Soon after they departed, Taesu spoke.
"In the morning, Sangdu was the one following us around, but now it seems the tables have turned."
"Seeing how everyone likes him, I guess he's not an ill-natured person."
"He's been everywhere, so he must have plenty of experience."
Jeong Minsu and Bread Kim followed with generous assessments.
But Kim Hyeokgwon was a little different.
"Why did he look this way while crossing the main gate?"
"Wasn't it because we were looking?"
"No. He looked deliberately."
"I suppose he felt pity."
Kim Hyeokgwon shook his head at Jeong Minsu's answer.
"I'm saying this because it didn't feel like that."
"Nor did it feel like he had any ulterior motives."
After Taesu chimed in, Kim Hyeokgwon lightly stroked his chin with his fingertips.
"That's exactly why it's strange. I can't figure out his intention."
"Mr. Kim. How about we set aside that worry until after our meal?"
"I strongly agree with Dr. Kim's opinion on that matter."
"Then let's enjoy this dinner, everyone. We've all worked hard today."
Bread Kim energetically proposed.
At those words, the four of them moved their hands with frightening speed.
Slurp!
Taesu, having lifted a chicken leg first, let out fierce admiration.
"Wow, look at this meat tearing right off."
"It's plump and fully stuffed too."
"Slurp. The broth... The broth is incredible!"
"What kind of feast is this? Ah, thank you for preparing this. We'll eat well."
That was the end of the conversation.
After that, their mouths focused solely on eating.
The flavor was beyond words.
It contained spices and several medicinal herbs, so it was packed with nutrition as well.
It was enough to distinctly feel Kim Yeongseon and Bong Yunju's gratitude.
Perhaps that was why, the more they ate, the more strength surged through them.
It was enough to shake off the fatigue from relay surgeries.
"Kuu. This is good!"
Exclamations burst out as heartily as the rich broth.
After finishing the meal and cleaning up, they immediately headed to bed.
It was already past one in the morning.
They had recovered their strength with the nutritious samgyetang, but it was still a time when sleep was dearly needed.
Jeong Minsu and Kim Hyeokgwon prepared the beds. Meanwhile, Taesu and Bread Kim each picked up their radios.
Of the two, Taesu spoke first.
"Sam, this is Dr. Choi. Please go up two channels."
Beep, beep.
Taesu changed the channel first.
Meanwhile, Bread Kim started his radio call beside him.
"Ryan, the patients are...."
— Crackle, Patient 3....
It was a conversation about the postoperative patients.
Taesu had changed channels so both sides could radio simultaneously.
Then Squad Leader Sam's voice came through the radio.
He showed thoroughness, even changing the way he spoke over the radio after becoming "Dr. Sam."
— Crackle. Dr. Choi. Respond.
"Yes. I contacted you to check on the patients' situations."
— From Patient 1....
Squad Leader Sam calmly informed them of the current status one by one.
He deliberately cut the transmission after each patient.
That was the timing to give orders.
"For Patient 1, add a diuretic...."
He explained the medication and care methods according to each patient's condition.
This was Squad Leader Sam's consideration so they could sleep comfortably even if just for a few hours.
That was why they were doing a final check before sleeping.
There were many operated patients, so that time wasn't short either.
Still, the fortunate thing was that there were no immediately prominent problems with the patients.
Soon the care method explanations ended, and Taesu expressed his gratitude.
"You're working too hard because of us. I don't know how to repay you."
— Buy me a drink later. Don't say another word and get some sleep. Out.
Squad Leader Sam unilaterally ended the radio call.
Taesu lowered the radio with a bitter smile.
Bread Kim, sitting beside him, understood how Taesu felt.
"They said they'd keep watch in shifts through the night, two of them. They must be tired too."
"You're telling me."
"Honestly, I didn't think they'd help us this much. I thought they might just hover around."
"It's because of Operation Wolf Escape."
Taesu spoke the operation name that others couldn't easily understand.
It was an incident that had spread widely as a rumor through the NGO, so Bread Kim naturally knew of it.
"Was it when Dr. Choi was injured then?"
"No. Because the wolves escaped safely."
"Well, Kkuti did complain a bit later. Saying what kind of patient with severed nerves they brought and all."
Taesu, having not heard that, asked slyly.
"Did he complain a lot?"
"It was just talk among us."
"So what did he say?"
"You know Kkuti? He just bragged that the patient's condition was bad and dangerous, but he overcame it with Samba and Soul."
It was the kind of talk that brought Dr. Quentin's mischievous face to mind.
Taesu smiled softly and said.
"It certainly was enough of a wound to claim credit for."
"That's just his personality, but they said Dr. Choi's first aid was excellent."
"Hardly excellent. I just scraped out the necrotic tissue and restored blood circulation."
"While also lightly touching up a nerve."
Bread Kim, seeming to have listened closely, pinpointed the core of it.
Taesu answered with a bitter smile.
"It really was just to the extent of touching it up."
"Isn't that why you bought time until the surgery?"
"That's exactly what I intended."
As Taesu answered placidly, Bread Kim glanced at him sidelong.
"You're subtly bragging about yourself."
"I'm telling you, it was exactly that much."
"Anyway, it is amazing. Three people who jumped into the middle of enemy territory while barely escaping death."
"Now Bread will experience it too."
Taesu joked nonchalantly, and Bread Kim looked disgusted.
"I'm not that brave."
"When push comes to shove, everyone does it all."
"Then make sure it doesn't come to that. I'm definitely passing."
