A Hospital in Another World? C.154

Updat𝒆d fr𝑜m fr𝒆ewebnove(l).com

With the support of pure oxygen (?), the tug-of-war between healing spells and the ailment finally broke the deadlock. Elder Wood maintained the pure oxygen (?) bubble spell, while the level 5 priest beside him continuously chanted healing spells, successfully suppressing the patient’s symptoms.

After finishing the treatment and sending away the patient, Elder Wood looked at Garrett Nordmark with eyes that had suddenly risen by 60 degrees Celsius.

If it was around 40 degrees before, like comfortably warm water, with the impression of "Oh, a disciple from a faraway place," after Garrett demonstrated his skills, it instantly skyrocketed to 100 degrees Celsius, bubbling and on the verge of boiling.

Elder Wood was inherently mild-mannered. This amiable old man stared at the glass tube in his hand, his eyes eager to fly out of their sockets, itching to examine the gas inside the tube with his fingertips. However, after several glances, he averted his gaze and handed the glass tube back:

"Thank you! Hmm, you are Garrett Nordmark, Elwin’s disciple, right?"

Garrett quickly handed over the letter. Elder Wood scrutinized it page by page, both surprised and amused:

"Acting as both a priest and a mage? Delaying the Magic Council’s training to combat the plague? Even going to the battlefield with it?—Not bad, not bad. Elwin has taken in a good apprentice." His gaze towards Garrett became even more affectionate:

"Your teacher has been a good friend of mine for many years. He asked me to continue teaching you divine magic. From now on, you’ll be like being by your teacher’s side while you’re with me. If you have any doubts or need assistance, just ask."

"I do have something to ask for the Elder’s help." Garrett seized this opportunity, eager to continue:

"Today in the academy, my teacher assigned a research project..."

He narrated his experiences today in detail. Elder Wood initially listened with a smiling face, but as Garrett expressed his speculations and concerns, his expression turned serious. When Garrett finished sharing his guesses and worries, Elder Wood frowned, glanced at the door, and the kind smile vanished from his chubby face:

"What you say makes sense. Recently, I’ve treated several patients who went into the mountains to catch bats. I’ll write a letter now to remind acquaintances in the council."

"Writing a letter from the Elder would be great." Garrett sighed in relief:

"But I think we still need to prove the connection between these diseases and bats, or at least demonstrate a high likelihood of getting sick when in close contact with bats. Otherwise, I’m afraid convincing those mages will be difficult. They might think that adventurers falling ill has other causes."

"Hmmm..." Elder Wood pondered. He unconsciously twirled his beard as he contemplated. The black and white intertwined beard curled around his index finger, getting tighter and tighter. Seeing this, Garrett was worried that the beard might be plucked off directly.

Fortunately, Elder Wood was accustomed to this movement. After circling clockwise seven or eight times, just as the beard reached its limit, he began to twist counterclockwise. After several rounds back and forth, he finally looked up and asked Garrett directly:

"What’s your plan?"

"I have some plans, but I can’t do it alone; I need help." Garrett had already formulated a plan before setting out, refining and expanding it several times on the way. Now, he presented it smoothly without stumbling. As he spoke, he couldn’t help but marvel silently—if only he had this eloquence when applying for research projects back in the day, maybe he would have pursued a career in research:

"My plan is divided into two parts. First, research the current patients. Elder, please contact nearby healers to investigate their cases. If we can find a batch of patients among those who recently had close contact with bats, and their symptoms are similar, we can preliminarily conclude that bats can cause illness. 𝗳r𝐞𝐞w𝐞bn𝚘ve𝚕.co𝐦

Especially for adventurers who go into the mountains to catch bats, the shopkeepers and staff who sell bats, and mages studying bats, if they all have similar cases, the evidence becomes more apparent."

Elder Wood nodded gently. He released his twisted beard and blew on his fingers—indeed, a white strand of beard fell off. The old man regretfully looked at his fingertip, then raised his head, presenting a steady and reliable expression:

"That makes sense. You don’t know the local healers; I’ll contact them. And the second part?"

"Experimentation." Garrett finally got to the crux of his plea:

"My plan is to find live bats, various types, and keep them with different healthy animals to see if those animals get sick. We need to choose various animals, rabbits, sheep, horses, pigs, and preferably monkeys.

Also, considering we don’t know how bats transmit illness, I suggest finding additional animals and letting them come into contact with bat saliva, urine, feces, or be bitten by blood-sucking bats..."

Garrett spoke for several minutes. As Elder Wood’s astonishment grew, he smiled apologetically and finally concluded his speech:

"Now, bats in the market have already risen to five gold coins each... I can’t afford them, and I have no place to keep them. I can’t afford so many animals, and there’s no one to take care of them, so..."

