A Hospital in Another World?

A buzz sounded in Garrett Nordmark’s forehead.

Marfan syndrome—through family medical history and repeated observations, Garrett had confirmed this—the patient, after vigorous exercise, clutched their chest in agony and fell to the ground, unable to rise again—a high probability of a cardiovascular disease attack!

It is known that patients with Marfan syndrome largely have congenital cardiovascular abnormalities!

He sprinted towards the patient. As he ran, he rapidly went through a checklist in his mind. Angina? Acute myocardial infarction? Cardiogenic shock? Or something worse...

Regardless, if it was just a severe arrhythmia or cardiac arrest, as long as immediate cardiopulmonary resuscitation was performed, many could be saved!

His eyes fixed unblinkingly on Knight Hopman, who had collapsed on the ground, curled up, making it impossible to see if his chest was rising and falling. Was he breathing? Were his lips cyanotic? Was there cold sweat? Too far to see clearly, he needed to get closer...

Just a few steps out, his arms were simultaneously gripped tight. Andrew Lynn was on his left, Aurora Worton on his right, each grabbing one of his hands, forcefully dragging him back:

"What are you doing!"

"Let go of me! I need to save him! He’ll die soon if we don’t!"

"What does his dying have to do with you!" Andrew Lynn almost wished he could cover Garrett’s mouth. He stood in front of Garrett, pressed down on his shoulders, and forcefully pushed him back. While pushing, he leaned forward, stared into Garrett’s eyes, and roared:

"He didn’t die by your hand! It was his own request to duel! You stopped the moment he fell! The three of us, along with Bernard, and my two magical pets, none of us hurt him!"

Just after he finished shouting, a person had already rushed over from beside the dueling ground. The old man’s beard was almost entirely white, yet he ran quickly, reaching Knight Hopman in a blink. He knelt on both knees, prayed for a moment, and then a beam of white light fell on the knight.

It was Knight Hopman’s granduncle. Although the old man was aged, his priest level was not to be underestimated, with three silver lines shining on the hem of his robe, clearly indicating an 8th-level priest. Garrett’s steps had just slowed when the old man turned his head and bellowed at him:

"What are you doing here? Want to harm him further? Get out!"

Garrett paused. An 8th-level priest, really quite powerful, should... be able to cure him, right?

But sudden cardiac death was still very dangerous... Without proper resuscitation, if the heart couldn’t be restarted, relying solely on healing spells, it’s uncertain how long they could last... That old man was only praying, not performing any external chest compressions...

I’ll just take a look... Just a look...

Garrett hesitantly wanted to step forward. Andrew Lynn pulled him back again:

"What else do you want to do?—Are you confident you can save him?"

In an instant, all of Garrett’s strength drained, his shoulders slumping powerlessly.

No confidence.

Really no confidence.

Without an ECG, echocardiography, MRI, cardiac catheterization, and aortography, he couldn’t even determine what the patient was suffering from. Marfan syndrome’s cardiovascular abnormalities are varied and extensive, virtually a comprehensive catalogue of cardiovascular diseases:

Progressive dilation of the aorta, aortic valve insufficiency, aortic sinus aneurysm, dissection and rupture of the artery, mitral valve prolapse, mitral insufficiency, tricuspid insufficiency, congenital atrial septal defect, ventricular septal defect, Tetralogy of Fallot, patent ductus arteriosus, coarctation of the aorta...

If luck was really bad, encountering an aortic aneurysm bursting or an aortic dissection tearing, haha.

Even in a hospital emergency department, with full resuscitation equipment, watching someone collapse and immediately being taken to surgery, there’s still a high chance they can’t be saved. Aortic rupture is just that deadly.

—Let alone in this other world, where there’s no monitoring of vital signs, no extracorporeal circulation, and even if you wanted to give a blood transfusion, there’s nowhere to do it!

"If you don’t have the diamond drill, don’t expect to handle porcelain work!"

"If you’re not confident, transfer to another hospital! Don’t you even know to do that?!"

"Why did the person die just like that?!"

"If you intervened, and he died, the patient’s family would sue you! If you didn’t touch him, and he died, it has nothing to do with you! Are you stupid

?"

The various scoldings and roars he had heard over more than a decade in his previous life echoed in Garrett’s ears once again. He lowered his arms, bowed his head, and silently let out a long sigh.

—As a doctor, given even the slightest possibility, he also wanted to save the patient’s life. But sometimes, for various reasons, doctors could only choose to protect themselves...

And those patients, often, weren’t even a part of those "various reasons."

The treatment continued ahead. The old priest knelt on the ground, his hands clasped in front of his chest, his expression devout. White light fell on Knight Hopman again and again, at times a straight beam, at times a gentle rain of light, and at times a ball of light cupped in hands, silently entering the knight’s chest.

Each time the light fell, Knight Hopman seemed to get a bit better, even struggling to sit up once, but just as he got halfway up, he collapsed back down...

A half-circle of people gradually formed around. On one side led by the Countess, on the other by Master Tolga, each with a grave expression. Master Tolga was even secretly waving at Garrett, making eye gestures, signaling him not to come over: Stand far away! Don’t cause trouble!