He even waved his hand, showing intense refusal.
In that way, they caught their breath from a hectic day with jokes.
It was truly only a moment.
Kim Hyeokgwon's voice calling from inside was heard.
"If you're done with orders, hurry up and come in to sleep. Don't whine about being tired later."
"Yes. We're coming in."
Wink.
Taesu and Bread Kim smiled lightly and immediately dusted themselves off and got up.
It was after the two entered the room.
Click.
The flashlight went off, signaling the end of a busy day.
The next morning.
It was close to dawn.
The medical staff left the house with puffy faces.
"Fighting today too."
"Work hard."
"This is counting as overtime pay, right?"
"Let's hope today is easier than yesterday."
Leaving words full of their individual personalities, they moved toward the patients.
They didn't forget to prioritize the village patients before going to the soldiers on both sides.
Factory Manager Na Duyeong and Ritesh.
The two of them were gradually recovering.
That was why they could treat the soldiers on both sides with less reluctance.
But the hope that things would be better than the first day disappeared not long after.
The condition of the second batch of patients wasn't very good either.
"Minsu, open the operating room right now!"
"Damn it, you said today would be better!"
"Today is a bust. We'll have to hope again for tomorrow."
"Sigh. It's my fate. Let's just go in together!"
"Then let's go!"
Flash.
The two, having loaded the patient onto a stretcher, immediately entered the operating room.
And once again, they wandered through surgery hell all day long.
Meanwhile, an Indian soldier went to find the bereaved family of Varun, who had died.
Prostrating himself flat, he cried and cried again, begging for forgiveness.
But he was not the one who shot Varun.
He came to apologize merely for being there, for witnessing Varun's death before his eyes.
Varun's family didn't say much.
They could not forgive, nor could they not forgive.
"We will hope that time passes."
They chose the path of being forgotten.
No one could raise an objection to that choice.
Whatever the decision, it was their choice.
Taesu and Jeong Minsu watched that scene when they found a moment.
"To suffer like that...."
"It's quite pitiful. It's not like that person wanted to come running with a gun."
"It's a damned war, really."
"If only it would end, then there would be no more pain like this."
The two hoped that the same sorrow would not repeat.
But realistically, there was nothing they could do.
Instead, the medical service for the Indian army did improve a little.
It was because not a single person from the Pakistani army had apologized.
The distinction regarding that was clear.
Day 3, Day 4.
Time gradually passed.
Good news arrived from the village that the first harvest had been done.
But Taesu and the medical staff could not respond to it.
It was because of the surgical forced march continuing for days.
Kim Hyeokgwon was even annoyed.
"Aren't these bastards hauling in injured people from surrounding units?"
No one could say that guess was unconditionally wrong.
They had personally confirmed that each side had deployed approximately two companies.
Compared to that, the number of patients was certainly large.
Not all troops could be injured. That meant the size confirmed visually wasn't everything.
The truth about that could be confirmed from the platoon leader who came up again a few days later.
"We are battalion-sized with one infantry company specially attached."
If the Indian army was like that, it meant the Pakistani army was similar.
At those words, Jeong Minsu and Kim Hyeokgwon grabbed the backs of their necks.
"Hey, you shameless bastards!"
"You fucking bastards. Don't you have guns? I'll go shoot them all first!"
Curses didn't leave the two of them mouths that day.
Taesu and Bread Kim neither calmed them down nor stopped them.
It was because they felt the same way.
There were only four of them here.
But having to operate on and treat dozens of times their number was not something they could accept with a smile.
It was infuriating, but they didn't protest.
It was because the more patients there were, the more time they could buy for the tea leaf harvest.
Since the harvest began, meat dishes were served on the table almost every day.
There were traditional Korean dishes like suyuk and galbijjim, and fusion foods developed while living here.
They could also eat missed foods like japchae, jeon, and so on.
"Aren't they using up everything they harvested to feed us?"
It was enough for Kim Hyeokgwon to worry about such things.
After meals, they even prepared premium toritjina tea.
CEO Gu Seungheon and everyone said they were sincerely grateful for the medical staff's suffering and took care of them.
Receiving such sincerity, they couldn't help but move again even while grumbling.
But human stamina was finite.
Even when they gathered strength from heartfelt meals, they gradually wasted away under the crush of patients.
Amidst that, something a little strange happened.
Namgung Hyeoncheol was hovering around from time to time.
At first, it was about once a day.
But as time went on, the frequency increased to two, three times.
It was enough that Jeong Minsu quietly asked Taesu.
"Doesn't he have some kind of scheme?"
"Go ask him."
"Of course I asked. He said he came to see if we needed anything, so I couldn't say much."
"Then that's probably it."
Taesu answered indifferently.
That said, it wasn't that he wasn't bothered.
It seemed he was hovering not just around their side, but the other side as well.
"The tea leaf harvest is busy, yet he alone seems idle."
"Didn't he say he went to see if there was anything to help with over there too?"
"Yes. He came beside us while we were treating patients on the porch and said, 'Hmm, I see.'"
"Could he be a doctor?"
"I didn't smell any antiseptic. You know I have a nose like a ghost for that."
Kim Hyeokgwon was certain he wasn't.
It was extremely difficult to evade his radar.
If he wasn't a doctor, was he interested in them?
That thought crossed their minds.
But thoughts about Namgung Hyeoncheol didn't even last a minute a day.
Time flowed by so densely that no leeway to think of anything else existed at all.