Taesu's hands moved without rest.
It was not merely a matter of removing the visible inflammation.
Snip, snip.
Moving this way and that inside, he searched every nook and cranny to excise it.
That process was anything but smooth.
The fortunate thing was that there weren't two hands, but four.
"Mr. Hyeokgwon, your left hand for a moment... Yes. Hold it."
"Got it."
"Pull out your right hand and get gauze."
When Taesu suddenly demanded gauze, Kim Hyeokgwon frowned.
It was because he only had one right hand.
He had no choice but to use the method Taesu had shown him just moments ago. It was the method of holding plastic firmly between his teeth and tearing it.
Ptoo.
"Eugh, ptooey. You showed me that so you could make me do it."
"Excuse me?"
"Let's just hurry up and hand it over."
"Understood. Keep the gauze coming."
Swish.
Taesu snatched up the gauze with the tip of a surgical instrument.
Kim Hyeokgwon glanced at Taesu and tossed the empty plastic below the operating table.
"There are three doctors here."
"Gauze."
"I said I got it."
Clack, clack.
Kim Hyeokgwon, as if having given up, even mobilized his teeth to assist in the surgery.
The bickering teamwork between Taesu and Kim Hyeokgwon was something they were used to from long ago.
They grumbled yet solved each task before them one by one.
Meanwhile, Jeong Minsu and Brad Kim were slightly discordant.
"Brad, like this here?"
"Not there, you need to go this way."
"It's the same thing..."
"We don't have time to explain every little thing."
Perhaps frustrated, Brad Kim's voice rose.
Irritation seeped into it.
It was the first time he had reacted that way.
In that moment, Jeong Minsu tensed sharply.
She had forgotten because they had grown close so easily, but Brad Kim was a surgical specialist. To Jeong Minsu, he was also a senior so far above her.
"I'm sorry."
"Your hands will stiffen if you tense up like that."
"Pardon? Ah, yes."
"I said I'll teach you later. So I'm asking you to follow my lead for now."
Brad Kim immediately soothed the nervous Jeong Minsu.
Having worked with numerous medical staff at NGOs, he seemed to have quickly grasped her personality.
The problem was Jeong Minsu herself.
If her counterpart had been Taesu, she would have shaken it off and jumped right back in.
But Brad Kim was not Taesu.
It was different from the problem of a passive personality.
A surgical specialist and a resident.
She couldn't narrow that gap in the slightest.
The habits drilled into her body by rote learning at Korean hospitals seemed to fade, only to suddenly spring back.
Taesu glanced at Jeong Minsu.
Then Brad Kim shook his head at Taesu first.
'Leave her to me.'
That was what he meant.
Taesu respected his opinion.
"……."
He soon fell silent, focusing solely on the surgery.
Meanwhile, Brad Kim spoke to Jeong Minsu again.
"Doctor Jeong, relax. Speed is more important, and if you stiffen up, it only gets harder."
"I was wrong."
"This isn't about right or wrong."
"……."
When Jeong Minsu fell silent, Brad Kim soothed her more carefully.
"Doctor Jeong. You said you wanted to save this kid, right?"
"Yes. I did."
"Then how do you plan to save him if you stay frozen like that?"
"That's..."
"If we're doctors, we have to move like hell. Disease never waits."
Brad Kim's advice was similar to Taesu's.
The difference was that he led the atmosphere a bit more gently and calmly.
If it had been Taesu, a side kick would have flown immediately.
It was then.
Jeong Minsu's stiffened shoulders slowly relaxed. And with a much more natural expression, she spoke quickly.
"Please lead me."
"Follow me well. First, over here."
"Yes. I've got it. I've supported it like this."
"Good. That's it. Now, let go with that hand and spray the liquid hemostatic agent."
"I'll prepare it immediately."
Jeong Minsu's voice rose again.
Yet it wasn't rigid, but heavy and intense.
Perhaps Brad Kim's method of leading simply suited Jeong Minsu better.
Anyway, as Brad Kim led Jeong Minsu, the surgical speed gradually increased.
The atmosphere on the left and right sides of the operating table was considerably different.
But that hardly mattered.
What was certain was that everyone was focused on the surgery.
The surgical speed wasn't bad, either.
It was an emergency surgery where they were matching their rhythm for the first time.
Elements of friction were scattered everywhere.
However, Taesu's experience and Brad Kim's career were supporting them to some extent.
Later, Taesu, who had been immersed in the surgery, turned his gaze slightly.
"Brad. I'm entering the liver."
"I'll go that way. Damn, this side won't be easy either."
"How about approaching from the right side first?"
"Good idea. You go first, I'll assist."
Brad Kim naturally relinquished the lead.
Swish, swish.
Once their opinions aligned, the surgery proceeded immediately.
This wasn't a matter of concession.
What mattered was who discovered it faster and could treat it more smoothly.
Taesu sometimes boldly pushed tasks over to Brad Kim.
"Brad, please take this side first."
"Hmm. It's tricky, but okay. Support me well."
"Of course."
"Let's see Doctor Choe assist. Make sure the speed doesn't drop."
Brad Kim gave a firm warning and moved his hands first.
Taesu maintained appropriate tension and immediately began assisting.
Their teamwork was amazingly good.
