46 – Second Surgery! Save the orphanage child!
“Lina! Erzebert hasn’t eaten anything since midnight yesterday, right?”
I asked the daycare teacher, Lina.
Tonsillectomy requires fasting from midnight the day before. If the patient vomits while the tonsils are being removed with their mouth open, it could cause serious breathing problems!
“Erzebert hasn’t eaten anything… What should we feed him?”
However, Lina seemed unsure about what to feed him.
“No, you did the right thing. Tonsillectomy requires fasting. We can proceed right away. Could you bring some hot water, please?”
Let’s start by sterilizing the surgical instruments.
Lina faithfully followed my instructions and went to get some hot water. After changing my mask, I looked at the child.
Struggling to breathe heavily, Erzebert looked at me with intense eyes.
“Can you trust this man and leave yourself in his hands?”
Nodding eagerly, Erzebert indicated his trust.
“Such a good kid.”
I gently stroked Erzebert’s black hair and held his hand.
Tonsillectomy is a relatively simple surgery.
It’s a surgery that finishes in 30 minutes to 1 hour. Just catch the swollen tonsils and cut them off.
But since it was my first time performing this surgery, I was nervous.
“Inhale, exhale. You can do it, Kim Chul-soo!”
Let’s not make mistakes!
Even if it’s slow, let’s do it carefully and safely.
Shortly after, Director Alfonso, Catherine, and Lina all returned.
The recovery room was warmed up with a heater.
Catherine brought some birch bark tea and fed it to Erzebert little by little.
Erzebert, who had been in pain, seemed to improve with the effects of the painkillers.
Nodding, I asked Director Alfonso.
“Erzebert is having trouble breathing. We plan to perform surgery. Would you agree?”
Since Director Alfonso was Erzebert’s guardian at the orphanage, I needed verbal consent for the surgery.
Director Alfonso nodded as if understanding the situation.
“If it can help the child get better, please go ahead.”
Alright.
With the director’s approval, there was no hesitation!
After sterilizing the surgical instruments in the hot water brought by Lina, I invoked sanctity!
Tss, tss, tss.
The surgical instruments were enveloped in sanctity and sterilized once again.
Good. Infection control is in place, let’s begin.
With a determined look, I raised the surgical instruments.
“Kim Cheol-soo, surgery mode on.”
Removing Erzébert’s tonsillitis.
“Miss Catherine! Please dampen the cloth and place it on the left side of the child’s mouth so he can’t close it. Director Alphonso and Lena, please make sure Erzébert doesn’t move.”
“I will do as you say.”
“Yes!
Even though he looks like an adult, he is not immune to surgical pain.
When I start cutting Erzébert’s tonsillitis with the scalpel, his body will twist in pain.
It’s different with the hero, Daisy.
Daisy, having been through numerous battles and trained to endure pain, is incomparable to this child.
I locked eyes with Erzébert.
“Just endure a little.”
Here we go.
Zzzt.
I generated a sacred light and inserted the forceps into Erzébert’s mouth (think of forceps roughly as tweezers!). The sacred light acted as a substitute for a light bulb, providing some visibility inside the mouth.
“Fortunately, Erzébert’s tonsillitis is only swollen on the right side.”
The left side is fine.
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I just need to remove the tonsillitis on the right side.
A large mass of inflammation on the right side is blocking the child’s small throat.
I asked Catherine.
“Ah~ Open your mouth. Catherine, please open Erzébert’s mouth.”
“Okay.”
Catherine held the child’s chin and head, opening the mouth.
“The child has good patience.”
Despite trembling, Erzébert was trying hard to endure.
Even if I haven’t worked in pediatrics, I’ve heard that children cry just from being held forcibly.
Are medieval children particularly strong?
But Erzébert flinched as the tonsillitis was firmly grasped by the forceps.
“…Kaha!”
Indeed, a child is a child.
Vulnerable to pain.
“I hope you can endure, Erzébert.”
I prayed silently as I lifted the inflamed mass (tonsillitis) with the forceps and brought it to the ground!
Once I cut the bottom of the swollen mass, it will be over.
I brought down a medical-grade cutting tool like scissors. It was given to me by Mateo before he left. Made of materials safe for the human body.
“Gracious Mateo!”
Thanks to Mateo, I can perform the surgery now!
Gratefully, I cleanly cut the bottom of the white inflamed mass.
As a portion of the inflamed mass tore away, Erzébert’s body trembled violently!
“Ugh… Ugh… Ugh!!”
“Oh no, hold him tightly!”
