Even though I was being called a villain…
I didn't stop.
No, it would be more accurate to say I couldn't stop.
At this point, shouldn't I at least try to save people?
"But if it's an experiment, I can't just sit back."
"I'll join in too. I know a lot of bad guys."
Moreover, Liston and Blundell were already excited.
These lunatics.
Is this really something to be excited about?
Objectively, it's something that could benefit me too, but…
How should I put it?
"Eat it!"
"P-please, save me!"
"Aaaah!"
They were prisoners brought from the jail.
As I've said many times before, Dr. Liston is the one who amputated the police chief's mother's leg.
Of course, under normal circumstances, that would make him an enemy, but fortunately, he used anesthesia, and although he didn't disinfect properly, she survived and he became her savior.
Most doctors might become saviors like that, but they'd only be called upon in unavoidable situations. Liston was different.
-If there are any prisoners with severe syphilis, send them over.
He boldly walked into the police station and said this.
A proper police chief would have been outraged at the idea of treating prisoners like that, but the chief was a bit of an oddball himself.
-As many as you need!
As many as you need? Really?
He was openly declaring that he was going to conduct human experiments, and instead of arresting him, the chief was actively supporting him.
Thanks to that, the number of syphilis patients in the hospital skyrocketed.
And they were all tied up, hands and feet.
"Save me! Dr. Pyeong! Please save me!"
At the same time, they were all shouting at me.
Liston wasn't exactly the kind of person you'd beg for mercy from.
Well, looking at his face, you'd probably beg for mercy even without a reason…
But it didn't seem like he'd actually save you, right?
Blundell's face wasn't as bad as Liston's, but it wasn't exactly friendly either.
Compared to them, I was young and small, so they probably thought I was more approachable.
'I'm sorry… Actually, I was the one who brought this up…'
If I said something like that, I'd probably be killed, so I pretended not to hear.
"Ugh, ugh!"
Meanwhile, some of them were being force-fed pieces of moldy bread.
Watching that, I felt a strange sensation as I remembered the effort I put into producing that rotten bread.
Someday, we'll be able to extract the active ingredient and mass-produce it, but…
For now, that feels like an impossible dream.
We just had to lay out the bread and wait for it to rot under the same conditions.
Occasionally, I wondered if it was okay for me, as a doctor and scientist, to be doing this.
But no better ideas came to mind.
-How's it going?
I even consulted a chemist at one point.
I thought he might be able to create arsenic compounds, but the only experiments he could do were things like burning or soaking arsenic in acid, so it was hard to expect immediate results.
Honestly, letting bread rot seemed like the most promising treatment…
"Ugh… Please, have mercy. I'll never… I'll never commit a crime again!"
Thinking like that made me feel less guilty about shoving bread into the desperate prisoner's mouth.
Besides, the sign around his neck said he was a murderer.
In a time when the arrest rate was abysmally low, being caught as a murderer meant he had committed some heinous crimes.
"Eat it. This is medicine."
"Just… just kill me instead!"
Moreover, I was in the middle of treatment.
It's called an experiment, but I had already confirmed the efficacy of this bread through Killian, hadn't I?
This was a treatment that was over a century ahead of its time.
"Ugh, ugh!"
And so, bread was forced into the mouths of all seven prisoners.
I might have been rushing a bit.
'Killian's recovery might have been a coincidence. The probability is low, but it can't be completely ruled out.'
Theoretically, nothing has been proven, right?
Of course, I confirmed that the bread killed the bacteria in the wound and that Killian recovered.
But…
I hadn't seen it under a microscope, and I couldn't even be sure if the mold growing on this rotten bread was the same as the one before.
In fact, some of the mold from bread left in other areas—like the senior's house—didn't kill the bacteria in the wound.
To the naked eye, they looked the same, but considering that…
'This might not even be the same mold… That's what I'm saying.'
But what could I do now that they'd already eaten it?
I just shook my head and left the room.
"You bastards!"
"You'll pay for this!"
"Die!"
A flood of curses followed me.
I could understand.
They were violent criminals scheduled for execution, so it's not like they had good personalities.
And I'd just fed them rotten bread…
Honestly, it was a bit scary, but Liston wasn't fazed.
"Should we gag them? They're too noisy."
"Should we?"
Blundell was the same.
These scary guys.
"Oh, by the way, how are those phantom pain patients doing?"
"Phantom pain? Ah… those patients? Yeah, that's a good name. Haha. Very good. Very good. Not all, but most are responding well."
"That's good. Should we go see them?"