Of course, not every step was smooth.
The two clashed as well.
"Brad."
"No, this side."
"Hurry."
"Damn. Listen to me."
Voices grated back and forth.
Jeong Minsu and Kim Hyeokgwon were no pushovers, either.
"Mr. Hyeokgwon, switch the blood pack and glucose."
"Don't you have hands over there? Can't you see I'm using both?"
"Then do I have three arms?"
"Damn. Let's play rock-paper-scissors, at least."
It was an absurd suggestion, but in a way, it was also reasonable.
And so the operation continued, back and forth, brimming with tension.
Drip. Drip.
Everyone began to be drenched in sweat.
Their stamina was being depleted by the speed.
But that wasn't the only reason.
Maintaining such intense concentration made them pour out even more sweat.
The peritoneum.
Literally, a thin membrane widely distributed within the abdomen.
It possessed an extremely delicate nature.
Nerves and blood vessels passed through the inside of that peritoneum.
Naturally, it must not be touched.
Removing only the inflammation was absolutely not easy.
Moreover, speed was required on top of that.
Furthermore, the patient was a child.
They had to be careful from multiple angles to avoid burdening the patient as much as possible.
Simply put, the conditions were rife for easy exhaustion.
Yet no one, not a single step, moved away from the operating table.
A considerable amount of time had passed.
Everyone was drenched in sweat.
Their hands had stopped.
Their chests heaved greatly.
"Hoo. Hoo."
"Haah. Ha."
Everyone catching their breath was looking in one direction.
It was the sight of Taesu's back standing before the ECG.
Beep-beep-beep, beep-beep.
The sound of the ECG came irregularly.
That meant the vitals couldn't find stability.
Everyone's eyes were filled with intensity.
They were still maintaining a state of tension.
Taesu, on the other hand, couldn't even feel the gazes from behind.
He was performing the role of anesthesia that he had learned from Dr. Ijaksun.
Playing multiple roles alone in the field was basic.
But because it wasn't his specialty, he was more sensitive than ever.
"If this is the case, a little more potassium, then sodium next."
Click, click.
He changed the hanging syringes and administered bit by bit.
Such hand movements were repeated several more times.
Beep, beep.
The sound of the ECG changed.
Taesu's eyes widened greatly along with it.
"Wait."
Everyone, startled and tensed by the abruptly shouted voice, asked urgently.
"Doctor Choe, why?"
"Taesu. What's going on?"
"What's wrong?"
Words burst out simultaneously, their voices mixing together.
However.
"……."
Taesu, back turned, gave no answer.
The atmosphere was ominous.
Perhaps intuiting this, everyone looked at the affected area.
The white inflammation had receded, returning to its original red appearance.
Not all of it.
Faint white dots remaining here and there pricked at their nerves.
"Normally we'd control that much with medication."
"Was the child too exhausted after all?"
"Damn, far from ending easily, it's getting harder."
They spat out words one by one.
Honestly, further surgery was difficult.
But if the vitals didn't improve, they couldn't finish the surgery. Even if they finished, they couldn't feel at ease.
That didn't mean they expected normal numbers immediately.
There was merely a standard for judging whether it was within the stable range after surgery.
As impatience deepened, everyone clasped their hands together.
"Please."
"Please."
If the probability was fifty-fifty, they desperately wished for it to tilt toward the bright side.
It was then.
"Phew..."
Taesu's long sigh was heard out of nowhere.
Everyone flinched, their bodies jerking.
It was too deep a sigh.
Uneasiness crept over them, and their eyes began to shake.
Thump-thump, thump-thump.
Their hearts pounded as if they would burst.
Just as tension filled them to the tips of their hair.
Swoosh.
Taesu turned around.
Kim Hyeokgwon shouted upon seeing that.
"Let's know the result before our hearts burst."
"Hoo. For now, it seems the surgery was a success."
Brad Kim asked curiously at Taesu's deflated answer.
"What do you mean?"
"See for yourself."
Swoosh.
Taesu stepped away from the ECG.
Soon the graphs and numbers on the monitor, previously hidden by Taesu, were visible.
Brad Kim's eyes darkened deeply as he calmly observed and analyzed.
"Goddamn."
"That is... What state is that?"
Jeong Minsu asked carefully.
Brad Kim answered after observing a bit longer.
"The fever isn't coming down. If that continues, there could be problems with the brain."
"What?"
"The emergency surgery ended well. But we'd have to say complications have set in."
Brad Kim spoke with difficulty, his face unsatisfied.
Taesu was the same.
"I don't think it can get any better than this through surgery."
"Th-that's right."
"We've administered antipyretics, and I think we need to keep lowering the temperature with glucose while monitoring the progress..."
Taesu trailed off.
The atmosphere was such that everyone guessed the reason.
Then Kim Hyeokgwon spoke, narrowing his brow slightly.
"That means someone has to keep watching over him."
"That's right."
"The people waiting outside aren't in good shape, either."
Kim Hyeokgwon's voice was heavy.
Several hours had already passed.
The PKO soldiers had to return now.
And even if they could continue helping, the crucial thing was that the four people here had to step up directly.
In short, they didn't have the capacity to continue watching over Sarubia.
But leaving the patient unattended was unthinkable.