He spread his hands, looking at Elder Wood with a fervent and pleading gaze, conveying a clear message:

"I’m relying on you."

Elder Wood once again began to twirl his beard. He traversed the width of the room from east to west and then from west to east, measuring it twice. Suddenly turning around, he asked:

"The disease adventurers contracted may have nothing to do with bats."

"Yes, I know." Garrett replied calmly. Elder Wood nodded:

"If you capture so many animals and study so many bats, there’s a possibility of not getting any results in the end."

"The possibility is high." Garrett agreed with his opinion. Not obtaining results was the most probable outcome. The Nature’s Divine Sect had limited financial resources, and the experimental animals they used might not be suitable, or the disease could be directly transmitted from bats to humans without any intermediary host.

Or, it could just be bad luck—no encounter with the transmission probability, or no observation of signs of animals getting sick—

Garrett’s gaze was too clear and too tranquil. Elder Wood couldn’t help but look at him for a moment longer, then raised a third question:

"It’s possible that after those mages mess with bats, no one gets sick in the end."

"That would be the best-case scenario." Garrett didn’t hesitate. If no one fell ill due to bats in the end, he would be joyful even if the whole endeavor ended up being ridiculed.

Elder Wood looked at him deeply once again. Then, the old man transferred the oak staff to his left hand, extended his right palm, and patted Garrett heavily:

"You’re good. A true healer. So, bats, other animals, and the people to take care of them—I’ll handle it for you. You settle down here—oh, no, you have to attend the Magic Council’s training..."

"Then go back and rent a house, make sure it’s spacious enough for about two hundred animals. Tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, at most three days, people and goods will be there!"

"Thank you so much, Elder!" Garrett was genuinely grateful. Elder Wood casually waved his hand, "It’s nothing! The Guild can afford this money, and besides, if you achieve something, the money can be reimbursed from the Magic Council!"

"Ah?!" Garrett, who had just successfully negotiated with the White Wolf empty-handed, was momentarily stunned, humbly accepting the offer.

"Alright, you just wait to gather people and goods—anything else you need?"

"Well, I also need some means to isolate people from bats. Since I know they are dangerous, it’s not good if I get infected myself. It would be best if they can’t bite me or spit on me. If an animal sneezes, I won’t inhale anything..."

Garrett replied nervously. In reality, he wanted to set up a P4 laboratory, or at the very least, a monkey version. For example, a negative pressure airtight chamber with an interlocking airlock, an exhaust pump, filtration, and burning the gases from the red zone. Without natural gas, he could consider hard burning, like Garrett’s modified Burning Hand...

But the rented house definitely couldn’t handle such modifications. Even if he could afford a new house, the remodeling would be a massive project. Forget it, maybe he could ask if there were isolation suits available.

"You’ve thought it through." Elder Wood praised. He frowned in thought for a moment, "What you said makes sense. Wait a moment, I’ll go get..."

He turned and went inside. After a while, he came back with a pile of dusty clothes, handing them to Garrett, "Try these on, see if they fit?"

Garrett examined each item. A black, thick hat with a broad brim that could almost cover his eyes.

Thick gloves that felt like he wouldn’t be able to do anything once he put them on.

Clear glass eyeglasses, the quality of the glass was questionable, with some bubbles and cracks.

A heavy, black coat with a rough texture, possibly canvas, with a slightly reflective surface—almost like it was coated in wax.

Garrett had a bad feeling. As he opened the coat, the essence of this outfit was revealed, confirming his suspicions: a bird beak mask.

A long silver bird beak, not used for many years, oxidized to a dark color. Garrett tried to stretch it between his thumb and forefinger, finding it shorter than he expected. It had some straps around the edges, seemingly used to secure it on the head.

Garrett picked it up and looked inside; the mask was filled with something that had completely decayed into residue, making it impossible to discern its original components.

If his knowledge from his previous life was accurate, there might have been herbs like mint leaves and rose petals inside, and if lucky, some spices like cloves, camphor, benzoin, and dragon’s blood...

You might as well give me activated charcoal! Although it’s cheap and odorless, it’s more reliable than these spices!

Garrett felt like crying. Elder Wood continued speaking, "This is used to deal with the most severe plagues. Initially, I thought it wouldn’t be necessary. If you think you need it, you can take it and try it out."

I...

I want latex gloves!

I want protective clothing!

I want N95 masks! Face shields! Safety goggles!

Sorry, I’ll never complain again about how stuffy the protective suits the hospital provides are. Every time I take them off, they’re soaked...

Tears streamed down Garrett’s face.

---------------