Kim Hyeokgwon kept giving breaths.
And Taesu reviewed the course of the emergency treatment.
“Like that……”
He was done with acting blindly.
He wanted to weave in even a little of his experience and proceed more smoothly.
He was in the middle of going over the emergency treatment process.
Step.
“We’ve set up a space.”
At the voice, he looked up and saw Squad Leader Sam standing there.
Behind him, a white tent had been set up at an angle.
It was a place made by using the wall of the building and stretching the white tent diagonally from it.
A soldier’s ability to make use of the surroundings was truly outstanding.
In the field, that kind of improvisation was important.
He could think about that later.
For now, moving the patient came first.
“Let’s move him.”
Taesu ordered as he hurried to his feet.
And a moment later.
The burn patient was settled inside the makeshift white tent.
They had carried him over by lifting him in a large cloth.
That cloth naturally turned into a groundsheet.
As soon as they arrived, Taesu assigned the tasks.
“Squad Leader Sam, the Ambu bag. Hyeokgwon, prepare an IV.”
“Yes.”
Rustle.
Each of them set about carrying out the order they had been given.
In the meantime, Taesu had something to do as well.
He positioned himself while looking at the patient’s back, where the burns were the worst.
Then he picked up a white bottle from among the medical supplies they had carried over.
It was hydrogen peroxide.
Taesu opened the lid and poured it straight onto the patient’s back.
Bubble, bubble.
When the hydrogen peroxide met the clotted blood, white foam rose up.
“First, wipe it with gauze.”
Swipe, swipe.
Taesu brushed over it roughly, just enough to clear away the foam.
That much was perfect.
Next, he poured on the entire bottle of disinfectant.
Splash.
The traces of white foam left here and there were dyed reddish brown.
In the meantime, Taesu took hold of a Debakey and a Mixter.
With the surgical instruments, he carefully began peeling away the clothes stuck to the patient’s back.
Since he had soaked them thoroughly with saline, they came off easily.
Even so, he had to be careful.
Taesu moved his hands softly and lightly, as though handling a baby’s cheek.
Gently.
Each time, a piece of clothing stuck to the skin came away.
The pace of progress was fairly quick.
Strangely, however, Taesu’s expression only grew harder.
It was because he could now see with his own eyes the burns that had been hidden beneath the clothing.
“This is too much.”
“I’ve connected the IV. Whew, this is serious.”
“At minimum second-degree. Most of them are severe burns of third-degree or higher.”
At Taesu’s explanation, Kim Hyeokgwon asked seriously.
“So what do I do now?”
“We have to peel them off together.”
“I think this is a first for me.”
“For me too.”
At Taesu’s words, Kim Hyeokgwon froze.
“If you’re doing it, then I’m doing it too.”
Kim Hyeokgwon spoke bitterly and picked up the surgical instruments.
But Kim Hyeokgwon’s hand hesitated slightly.
The skin looked as though it would collapse at the slightest touch, so it seemed difficult for him to push forward recklessly.
Taesu gave the hesitant man a low word of advice.
“Take a deep breath in.”
“Hooop.”
“And out.”
“Hooo.”
“Now do it.”
Taesu suggested indifferently.
That really was all.
Kim Hyeokgwon’s gaze immediately sharpened.
“Are you making fun of me?”
“Didn’t you calm down?”
“I do feel a lot better.”
“When have we ever had some secret technique?”
“True. We’ve lived by throwing our bodies at things.”
After that bitter self-reflection, Kim Hyeokgwon slowly began moving his hands.
The first time was difficult.
From the second time on, perhaps because he gained confidence, his speed picked up.
Then, while they were peeling away the patient’s clothes.
Because it was simple, repetitive work, a little room opened up in his mind.
As something else came to mind, he asked Squad Leader Sam.
“Sam, were there no other patients?”
“No. There are, but I couldn’t tell you because of this patient.”
“So there were. Where are they?”
“There’s a restaurant over there for tourists. They were all gathered there.”
“Fabian and Tyler, and?”
When Taesu asked, Squad Leader Sam shook his head.
“I couldn’t confirm that much.”
“Then we’ll think about that later. More importantly, how were the patients?”
Swipe, swipe.
Taesu asked as he continued the emergency treatment.
His attention was being divided little by little.
It couldn’t be helped.
At the moment, Taesu was the person in charge at the scene.
It was important for him to have a grasp of all the patients.
He never knew when the order of emergency priority might change.
Squad Leader Sam reported what he had seen.
“They were all different, and everyone was so shocked they didn’t seem to know exactly where or how they were hurt.”
“No wounds?”
“It looked like they had a first-aid kit. But I don’t know whether they did the emergency treatment properly.”
“Hoo. I need to go there too……”
He couldn’t move.
The patients were largely divided into three locations.
Taesu only had one body.
Since he couldn’t leave his position right now, a sigh escaped him on its own.
If he just had a few more people to assist, things would be much easier.
It was just as he thought that.
Whoosh.
A sudden wind blew in from somewhere.
A dust-laden gust they had not prepared for swept across the patient’s back.
All the effort they had spent cleaning and trimming it had gone to waste.
“Shit.”
“Damn.”
“Damn it.”
The three of them poured out their irritation.
They would have to start over from the beginning.
It wasn’t as though they could blame a natural phenomenon.
They forced down their annoyance and soothed the boiling inside them.
Just then, a strange sound reached their ears.
Dudududu.
“Hm?”
Taesu’s ears twitched.