Under the grandmaster’s gesture, even the barbarian Bernard didn’t dare to come straight over, taking a large detour with the black cat and golden skeleton to meet up with Garrett from afar. They looked on from a distance, and Andrew Lynn even specifically instructed the barbarian:

"Bernard, keep an eye on your boss! Don’t let him go over! He still wants to treat that knight!"

Bernard responded with a rough voice, standing beside Garrett, a large palm directly on Garrett’s shoulder. He didn’t even need to exert force; just this casual touch made Garrett feel his right shoulder collapse. He gave a bitter smile and raised his left hand:

"Alright, I promise not to go over—can you let go now? You’re going to crush me!"

"You’d better remember your promise." Andrew Lynn huffed, waving at Bernard. The barbarian finally let go, still staring at Garrett unblinkingly, as if ready to carry him away at the slightest sign of trouble.

But Garrett was already not paying attention to him. Thirty or forty steps away, the frequency of the healing spells became faster and faster, yet the patient showed no signs of improvement. When human efforts are exhausted, once the old priest’s healing spells are depleted, and the patient’s condition still hasn’t improved, I’m afraid...

"Do you think he can be cured?"

A somewhat distant voice asked. Garrett slightly raised his head, seeing Master Tolga holding his daughter, making a gesture to him. A continuous breeze, unbroken and threadlike, carried the sound directly to his ear, the people nearby oblivious.

Garrett shook his head slightly. Although the people next to the grandmaster probably couldn’t hear, he still habitually lowered his voice:

"Hard to say, depends on the cause. If we’re lucky, he could be saved, but if we’re unlucky..."

If we’re unlucky, and the aortic aneurysm burst or the aorta tore, not stopping the bleeding, not transfusing blood, not replacing a section of artificial blood vessel, what use is just hanging on with healing spells?

As they talked, the old priest was already drenched in sweat, on the verge of collapse, water dripping from his hair and beard. Under the white light, Knight Hopman lay flat on the ground, his complexion pale, his lips devoid of any color, clearly showing signs of excessive blood loss...

Did the aorta rupture? Can’t be that unlucky, right!

The Countess’s face turned pale, pulling and tugging at Count Inverness’s wrist a couple of times, taking a small crystal bottle from the Count’s hand, and quickly pouring it down the old priest’s throat. With the help of the potion, the old priest managed to cast a few more healing spells, finally running out of energy, closing his eyes to catch his breath.

"He’s going to die."

Beside Garrett, Aurora and Andrew Lynn said in unison. Aurora tiptoed, leaning forward to look, while Andrew Lynn half-closed his eyes, seemingly sensing the dying breath of the other knight. Garrett remained silent, while the Countess had already knelt down, trying to check her nephew’s breathing, then leaning over to listen to his heartbeat—

She let out a sharp, piercing high-pitched scream. Lifting her skirt, she rushed at Garrett:

"You killed him!—You killed him!"

"Lady, please mind your manners!" Seraina immediately stood in front of her stepmother. She unsheathed her sword, blocking the Countess from advancing any further, clearly lacking any martial prowess. She flung herself onto the sword, pointing sharply at Garrett, as if dripping blood:

"You

killed my nephew! Killed the heir of the Hopman family! The Hopman family will not let you go!"

Garrett remained silent. He really disliked Knight Hopman’s behavior. Dislike aside, he didn’t wish for his death, much less provoke him into dueling himself and dying on the spot. I do not kill Boren, but Boren dies because of me...

He silently listened to the Countess’s accusations, not wanting to retort a single word. Master Tolga, however, was already furious:

"Lady, please watch your words! Knight Hopman died during a lawful duel, suddenly collapsing, dying of his own accord! So many eyes were watching, the moment he fell, Mage Nordmark’s side stopped, causing no further harm!

—Count Inverness, do you acknowledge the legality of the duel?!"

Count Inverness’s face was as still as water, pulling his wife behind him. As one of the duel’s witnesses, his presence was part of the duel’s legality:

Three witnesses, Priest Farley representing the knight’s side, Master Tolga representing Garrett’s side, and he, as the highest-ranking noble present and the father of the host, undoubtedly represented the local authority. As the landlord, he should uphold justice, yet it was his wife who caused the commotion!

TMD that little beast was even flirting with his daughter during the battle! If not for his daughter’s strong character, refusing to break the knight’s code by fighting two against one, he himself would have already entered the fray!

"Shut up!"

He shouted at his wife, turning to the public:

"I witness: Knight Hopman collapsed suddenly during a lawful duel, dying of his own accord. Mage Nordmark did nothing inappropriate. No one shall use this as a reason to accuse or retaliate against Mage Nordmark’s side!"

"That won’t stop some from breaking the rules." Master Tolga snorted on the side. Without waiting for the Count’s response, he strode forward, grabbing Garrett:

"Let’s go! Immediately return to the city with me! Once we reach the Mage Tower, we’ll be safe!"

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