I ran as fast as I could toward the settlement, carrying my patient on my back. The distance from the hemp fields to the settlement was pretty far. My patient could die from blood loss.
I kept running through the forest. Strangely enough, I didn't feel tired at all. I wasn't sure if it was the adrenaline or my new body, but it was amazing.
Once Ingrid and I reached the settlement, we headed straight for the clinic.
On the way, we ran into Ingmar and a bald man, whose face seemed familiar. Ingmar looked confused when he saw me carrying a woman with an arrow stuck in her.
He was the last person I wanted to see.
"Who's that woman?" Ingmar asked, curious.
"Someone I found in the forest. I'll explain later. She needs help."
I quickly ran past Ingmar, heading to the clinic. Honestly, I wanted to avoid him too because I knew he'd bombard me with a ton of questions.
I could deal with him later, but Ingmar and the bald guy followed us.
"Hey, Maikal, what if Ingmar finds out what we're doing?" Ingrid whispered as she ran.
"We'll talk about that after we treat the patient."
For now, I had to push aside all other problems and focus on my patient. I didn't want anything clouding my mind while I treated her.
I laid my patient down on the bed once we reached the clinic. To my surprise, Ingmar walked in too.
"What are you doing here?" I asked.
"Of course, I wanna know what happens. I'm the one in charge here, and you suddenly bring a stranger into my settlement."
Shit. The situation was getting worse.
I glanced at Ingrid, hoping she had an idea of how to explain what happened in the forest. Because if she didn't, Ingmar might kick her out of the settlement. And I couldn't let that happen.
"Does that even matter right now? If someone needs help, I have to help them. Her situation is just like Varin's."
Seeing Ingmar just staring at me without responding made me a bit nervous. Especially the bald guy next to him. Just by looking at his face, I could tell he didn't like this woman.
"Fine. Save her first. We'll talk about it later," Ingmar said.
I let out a relieved sigh, glad I managed to convince him.
"Come on, Ingrid. You're coming with me. We need to talk," Ingmar continued.
"O-okay."
Ingrid looked panicked when she heard her brother's order. She asked me for help, her face said it all.
Before Ingmar could take his sister away, I grabbed her hand. Ingmar looked confused with my action.
"I need someone to help me with surgery. Ingrid can assist me." I winked at her, signaling her to agree.
"Yeah. I can help him."
I was the one who caused this mess. I couldn't let Ingrid take all the blame.
But the bald guy pushed me aside.
"Get your filthy hands off her!" he snapped.
Ingrid gritted her teeth as I hit the ground. She pushed the bald guy back, but he didn't budge an inch.
"Who do you think you are, ordering me around!" Ingrid yelled.
The bald guy seemed surprised by her reaction.
I was as shocked as him was. Who would've thought the woman who once beat me to a pulp would be the one standing up for me?
"Enough, both of you! I don't want any problem while my father's away."
Once Ingmar stepped in, everyone in the room went silent. Ingrid and the bald guy lowered their heads.
In my mind, I wondered. Just how much power does Ingmar have to make them obey like puppies?
"Ingrid, help Maikal." Ingmar turned his attention to the bald guy. "And you, Sigurd, don't do anything unless I tell you to."
"Sorry, boss."
Finally, Ingmar and the bald guy named Sigurd left the clinic.
Breathing felt much easier without them around. Now it was just me, Ingrid, and the mysterious woman who needed my help.
Ingrid still seemed caught up in the tense atmosphere from earlier. She furrowed her brows and bit her lip.
"Okay, Ingrid. I know you're still worried about what happened in the forest, but I need you to calm down. We can deal with the Omvrik Clan later. But for now, I need your help."
Ingrid nodded. "Yeah. I get it."
She took a deep breath, trying to steady herself.
Once she seemed calm, I asked her to fetch me a needle, thread, a pipe, a knife, some mead, and any clean cloth that could soak up as much water as possible. My medical kit wasn't ready yet since I'd just made the request to the blacksmith, Erik, yesterday.
Meanwhile, I started a fire and prepared a large cauldron to brew my first anesthesia concoction. I also boiled some water to sterilize the tools.
THC in regular cannabis is usually around 15%, while hemp only has about 0.5%. If each gram of cannabis contains 15% THC, then I'd need to use 30 grams of hemp.
Of course, this was just an assumption.
"I've gotta try it."
While I was brewing the hemp, I heard my patient groan in pain. I immediately went to check on her.
"Where am I? I need to go. They're going to kill me!"
The woman started to get up, trying to leave, but I held her down before her injury could get worse.
"Hey, hey. Calm down. No one here wants to kill you here. You're safe."
"Gull! That woman wants to kill me!"
She looked shocked and confused. After I tried to calm her down, she finally lay back down.
"Don't worry. Whoever Gull is, she's not going to come after you. I'm here to save you. Literally."
Not long after, Ingrid returned with the supplies I needed. I cringed every time I saw the needle. This would be my second time doing sutures with a sewing needle.
Once the brew turned a yellowish-green, I had Ingrid pour it into a cup. I didn't mix it with the mead right away since that could evaporate the alcohol, so I let it rest first.
Meanwhile, I sterilized all the tools I'd use for the surgery by soaking them in boiling water at 100°C.
Ingrid helped me remove the patient's clothing and covered her with a large cloth, leaving an opening around the wound for surgery.
"Okay. We're ready."
I helped the patient drink the hemp-mead mixture. Honestly, I had no idea if it would work. If I were in the modern era, the patient's family would probably sue me for malpractice.
But in this case, I had no other options. Besides, performing surgery without anesthesia would almost certainly cause trauma, possibly leading to death.
"How are you feeling?" I asked.
The woman just nodded in response. Not long after, she passed out.
"What's happening to her?" Ingrid asked.
"She's asleep."
Or worst case, she fainted from anemia*.
I checked her pulse and breathing. Her vital signs were normal. Guess I could proceed with the surgery.
"Hey, Ingrid, can you describe the arrowhead for me?"
Ingrid frowned when she heard my question. "It's shaped like a triangle."
"I see."
So there were two sharp points aside from the tip. That meant I'd need to make incisions in the flesh first before pulling the arrow out.
"You're going to remove the arrow, right? Why not just pull it out?" Ingrid asked, curious.
"No. That's dangerous."
Here's why I couldn't just yank the arrow out of her side.
The two barbs of the arrow could tear through other tissues. If I pulled it carelessly, I might accidentally damage intact blood vessels, leading to heavy bleeding.
"Alright. Time to start the surgery."
I grabbed the knife—or more like a dagger. As I carefully sliced the skin around the wound, I kept an eye on the patient's face, making sure she wasn't feeling any pain. And she looked peaceful.
As I made a two-centimeter incision, I saw the barb poking out of the cut. Then, I made another incision on the opposite side.
Both barbs of the arrow were now visible.
"Ingrid, did you thread the needle?" I asked.
"Yeah, I've done it."
Blood started seeping out as I slowly pulled the arrow. I had already checked with "Spatial Visualization" before bringing her to the settlement. The arrow hadn't damaged her kidneys or major blood vessels. The surgery should go smoothly.
"Once I pull out the arrow, I'll just need to suture the incisions," I mumbled.
But, of course, shit always happens.
As soon as I removed the arrow from her side, blood gushed out violently. It splattered on my face so much I couldn't even see.
The arrow had punctured an artery. It probably tore the blood vessel when she jolted awake earlier.
The woman had survived this long because the arrow was blocking the bleeding. When I pulled it out, the object stopping the blood flow was gone, causing the blood to flow again.
If I didn't stop the bleeding immediately, this woman would lose her life.