At that moment, Kim Hyeokgwon’s expression changed.
“That’s a sound I know.”
“A helicopter.”
When Squad Leader Sam shouted, Taesu also brought back the memory he had forgotten.
“They said it would come one more time.”
“Yes. There’s a high chance it’s my squad members.”
“I don’t care who it is. If someone’s come, I have nothing more to wish for.”
“Should I go out and check?”
The moment Squad Leader Sam asked.
Thud.
A heavy sound that shook the ground rang out.
A shell?
No.
If it were a shell, the people outside would be in an uproar.
There was no such reaction.
Instead, another reaction reached them.
“Waaaah!”
It was a cheer.
The tent blocked their view, so they couldn’t see outside properly.
Taesu, who felt as though his curiosity might turn into irritation, called for Squad Leader Sam.
“Sam.”
“I’ll go see.”
Dash.
Squad Leader Sam shot outside like lightning.
At least they had laid cloth on the ground here, so the dust did not billow up too much.
As Taesu washed the patient’s back with saline, he prayed.
“Let anyone have come. Please.”
“Let me pray a little too.”
Kim Hyeokgwon joined in.
No matter how much they had grown in the field, they could not overcome being outnumbered.
Soon, Squad Leader Sam’s loud voice rang out from outside.
“You made it.”
“Sir. We brought supplies as well.”
“Good. Good.”
Squad Leader Sam’s excited voice boomed.
The voice heard between his words was unmistakably Corporal Ryan’s.
“Really?”
Had his wish become reality?
Just then, Squad Leader Sam came in carrying an armful of saline and shouted.
“Ryan, Guspia, Anthony, and Rachel came to support us.”
“Really?”
“And these are supplies. There’s a huge amount outside.”
Squad Leader Sam was delighted like a child.
Taesu was the same.
The NGO was not scheduled to arrive for another forty minutes.
Now that dependable reinforcements had appeared before then, he wanted to shout.
Kim Hyeokgwon really did shout.
“People, I’m grateful as hell.”
Even the dry Kim Hyeokgwon ended up saying a word.
But Taesu could not do that.
For the remaining time as well, Taesu was still the person in charge at the scene.
He had to maintain his composure.
Rapidly turning his mind, Taesu began with assigning personnel.
“Please tell Ryan to go to Doctor Jeong.”
“Sir, moving out.”
Corporal Ryan’s booming reply came from outside the tent.
Squad Leader Sam realized belatedly and immediately informed him.
“They’re standing by outside.”
“Then Anthony, Rachel, come in.”
As soon as Taesu called their names, two soldiers entered.
Private Anthony was a soldier he was extremely familiar with.
Private Rachel had dark brown hair and a cold impression.
Although she was from the same squad, she belonged to the assistant squad leader’s group, so he had not met her often.
Still, their relationship was no different from that with the other squad members.
When they came in, Kim Hyeokgwon naturally took his hands away.
“Then I’ll go to the restaurant……”
“I’ll go.”
“Then here?”
“I have to tell you what to do. There’s Vaseline there, right?”
At Taesu’s question, Kim Hyeokgwon held up a pale yellow container.
“This.”
“Yes. Spread that as widely as possible, and cover it with gauze. All of the burned areas.”
“What effect does that have?”
“It forms an oil film. It also keeps the skin moist, so it prevents exhaustion.”
Taesu even gave a weighty explanation.
Kim Hyeokgwon went over only the key points again.
“So spread the Vaseline out wide and cover it with gauze, right?”
“Exactly.”
“Without gauze, we wouldn’t be able to treat or manage anything.”
“It’s all-purpose. Anyway, I’m counting on you. I’ll take a quick look and come back.”
Step.
Taesu rose empty-handed.
Since the supplies had arrived outside, he intended to take what he needed from there.
Kim Hyeokgwon nodded and took charge of Private Anthony and Private Rachel.
“Anthony, handle the Ambu bag and the automatic blood pressure monitor at the same time.”
“I can do it well.”
“You’ve done it before, so of course you have to do it well. Rachel, take position in front of me.”
“Yes.”
Rustle.
Everyone moved according to Kim Hyeokgwon’s orders.
To soldiers, there was no difference between dealing with a doctor and a nurse.
What mattered more was whether or not the person was worthy of respect.
With Kim Hyeokgwon’s skill, as well as their personal bond, there was nothing more to ask for.
After confirming that much, Taesu headed outside.
When Taesu reached the supplies, his mouth fell open.
“Are they planning to set up a hospital here?”
It was a slight exaggeration, but the amount really was abundant.
There was enough for their emergency treatment and even enough for the NGO to use for quite a while afterward.
Corporal Guspia brought up the related matter.
“The colonel personally took command and had these flown in from the roof of the military hospital.”
“He certainly has a different scale.”
“He was extremely pleased when he heard the rappelling was a success.”
“I’m grateful. We can talk about the rest later. I’ll pack first. Here, here.”
Thud, thud.
Taesu quickly handed the items he had picked out by sight to Squad Leader Sam and Corporal Guspia.
They packed them neatly into large bags.
Soon, the bags were full.
Taesu was also holding a medium-sized bag.
With the amount of supplies they had, his heart felt abundant as well.
Now it was time to go and fight again for the other patients.
The burn patient had already received emergency treatment.
The rest would be up to the medical team that would come running in after them.
“Let’s go see the other patients.”
“I’ll guide you.”
Tap, tap.
Squad Leader Sam took the lead, and Taesu and Corporal Guspia followed close behind.