The old physician felt tired, even though it had been just a short ride. He could never get use to riding a horse in such a fast pace. He felt his old bone could really not take it. After dismounting, he took several deep breaths to steady himself. He looked around and realized that this time, they were at the edge of the village.
"Come in quickly," Ernest called from the side. Seeing the physician just standing there made him anxious.
The physician was startled by the presence of another person. He turned to Ernest, and upon seeing his handsome face, he reassured himself that these people couldn’t possibly be bad.
Though he was old enough to know appearances could be deceptive, after losing his family, he didn’t fear death as much. All he wished was to fulfill the promise he had made to his late wife, to live well.
The old physician followed Ernest inside. When he saw that the patient he was to treat was a woman dressed in men’s clothing, he frowned.
He wondered what was going on in Lowe these days. Still, he didn’t dwell on it. He approached the patient and began checking her condition.
"There’s a need to prepare medicine for her fever immediately," the physician said as he scribbled a list of herbs and handed it to Ernest, who stood by the door like a guard.
Seeing how anxious the man was, the physician guessed the sick woman was likely his partner.
Ernest took the list and passed it to the young man. "Gather the herbs and prepare the medicine," he instructed. Though speaking to the young man, his eyes remained fixed on the physician, who was now examining Anastasia’s leg for the snakebite.
He found the spot just above her ankle. Taking her pulse and confirming the venom hadn’t reached her heart, he looked at the cloth tied firmly around her leg. It seemed it had been tied shortly after the bite. He felt a sense of relief.
The physician opened his medical bag and brought out a few tools. Among them was a small, sharp dagger. He carefully cleaned it with a cloth, then made three precise incisions at the bite site.
Anastasia let out a sudden cry of pain, startling the physician.
"What’s wrong?" Ernest asked, stepping closer. Though he knew the cuts must have hurt, his question was directed more toward the physician’s surprised reaction.
The physician didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he stared at the blood flowing from the cut.
"Red..." he muttered under his breath. He thought that given the patient already unconscious state, she should neither feel pain or retain the normal blood color. At least there should be a bit of dark spots.
He pressed gently around the wound, but the blood remained bright red.
Seeing the blood, Ernest felt his chest tighten. He was a man of war, no stranger to wounds or gore. At sixteen, he had nearly been buried in a sea of corpses during a bloody battle. His heart never ached for his own blood, nor for that of his comrades.
But this, watching her was different.
He closed his eyes, unable to bear the sight of her suffering. On the other side, the physician felt something was off.
"Are you sure she was bitten by a snake?" he asked.
"Yes," Ernest replied. He remembered what she had told him.
The physician studied Anastasia again. He had treated several snakebites before so why did this case feel different? The poison should have mixed with her blood, darkening it. Why did it look so normal?
"Do you know what kind of snake it was?" the physician asked after a moment’s thought. Perhaps it was a species whose venom was difficult to detect.
"No," Ernest shook his head. "I didn’t see a snake nearby."
He paused. "Do you need to know the type to treat it?"
He had hunted many times but had never been bitten himself. Snakes usually escaped or died in a single strike. He didn’t really know what was required in such cases.
The physician sighed. He had hoped to treat the venom with the simplest method, especially since it seemed confined to her leg. But now, that didn’t seem possible.
Left with little choice, he reached for his most prized possession, a moonstone capable of drawing out snake or scorpion venom.
He glanced at Ernest, considering asking him to leave. The stone was rare and something he preferred not to use openly. Many in rural areas would covet such an item. But looking at Ernest’s face, he knew asking him to step out wasn’t an option. He could only pray the man wouldn’t grow greedy. Follow current novels on novel·fıre·net
The physician took out the black stone and gently placed it on the wound. He pressed it down and held it there for a few breaths.
As soon as he lifted his hand, the small stone fell to the floor. The physician was puzzled. Normally, the stone would stick to the wound as if glued, only falling off after the poison was fully drawn out.
"How long has it been since she was bitten?" he asked, quickly picking up the stone and wiping it clean like a precious gem.
Ernest frowned at the odd behavior. To him, the stone was plain and unimpressive.
"I don’t know. When I found her this morning, she had already been bitten. Judging by the dirt on the knot around her leg, I’d guess it happened last night," he answered.
He assumed so because he hadn’t seen a snake’s trail nearby.
The physician was once again baffled.
"You can’t treat it?" Ernest asked, noticing the man’s confusion.
The physician didn’t reply immediately. He examined Anastasia again. Aside from the fever, she showed no signs of venom. He exhaled deeply.
"Maybe the snake didn’t release any venom when it bit her," he finally said. Though it was rare, dry bites did happen. It was the only explanation he could think of in this strange case.
"Maybe..." Ernest muttered, unsatisfied with the answer.
"Maybe... or perhaps it was a harmless snake," the physician added, still unsure himself. After all, his master always says there was a world out there that we cannot understand before seeing it