Hello Vet! How are you?

“Scissors.”

On Lee Joon’s command, Go Gijin placed the surgical scissors into his hand.

Lee Joon, receiving the scissors along with the tweezers to hold the skin, spoke to Go Gijin.

“Tell Manager Jang to keep the X-ray and ultrasound on standby.”

“Yes, hyung.”

Go Gijin responded, picking up the intercom wrapped in sterile plastic in the operating room to relay the instructions to Manager Jang.

After putting down the intercom, Go Gijin asked Lee Joon.

“Hyung, shouldn’t we start with tests?”

Go Gijin had kept recalling that Lee Joon mentioned they’d conduct an X-ray before operating.

“You see anything here that needs a test?”

Lee Joon’s voice, unexpectedly cold, surprised them.

“Do you want to risk losing the patient while conducting tests? We need to stop the bleeding, don’t we?”

Only then did the nickname ‘Surgical Beast’ from Lee Joon’s earlier surgical days flash in Go Gijin’s mind, prompting a gulp.

‘The Operating Room Mad Dog.’

It meant exactly what it implied—a mad dog in the operating room.

He was a kind person normally, but once inside the operating room, he morphed into someone else.

In the operating room, Lee Joon did not tolerate even a single mistake.

All he thought about was saving the patient on the table.

“That may be true, but how are we supposed to know where the bleeding is coming from?”

“Are you just going to leave it as is? Mosquito.”

Lee Joon, the cold voice filling the entire operating room, located the torn blood vessel among the hemostatic cotton Go Gijin had packed and demanded a clamp.

“Understood.”

Go Gijin handed Lee Joon the clamps, and Lee Joon extended his hand again.

Quickly, Go Gijin passed him a needle holder.

The needle holder already had a suture secured by Go Gijin himself.

As Lee Joon sutured the vessel, Go Gijin cut the suture with scissors.

Their movements flowed seamlessly, quick and natural.

Lee Joon directed Go Gijin.

“Remove the gauze from here.”

“Got it.”

As Go Gijin gradually removed the hemostatic cotton packed inside the dog’s abdomen, blood slowly started to seep back into the abdominal cavity.

“Indeed, we can’t do tests like this. Where is the blood coming from anyway?”

“Just clear the cotton.”

Lee Joon persistently manipulated the tools, using the mosquito clamp to find bleeding points, and the bleeding eventually decreased.

In mere moments, he sutured the vessels.

“Phew, now let’s go for tests.”

While heading to the testing room, Lee Joon called out to Sora.

“Manager Jang. Prepare for surgery again!”

“Understood.”

Upon hearing Sora’s reply, Lee Joon exhaled quietly.

‘If we had two operating rooms, we could have continued the surgery without clearing. No, if we had enough diagnostic equipment, we wouldn’t need two operating rooms.’

Lee Joon was acutely aware of the absence of equipment.

‘Having a portable X-ray and ultrasound in the operating room would have avoided this. If we had a fluoroscope, we could have detected fractures. Without it, we can’t do that surgery.’

Lee Joon’s thoughts did not continue further as Go Gijin began questioning.

“Hyung, should we start with the chest?”

“Yes. There should be nothing major. Focus on the spleen and bladder, and also detail the lumbar spine and pelvis. There seems to be a lumbar fracture.”

Lee Joon continued.

“It looks like the vehicle wheel ran over this one’s back.”

“Goodness.”

Go Gijin let out a long sigh.

“The fracture pain is supposedly unimaginable, which is why this one screamed instead of fainting.”

“Certainly. This kind of injury should have sent him into shock.”

Lee Joon gazed sympathetically at the cocker spaniel writhing in pain despite being sedated.

“Shoot there. Yes, take another in the lateral view.”

“You’re still the same, hyung.”

Admiring how the problem area was revealed with every direction from Lee Joon, Go Gijin praised.

“How does one avoid the hawk’s eyes?”

Using another nickname for Lee Joon, Go Gijin wheeled the stretcher back into the operating room.

This time, Sora also joined.

They quickly changed into new surgical gowns and commenced the splenectomy.

“Scalpel.”

“Yes.”

“Gauze.”

“Yes.”

“Suction.”

Following Lee Joon’s command, Go Gijin used the suction device to drain the blood, while Sora poured saline onto the suction site with a 50cc syringe.

“Can you see the spleen here?”

Lee Joon showed Go Gijin the spleen.

The spleen already had a suture sewn into it.

It was surely a bleeding point.

“When did you suture here?”

They were both watching the same place, yet it had escaped his memory.

He surely witnessed the dexterous hand movements like lightning but hadn’t expected they’d have sutured the spleen’s bleeding point too.

