“Hyeokgwon….”
“Damn… you’re one stubborn bastard to kill.”
“Tell me about it. I’m still in the land of the living. You said you’d follow me as long as I was, didn’t you?”
“Why does Dr. Choe insist on living such a spectacular life?”
It was a reproach that came out of nowhere, but Taesu gave a bitter smile.
In times like these, you only needed to ask the core question.
“So what are you going to do?”
“Anthony and I are getting ready. We’ll rappel down soon, so don’t rush me.”
“I may not be able to spread both arms wide, but I welcome you sincerely, from the bottom of my heart.”
“Damn it. If I drop dead while rappelling, you’d better never sleep again from that day on if you know what’s good for you.”
It was a nasty curse, even as curses went.
Taesu knew well that this was Gim Hyeokgwon’s raw, unfiltered feelings.
He had readied himself to take that kind of scolding, so his expression didn’t change in the slightest.
And he also knew all too well how to win someone over.
“In exchange, if you make it back alive, the compensation will be enormous. I know that rappelling especially comes with hazard pay, no questions asked.”
“Oh, that’s tremendously comforting. Sigh. Count me in, then.”
At those words, Taesu turned his gaze back to the helicopter.
Just like before, Gim Hyeokgwon rappelled down first, and Private Anthony followed right behind him.
His speed was far faster than Jeong Minsu’s.
And there wasn’t a single scream.
Indeed, Gim Hyeokgwon had nerves of absolute steel.
As he watched, urgent footsteps rang out.
Thud, thud.
He looked down to see Jeong Minsu and Sergeant Ryan running over together.
Unlike his earlier appearance of sniffling tears and snot, Jeong Minsu urgently asked with a tense expression.
“Where’s the patient?”
“Over there.”
“Ryan, turn.”
Swish.
Despite his heavyset frame, Jeong Minsu changed direction nimbly and dashed toward the second patient.
His earlier hesitation had vanished long ago.
He only struggled with beginnings; once past that threshold, he was more proactive than anyone.
The problem was that this was hard to fix.
*Still, thank you.*
Taesu knew that final glimpse was Jeong Minsu’s true self.
He immediately shook the thought from his mind.
These feelings could be shared sufficiently later.
Right now, the patients came first.
Squeeze, squeeze.
Taesu quickly compared the two patients’ conditions in his head.
Three medical personnel, three soldiers.
How to utilize the total of six personnel was up to Taesu.
His mind was racing.
Because he was intensely focused, his thoughts spun at high speed.
Thanks to that, he was able to reach a decision relatively quickly.
Taking advantage of a quiet moment on the radio, he assigned roles.
“Mr. Gim, send Private Anthony to Dr. Jeong. Squad Leader Sam, cover the rear and help me.”
“Squad Leader Sam, roger that.”
“This patient is completely terrible right now. It’s awful. Mr. Gim, Private Anthony, hurry up.”
Jeong Minsu urged them in a sharp voice.
Taesu heard it clearly too, but he didn’t ask about the patient’s condition.
He had a rough idea already.
The patient looked like he’d fallen off a cliff and landed in a thicket.
Such a posture wasn’t something that could happen under normal circumstances.
The reason he’d sent Gim Hyeokgwon to Jeong Minsu was the same.
If the two of them combined their strength, might there be some hope?
There was.
Soon, Captain Austin’s voice came through the helmet.
“Dr. Choe, shall the helicopter stand by as is?”
Taesu froze at those words.
It was unexpected that he was being asked for orders right now.
Perhaps because Taesu gave no answer, Captain Austin’s voice came again.
“Dr. Choe, please respond.”
“We’re not in a situation to load the patients immediately.”
“In that case, we’ll rescue the guide first and stand by overhead.”
“Please do.”
Just as Taesu was about to end the radio call.
Captain Austin’s voice came once more.
“But we don’t have much time. We have to think about the fuel needed to return to base.”
“Approximately how much?”
“About 30 minutes.”
Taesu’s brow furrowed deeply.
To get these patients to a state where they could be moved within 30 minutes.
It was a time limit bordering on the impossible.
But the bigger problem was that Captain Austin wasn’t actually being unreasonable.
His mind grew tangled.
Regardless, he answered first.
“Understood for now.”
“Good luck.”
“Thank you. I’m very grateful. It fills me to the brim with confidence.”
Taesu answered as if complaining.
It wasn’t sarcasm.
It was a slip of the tongue showing how difficult it was to overcome the bleakness of reality.
That’s all it was.
Taesu’s hands hadn’t stopped for a moment.
They hadn’t stopped while everyone was rappelling, nor during the conversation.
Adding breaths with the Ambu bag was something that absolutely could not stop.
Soon the helicopter ascended with ropes and wires hanging long.
Thwump, thwump.
It was around the time the helicopter sounds were fading.
From over there, Squad Leader Sam approached and announced himself.
“Dr. Choe.”
“Sam, hurry.”
“Yes, sir.”
Crunch, crunch.
Squad Leader Sam ran, trampling roughly through the snow.
Now it begins.
Taesu steeled his resolve.
And to match that resolve, he focused solely on the present situation.
Thud.
“I’m here.”
“Ambu bag here.”
“Roger.”
“Compress twice, rest for five seconds, repeat.”
“Copy.”
Squeeze, squeeze.
Squad Leader Sam immediately began compressing the Ambu bag. Even though the resistance would be considerable due to the hemothorax, he pressed it tightly to the end.
Only then were Taesu’s hands freed.
