To Hell with Being a Saint, I’m a Doctor - Chapter 218: Monster Lord (2)

Ray’s eyes slowly opened, sensing a faint presence nearby.

“Finally, it comes down to the wire.”

He rose from the ground where he had been lying and dusted off his clothes.

A Holy Knight approached him.

“The Saint, where are you going?”

After a moment’s thought, Ray replied casually.

“To the restroom.”

“Please be careful on your way.”

He considered warning them about the dangers of the southern mountains, but he knew they would insist on following him as backup.

This could lead to danger not only in the south but also in the west.

‘It’s best to stay put in times like these.’

Turning away from the campsite, he made his way toward the southern mountains.

Though they appeared close, the south and the west were quite far apart.

It was better to hurry before the situation became more perilous.

Watching Ray sprint away at an incredible speed, the Holy Knights muttered to themselves.

“He must be really in a hurry.”

Clang-!

Breathless, they leaned against a massive tree, warding off monsters.

“Haah… Haah…”

They were now completely drained.

Their divine power was finite, unlike the incessant waves of monsters.

In one-on-one battles, they were unbeatable, but that meant little in such widespread conflicts.

Sometimes they faced a single enemy, sometimes more than four.

The pressure was relentless.

Pelji, the Holy Commander, dispersed divine power around him.

It was meant to help his fighting comrades absorb it.

“Ughhh…!”

A gut-wrenching groan reverberated through the air.

They could neither send messengers nor expect reinforcements.

Perhaps the only consolation was the noticeably reduced number of monsters, offering a sliver of hope.

The Holy Commander surveyed the battlefield.

‘The number of monsters isn’t as high as at the start. It seems this might be all of them in the mountains.’

Victory seemed within reach.

Roughly fifty monsters remained, including formidable ones like ogres, which was a concern, but they could find strength in the thought that this could be the final battle.

He shouted.

“Give it your all! There are no more monsters beyond this!”

Inspired by Pelji’s words, the Holy Knights looked around.

True to his words, the number of monsters did not increase.

“Uaaaah!”

With a battle cry, the frontline Holy Knights pushed the monsters back.

Screech-! Clash-

The sound of metal slicing through flesh rang out, a kobold fell, and immediately an orc lunged with its spear.

Dodging just in time, a Holy Knight narrowly escaped.

The one who almost had his skull pierced retaliated quickly with his sword.

“Grrrr…”

Blood spurted from the orc’s large nose, making a bizarre sound.

As soon as one monster fell, another leapt over its body to attack.

“Kuooh!”

A massive ogre swung its hand.

That simple motion sent two Holy Knights flying.

“Aaagh!”

“Focus your attacks on the ogre!”

Following his command, swords flew from all around.

They shattered the ogre’s kneecaps and severed its ankle tendons.

Unable to support its heavy body, the ogre collapsed.

Kwoong!

As the giant ogre fell to the ground, the Holy Knights rushed to cut off its breath.

With this, they had eliminated the most threatening and troublesome monster.

Only small and medium-sized monsters were left.

They manipulated the mana road harshly to draw out divine power.

Exuding sword auras, they overwhelmed the monsters, turning hope into certainty of victory.

Kill ten, add twenty more.

As the corpses of monsters piled up, their divine power dwindled.

Unable to produce proper sword auras anymore, but seeing the decreasing number of monsters, they mustered their strength.

Pelji, the Holy Commander, wrung out the last of his divine power to encourage them.

“Just a little more! Just a bit further…”

But before he could finish, a massive roar filled the forest.

Kraaah!

A sensation like hair standing on end, filled with malice, gripped them.

The menacing roar shook them to the core.

Shiver, shiver.

Those whose grips weakened dropped their weapons.

Clang- Clang-

‘Urgh… Fear…!’

Their bodies stiffened.

How could a monster lord of the mountains use fear? It must be no ordinary beast.

“Retreat…”

He gave the order to fall back, but no one could move as they wished.

With divine power depleted, they were unable to resist the fear.

Thud- Thud-

The ground shook, and the owner of that massive body emerged.

It was a troll, a huge horn protruding from its chest.

The magical energy emanating from the horn seemed dangerously potent.

‘Magical energy… What on earth…’

How could a monster contain magical energy? This was no mere creature; it was akin to a demonic entity from the demon world.

As the troll swiped its hand, their carefully arranged formation collapsed in an instant.

“Aaagh!”

“Kraaah!”

Two Holy Knights were flung away, striking a tree and falling unconscious.

Now, even Pelji, the Holy Commander, had given up.

There seemed no way to survive.

Without divine power, there was nothing they could do, especially against such formidable magical energy.

‘Ah… Goddess Priyas…’

As he awaited his end, he closed his eyes, but then a faint voice echoed.

