimand, the doctors who had been whispering quickly answered.
“We’re gathering things.”
“We’ll put the organized supplies over here, ahem.”
Perhaps embarrassed at being scolded for no reason, they cleared their throats and quickly scattered.
The time spent gathering the supplies needed for surgery was not very long.
Before long, large support boxes were ready.
The medical staff who lifted those heavy boxes shouted as they headed toward the school.
“Ugh, damn it, it’s heavy.”
“If you’ve got it, run.”
“Keep it balanced. And Doctor Choi, they said the pharmacy will send over the blood packs and IV fluids. I’ll head out first.”
Nurse Casey reported to Taesu as she passed by.
And she wasn’t the only one.
“Doctor Choi. The ECG has departed, and they’re securing the anesthesia machine now. They say it’ll be secured soon.”
“Doctor Choi. They don’t have surgical lights, so they’re substituting searchlights. The electrical team is installing a small generator now.”
“Doctor Choi, they secured a classroom and are dustproofing it. I’m going ahead.”
Whoosh. Whoosh.
Everyone told Taesu the information they had learned and headed toward the school.