“Well, the bleeding stopped because it got sutured.”

“Monitor the screen closely during the splenectomy.”

This referred to the patient monitor recording heartbeats, blood pressure, oxygen saturation, etc.

“Got it.”

Having swiftly removed the spleen, Lee Joon spoke.

“Check for super bleeding.”

Go Gijin pressed gauze against the area to check for bleeding.

“None.”

“Vitals?”

“Everything is okay except the blood pressure remains low.”

“Can’t help it due to the mass loss. Insert the drain and finish up.”

Sora handed Lee Joon the drain, and that too was quickly inserted, wrapping up the procedure.

“Phew, at least the urgent part is over.”

“Hyung, what about the urethra?”

“It’s tough to handle here. The ultrasound suggests urethral detachment, so we’ll need to conduct a detailed examination. We also need to check the spinal connection. We can’t address urethral detachment and fractures right here.”

Identifying the lack of equipment and personnel, Lee Joon drew the line.

“That’s true. With the lumbar fracture and all.”

“Exactly. Always remember, the first thing you need to assess is what you can do in that situation and what you can’t. Never pick up the scalpel from recklessness or arrogance.”

Lee Joon reverted to his composed expression.

“Yes, understood.”

“Manager Jang, where do the owners wish to take the patient?”

“They said the purpose is to go to Mami Animal Medical Center. They’ve been there twice before.”

“Understood. Then contact Mami to prepare for transfer. Connect me with the head of surgery over there.”

“Yes.”

“Dr. Go, maintain the patient monitor closely.”

“Yes.”

Shortly after, Lee Joon, now connected with the head of surgery from Mami Animal Medical Center, explained the situation.

“… The spleen had to be removed. The bladder looked okay on the x-ray and ultrasound, but the urethra might be an issue. Detachment is suspected. Similarly, there’s a potential L7 fracture, so you should check the bladder’s vitality. … Also, watch for hind limb paralysis.”

Putting out the final remark came with difficulty for Lee Joon.

-Understood. I will call back later.

As Lee Joon concluded the call with the higher institution, an undeniable bitterness lingered.

Reflecting on times where teams conducted surgeries, handling thoracic at one side and stomach at another concurrently, and jumping straight into fracture surgeries right after, it flooded his mind.

That was indeed a rare occurrence, but it bore lives saved through composite surgeries conducted in such rare instances.

Here lies the crucial point; such surgeries are truly rare.

For this reason, running an animal hospital solo never troubled Lee Joon much.

Though, now, he has Go Gijin to aid in practice.

Even though Go Gijin was renowned for large animal surgery, solo small animal surgeries were still a hurdle for him.

‘First, administer emergency aid to minimalize bleeding, then simultaneously conduct all tests – X-ray, ultrasound, cT – and commence with departing the ruptured spleen, promptly administer transfusion, and proceed with ortho for urethra rupture and fracture. Following with lumbar placement connected to the sacred bone, pin-pointing with C-arm to secure pins and screws while implementing bone cement…’

As Lee Joon innovatively coordinated this with the recorded surgical footage, the cocker spaniel was transferred to Mami Animal Hospital.

Lee Joon habitually went over surgeries back from his school days.

If a surgery went successfully, he retraced the steps to ensure why it succeeded, and if a mistake occurred, he pinpointed what went wrong, affirming it wasn’t due to a lack of skill on his part.

With preventative measures in place, he ensured never to repeat the same error in subsequent surgeries.

The relentless effort he invested signified his commitment.

Tap.

When Lee Joon turned his head, a refreshing coffee appeared on the table.

“Here you go. Brought it from the shop in front.”

“Thanks.”

After having a sip of the coffee, Lee Joon went back to focusing on the monitor, studying the screen.

Observing Lee Joon muttering and concentrating on the monitor, Go Gijin grinned wryly.

He would always be like this at the end of any surgery that didn’t meet his satisfaction or felt inadequate.

Having seen Lee Joon this way more than once, Go Gijin spoke.

“I still can’t fathom how hyung managed to stop the bleeding so swiftly. Had you not arrived when you did back then, that kid might have…”

Go Gijin shook his head sideways.

“True, but if we had taken actions a bit faster, the blood loss would have been lesser. In that case, subsequent surgeries and outcomes might have been better.”

“How could anyone have been faster than you, hyung? Even with a C-arm or fluoroscopy, locating it that swiftly is impossible. There was blood the size of the Han River in the abdominal cavity, how’d you find it? Think about it. Who could’ve pinpointed that hole in the spleen?”

After sipping the coffee he held, Go Gijin continued.

“No one, hyung. That’s why the fact that he’s still breathing is because of you.”