"Sure."
I wanted to forget about the prisoners for a bit and see something positive.
Fortunately, Liston was more interested in the phantom pain patients, so it wasn't too difficult.
He was practically mass-producing phantom pain patients, wasn't he?
Even now, he was amputating limbs every day, so it was inevitable.
Snip.
Snip.
He was cutting away relentlessly.
"Ugh…"
"It hurts…"
We passed the amputation ward on the way.
Even though I had made sure they were routinely given willow bark tea, there were still a lot of screams.
It couldn't be helped.
It's an amputation, after all.
Even if they were given proper aspirin, it wouldn't be perfect, and this was just brewed tea.
If they took too much, it wouldn't work at all, so I was giving them small doses, which made the effect even weaker.
"It's gotten quieter, hasn't it?"
People react differently to the same thing, and I was feeling that deeply here.
Liston chuckled at the screams.
He was different from me, who was looking for ways to improve.
It was natural.
Didn't I know I could be much more at ease?
'If only we had Ultracet or Percodan…'
In 21st-century Korea, there would be far fewer patients needing amputations, and even if they did, they wouldn't suffer this much.
Even without those drugs, there's spinal anesthesia, right?
In terms of effectiveness and safety, there's no comparison.
"It's much better than before, isn't it? Thank you."
In contrast, Liston had seen so much suffering in his life that he seemed satisfied with the current state of things.
"Should we use some too?"
Blundell was even envious.
It was a natural reaction, so I didn't say anything.
It's not like they were the type to listen anyway.
"It's much better."
"Thank you… Doctor."
"I heard Dr. Pyeong came up with this method. Thank you so much…"
The phantom pain ward was peaceful.
The mirror therapy was quite effective, and they were also taking medication, so it was inevitable.
Besides, these patients had their amputations a while ago, so their pain levels weren't as severe as those in the amputation ward.
Of course, some were still suffering from sharp pain…
'There's nothing I can do, not now.'
I had become accustomed to the 19th century and had learned to give up.
No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't overcome the limitations of the era, and I was starting to understand that not just in my head, but in my heart.
"Whew."
Feeling better, I headed to the dissection lab.
As always, Joseph, Alfred, and recently Colin, who had joined their ranks, were engrossed in the assignments I had given them.
"I'm not good at this."
"It's because it's rotten. I'm struggling too."
"Is that so?"
"No, your hands are just rotten."
"Me, me too?"
"Hmm."
Surprisingly…
Colin was the best.
With his noble pride and the absence of those who used to flatter him, his skills had started to improve, and he had talent to begin with.
'He has good hands.'
Joseph was strong, and Alfred was diligent, making them good assistants, but…
'I want to train this guy as my disciple.'
Of course, it's not like those without good hands couldn't become surgeons.
In fact, it hadn't been long enough to judge their talents…
But that also meant Colin's talent was exceptional.
"Did I… not do well?"
He didn't realize it.
This lunatic.
He had almost perfectly replicated what he'd seen once, yet he was hesitating.
In fact, the difficulty level was probably higher than when I did it.
Because it was more rotten.
In a situation where cadavers weren't infinitely available, it was really hard to learn anything.
I realized here that cadavers rot surprisingly quickly.
"No, you did well. You have talent."
"Oh…? What's with the sudden praise…?"
"I'm always honest. You have talent."
"Th… thank you."
"Thank me?"
Even though I was stating a fact, he was still a bit shy.
Considering what he did to me at first, it's understandable…
'Isn't it unusual for people in this era in England to not be racist?'
Most people didn't even consider others as equals, right?
Those who had been abroad or at least met foreign nobles were better, but others weren't.
In that context, he was actually quite decent.
"Don't be like that. Let's do more. Today… it's the fingers. You'll see how they can move like this… through dissection."
So I patted his shoulder and moved my fingers.
It was nothing special, just wiggling them like playing the piano.
Anyone could do it.
But when you think about how this is possible, and how much precision it would take to replicate this movement in a robot, it's actually a miracle.
"Let's see how amazing God's design is."
Personally, I was originally an atheist, but…
When dissecting, I could feel a bit of divine providence.
It was so incredible that it felt like it couldn't have happened by chance.
At least when you first learn, that's how it feels.
"Oh…"
"How is this possible?"
"Oh, Lord."
And these guys were truly devout.
Naturally, they were seeking God.
'I wonder how those prisoners are doing tomorrow.'
I thought about the ones I had fed the rotten bread to.
Forget recovery, I just hoped they were still alive.