Director Alfonso and Ms. Lina firmly held onto Erzebet.
Erzebet shivered uncontrollably, her breathing becoming heavy.
Darn it, even with painkillers, it must still hurt.
Well, of course, without anesthesia!
I paused for a moment, halting the surgery.
I was trembling at the thought of a wrong move potentially causing Erzebet’s hard palate to be injured by the sharp scalpel blade!
“Hoo… hoo…”
Yet, as time passed, it seemed like the pain had eased.
Seeing Erzebet’s condition slightly improving, I resumed the surgery.
When Erzebet writhed in agony, I had a clear idea of how to cleanly remove the inflamed mass.
“Let’s do it in one go.”
Snip… snip… snip!
Gradually, the inflamed mass detached from Erzebet’s mouth.
Erzebet trembled violently, tears welling up in her eyes!
“Uhh… uhh!”
Her mouth was attempting to close.
It was getting narrow, making it difficult to operate!
“Erzebet… Miss Catherine!”
“Yes! Ugh… the child’s jaw strength is too much!”
“Erzebet… we’re almost done. Just a little more, open wider.”
“Uhh…”
Trembling, Erzebet barely managed to open her mouth.
The inflamed mass wobbled, almost completely detached.
Fortunately, Erzebet opened her mouth wider, making it visible inside.
Now is the time!
Snip, snip!
I completely cut off the wobbling inflamed mass.
I removed the inflamed tonsil, now fully separated from Erzebet, and placed it on a cloth outside!
“Phew!”
Done.
Success!
I successfully removed Erzebet’s tonsillitis!
Feeling exhilarated, I quickly illuminated Erzebet’s mouth with a sacred light!
Perhaps due to her young age, the area that was cleanly cut (where the tonsillitis was) did not bleed.
“Whew, it’s over!”
“T-the meaning of that…?”
“It means we’ve removed the disease obstructing Erzebet’s breathing!”
I replied to Director Alfonso’s inquiry.
A successful surgery!
Assistant:
Still trembling, Erzebet didn’t know if the surgery was still ongoing.
It was all over.
Erzebet’s breathing noticeably stabilized.
A hopeful and bright energy seemed to emanate from Director Alfonso and Lina’s faces!
* * * *
Erzebet is an orphan of war.
She unfortunately found herself swept into the battlefield between demons and humans, escaping the hands of terrifying soldiers and making her way into the human territory.
Many villagers wanted to kill her because of her cursed skin color.
But resilient Erzebet resisted and ran away.
Perhaps the stroke of luck was being discovered by the kind priest Alfonso.
By chance, Director Alfonso stumbled upon the heavily wounded Erzebet and took pity on her, bringing her to the Merhen Orphanage.
Erzebet liked the Merhen Orphanage.
The director and the caregivers were kind and didn’t kick Erzebet out.
They didn’t discriminate against her because of her skin color.
“So… I shouldn’t cause any trouble.”
Erzebet was mature beyond her years.
She knew that her current kindness was a stroke of luck.
She also knew that the orphanage was in a very difficult situation.
She didn’t want to burden the orphanage for no reason.
“I hate that.”
Erzebet shook her head.
She didn’t want to be driven out of the place she liked for the first time in her life.
As the cool autumn passed and the chilly winter approached, Erzebet’s body weakened.
In the orphanage where there was not enough food, Erzebet gradually grew weaker.
She had to resort to stealing to have a meal a day.
Eventually, Erzebet’s tonsils began to swell, and she found it difficult to breathe for no apparent reason.
She felt a large foreign object in her throat.
In this era where surgery hadn’t developed properly, it was an unknown disease with an unknown cause.
“…Pus.”
It was difficult to breathe.
Could she die suffocating like this?
Like the heartless winter, Erzebet sensed death.
Erzebet became too weak to escape from the recovery room.
But if she could close her eyes in the orphanage she loved, maybe it wouldn’t be so unfair.
The child who had learned the feeling of resignation didn’t complain.
She just quietly endured the pain.
She encountered a man with yellow skin.
How much time had passed?
The man with yellow skin, who suddenly appeared, said he would fix Erzebet as if he had known her for a long time.
“I will cure your illness!”
A yellow-skinned therapist spoke confidently.
Erzebert nodded slightly.
Erzebert did not trust the yellow-skinned therapist.
Perhaps he was just a commoner trying to save the insignificant Erzebert.
He simply did not refuse the kindness of the unfamiliar therapist.
“Ugh…!”
Erzebert let out a faint scream.
The surgery was excruciatingly painful.