“Stop making noise. My husband is sleeping.”

Whizz-!

With a sharp sound tearing through the air, something hurtled at great speed.

The troll’s horn shattered into fragments, and its body exploded.

“Kwoooh!”

“Didn’t I tell you to stop making noise?”

“Kraaak!”

“You’re not listening, are you?”

The dark-skinned woman flicked her finger, decapitating the monster lord, splattering blood everywhere.

Covered in blood, she frowned.

“Ah… Now I have to wash again… How will you compensate me?”

It was bizarre that she sought compensation after killing the creature herself.

With the monster lord dead, the remaining monsters scattered in fear.

Pelji, now free from the fear, gaped in astonishment.

‘A monster imbued with magical energy, killed with a flick of a finger…?’

Magical energy, or magi, is essentially the essence of demons.

It made no sense that she could kill a creature so easily, one that harbored such energy in its chest.

Pelji, full of caution, hesitated before asking.

“Thank you for saving us… May I ask where you are from…?”

“Me? I’m from the forest right next to here.”

She pointed to the dense forest as she spoke, which seemed absurd.

The Hephrian mountain range was quite vast.

Though not as large as the major ranges, it was still one of the largest.

And she had come from this forest?

Was she some kind of elf?

As they faced each other, he noticed her long ears and pitch-black skin.

Pelji stepped back in surprise.

“An, an elf…”

“An elf, yes. A Dark Elf, to be precise. But don’t compare me to those pretentious subordinate types.”

“Haah…!”

The powerful mana emanating from her silenced Pelji.

Elves and Dark Elves weren’t exactly on friendly terms.

Perhaps a bit friendlier than with Dwarves, but not by much.

Thankfully, the Dark Elf wasn’t hostile.

Relieved, Pelji gave instructions to those around him.

“…Gather the injured; we must end this ordeal and return to the castle. Send messengers to the west and east as well.”

“Understood.”

“Haah…”

Taking a deep breath, he finally noticed the thick smell of blood.

Realizing it was over, he relaxed, but then the pain in his chest intensified.

“Ugh… Cure…”

Whoosh-

The faint divine power that had gathered through the mana road dispersed, failing to form a spell.

It was a sign that there was no divine power left for Cure.

Overwhelmed by the pain, he gasped for air and collapsed.

“Holy Commander!”

“Are you alright!”

As the commander collapsed, two priests called for the healers.

“Is there any healer with divine power left? Holy Commander Pelji has collapsed!”

At her shout, heads shook everywhere.

The recent fierce battle had depleted their divine power, leaving none to spare.

Just when no one dared to step forward, someone slid in from the side.

“Move aside, please.”

“The Saint!”

“I said, move aside.”

People made way at his words.

Ray, who had just arrived, grabbed the Holy Commander’s collar.

“Chest pain with difficulty breathing. The top part of the lung and the pleural cavity are swollen. This is a pneumothorax… but the location is tricky.”

After probing a few times with his hand, he quickly identified the problem, though its location posed an issue.

The condition had persisted for over a week, causing pneumothorax in both lungs.

This rendered an axillary thoracotomy or an anterolateral thoracotomy impossible.

Normally, an axillary thoracotomy while lying on one’s side would be correct, but that was not an option now.

Ray rapidly made a decision after mentally simulating the surgery.

“I’ll perform a bilateral sternocostal thoracotomy, cutting open both sides of the chest, then induce inflammation to seal the lung’s holes.”

The surgery would be challenging.

Bilateral sternocostal thoracotomy is usually reserved for heart and mediastinum surgery, bilateral lung transplants, or metastatic lung cancer surgeries.

“I’ll cut through the muscles and pleura for a clear surgical view. I need to make an electrosurgical unit quickly for the incision.”

Commonly known as ‘cauterization.’

A medical technique that involves burning a part of the body to remove it.

It serves as a medical device for hemostasis by burning the affected area.

Although it would cause significant tissue destruction, it could control most severe bleeding.

Having decided on the surgery, Ray pushed through the crowd, muttering curses.

The surroundings were chaotic.

Blood smeared on trees, weapons strewn about, and dust hanging in the air created a lethal environment for surgery.

To exaggerate, it seemed as though the monsters’ blood and bodies had formed a small pond.

Ray gestured to the Dark Elf and two priests beside him.

“You, you, and you, follow me. I’ll carry the Holy Commander.”

Suddenly, the Dark Elf and priests became members of an impromptu surgical team, following him in confusion.

In fact, the Dark Elf had planned to leave.

However, the faint mark on the young man’s left hand caught her attention.

“Why does a human have the true mark of the High Elves?”

Though she had no interest in elf matters, this was enough to pique her curiosity.