He had no time to feel relieved.
Resolving the hemothorax was the priority.
Before that, Taesu glanced at the time.
*Thirty minutes left… No, twenty-five.*
He set the tightest possible timeframe.
There was no guarantee they’d board the helicopter the instant those 30 minutes were up.
Above all, the patients’ conditions weren’t good.
He had to keep his wits about him.
That much was certain.
Even while gauging the time, his two hands did not rest.
First, he checked vitals with the automatic blood pressure monitor.
Beep.
As the machine beeped, numbers appeared.
He operated it several times, not just once, to improve accuracy.
Having calculated the average figures, Taesu’s expression hardened completely.
“At this level… what the hell am I supposed to do?”
It was a catastrophic mess, even among disasters.
The severe hypothermia was particularly bad.
Furthermore, neither blood pressure nor pulse had anything consistent about them.
Above all, oxygen saturation was too low.
The vital check stopped there.
Because what had to be done was clear, Taesu reached for his scalpel first.
Shing.
The silver glint of the sharp scalpel flashed.
The hemothorax was in the right lung.
He had already confirmed it with a stethoscope.
“One chance.”
He put more pressure on himself.
At the same time, he swept his fingertips along the patient’s flank.
Tap, tap, tap.
He felt the bumpy sensation of ribs.
As he moved downward, Taesu’s expression gradually hardened.
*What is this?*
Whether because he saw that expression, Squad Leader Sam asked, putting force into his eyes.
“Dr. Choe, what’s wrong?”
“The right ribs are broken from here down.”
“Aren’t there several more below that?”
“That’s right. But I can’t immediately tell where they’ve gone.”
“Hup.”
Squad Leader Sam looked dizzy just from hearing it.
Taesu, who had enough knowledge to imagine the implications, felt his vision go dark.
But he set that problem aside too.
Because he wasn’t holding the scalpel as a prop.
“I’ll solve the problem in front of me first.”
“Copy.”
“It’ll sting.”
The end of Taesu’s extended scalpel dug into the patient’s flank.
Squelch.
Blood flowed out through the gap.
Squad Leader Sam’s eyes flickered slightly, but that was all.
He didn’t let out a single groan.
It was enough to remind Taesu that this was a soldier with combat experience.
Taesu was glad to have such a Squad Leader Sam as his partner.
But then.
Tremble, tremble.
The patient’s body began to shake faintly.
Through the scalpel and Ambu bag respectively, Taesu and Squad Leader Sam felt it simultaneously.
Squad Leader Sam’s question came a beat faster.
“Why is this patient suddenly doing this?”
“Just a moment. Just a moment…”
Taesu’s mind grew muddled at the unforeseen situation.
All he’d done was pierce the lung through the skin with the scalpel.
He hadn’t caught on a rib; there had been no sensation of it whatsoever.
*Then?*
Taesu quickly ran through several possibilities.
Squad Leader Sam was watching Taesu’s expression.
Of course, it was a situation where he couldn’t speak carelessly.
Even so, he didn’t seem to like seeing Taesu flustered.
With that in mind, Squad Leader Sam offered words of comfort.
“It’s probably nothing serious. It could just be temporary, right?”
“…”
“It’s not like you pierced raw flesh, is it? I can’t help but think that real painkillers are one of humanity’s greatest inventions.”
Squad Leader Sam babbled on for no particular reason.
But it wasn’t useless talk.
From those words, Taesu realized the cause of the current situation.
“Ah.”
“Did you say ‘ah’?”
“Damn it. What a stupid bastard.”
“What…”
Squad Leader Sam was bewildered.
But it was far from the emotion Taesu was feeling.
His hair was standing on end.
It was because emergency treatment had been proceeding without administering painkillers.
Such a ridiculous mistake.
He’d forgotten because the situation was unfolding too urgently.
Taesu wasn’t seasoned enough to do everything perfectly.
He was a passionate young man who let momentary emotions get the better of him.
In any case, it had clearly happened.
It was clearly Taesu’s mistake, and there was no need for excuses or justifications.
*The patient probably doesn’t kn—… Damn it, I’ll come clean later.*
He set aside the headache-inducing thoughts.
Right now, making up for the mistake was the priority.
Rattle.
Taesu’s hand immediately plunged roughly into the bag.
Soon he pulled out a syringe and an ampoule.
Morphine.
He wanted to administer the best painkiller to quickly reduce the suffering.
He transferred it to the syringe and quickly injected it into the patient’s arm.
Sssshk.
The medicine in the cylinder rapidly decreased.
Perhaps because the drug took effect quickly, the patient’s shaking lessened.
“…”
Soon the shaking stopped completely.
At that moment, Taesu felt cold sweat run down his body in this freezing place.
“Phew.”
“Is it done?”
“Thank you so much. I almost performed the emergency treatment raw.”
“Y-yeah.”
Even the calm and composed Squad Leader Sam looked dizzy at the mere thought.
Taesu’s own feelings were indescribable.
Nevertheless, the scalpel was already lodged in the patient’s side.
It meant emergency treatment had already begun.
He couldn’t stop, so he had to continue immediately.
But Taesu was a human being with emotions too.
That mistake wouldn’t easily leave his mind.
“Sigh.”
“Is something else wrong?”
“I’m nervous.”
As Taesu answered heavily, Squad Leader Sam cautiously offered comfort.
“It should be fine now, shouldn’t it?”
“You never know. If I missed something…”
Taesu trailed off and retraced his steps.