Lee Joon knew that too well, but the lingering regret stayed.

“I have to get a C-arm, even if CT is pushing it.”

Just as Lee Joon resolved to procure the equipment, a pleasant pressure hugged his leg.

At first, it was just the right leg, then both.

“Hm?”

When Lee Joon looked down, the Gray one was holding his right leg, and Kkamnyang held his left.

“What have you got going on? Feeling bored?”

『Hyungnim, don’t be sad. The dog would be grateful.』
『The dog will be grateful.』

Before the cats could finish talking, Go Gijin opened his mouth.

“What do you think they’re doing, huh, hyung? They’re comforting you because you seem pretty down.”

Lee Joon looked at Go Gijin, who was cradled by the cats.

“You understand what they’re saying?”

“Do I need to? Just look and you know.”

Lee Joon chuckled at Go Gijin’s assertive response.

“You certainly are good at knowing what animals mean.”

“Indeed, hyung. Cheer up, you did your best.”

“That’s true.”

“Right then, finish your drink and change your clothes. You’ve probably absorbed half a bucket of water in that scrubs by now.”

That’s when Lee Joon looked down at his clothes.

Not just clothes, his entire body was soaked in sweat.

***

A week later, Lee Joon received a call from the surgical team lead at Mami Animal Medical Center.

“… I see.”

There was no strength in Lee Joon’s voice as he replied.

-Regardless, the owners are thankful. They were able to say goodbye, thanks to you.

“So they said. Thank you for letting me know.”

As Lee Joon ended the call, Go Gijin approached.

“The dog… didn’t make it?”

“Ha… it passed last night.”

“I see…”

With his shoulders drooping slightly, Go Gijin went on.

“It pains the heart to hear this, as always. We can only hope he went without pain.”

“We should think so.”

Lee Joon let out a sigh.

“If only we could have done all the surgeries at once…”

Most likely, it would have been difficult regardless.

Which then leads to…

“If we had met him just once before, and suggested being careful with cars…”

Could that perhaps have prevented the accident?

Lee Joon couldn’t ignore the thought that they had their chance to say goodbye replaying in his mind.

How might the cocker spaniel have felt during their farewell?

How much more distressing must it have been for the owners to let go?

Even though it had been over ten years since Kongdori had left, Lee Joon still missed him deeply.

Thinking of the suffering cocker spaniel, Lee Joon quietly noted.

“How much better would it have been if, instead of such a short-lived life, it had been lived healthily, not in pain, with a full stomach?”

“Indeed.”

Even Sora sighed beside him, as silence enveloped the animal clinic.

Even the cats let out a sigh.

Just as silence reigned over, the cats perked up their ears.

Soon the clinic door opened, and people entered.

“Hello, about the Coco from last week…”

“Welcome.”

Nodding, Lee Joon greeted the visitors.

They were the owners of the cocker spaniel.

“We just heard. Coco went to Doggy Star.”

“Yes.”

“You both must feel an overwhelming sense of loss.”

“Yes. It feels empty at home after 10 years.”

“…”

While the male owner spoke, the female owner simply kept her head deeply bowed.

“We came to express our gratitude.”

“Gratitude?”

“Yes. Thanks to you, we were able to say goodbye to our dog. We’re incredibly grateful for that.”

“… Thank you, doctor.”

The female owner, who had been silent with her head down, now spoke up to Lee Joon.

“We spent a little more time with Coco because of you. We won’t forget this grace. The vet in Mami said that if it weren’t for you performing the emergency surgery on Coco, she’d have left us back then.”

“Because of you, we made eye contact and said goodbye. But…”

Just as the male owner trailed off, lifting his head slightly, likely due to thoughts of Coco.

“He will be dearly missed.”

Then, the cats approached the sitting guardians, offering them comfort.

“Oh my!”

Startled, the female guardian’s tearful eyes started to show a smile.

“Gray One, thank you for comforting me.”

“Ah, so you are Gray One and Kkamnyang.”

The male owner, too, recognizing the two, gently stroked the cats.

『He’ll do well in Doggy Star.』
『He will stay well there!』

“Yes, yes.”

“Thank you.”

Feeling the warmth of the cats, the owners took comfort.

After a long while, as the guardians left, a phone rang.

Sora, picking up the receiver, spoke to Lee Joon.

“Doctor, the equipment company is asking if they can visit now?”

Remembering how he felt the need for more equipment this time, Lee Joon had contacted an equipment company.

“Tell them they can come.”

With Lee Joon’s reply, Go Gijin’s face lit up.

“At last, hyung’s restrictions are lifted. You’re already fast, but with a C-arm, how much quicker will you become?”