Ch-4: A Desperate Experiment

After an hour the Mantri and his family revisited the spot with a stock of Alcohol. The Mantri handed the task to be done to his son who gave the Idea.

Vijay's gaze remained fixed on the injured blacksmiths, their faces twisted in pain, as he turned to the physician. "Sir," he said, his voice resolute, "please, just give me a chance. I believe I can disinfect these wounds and save their limbs."

The physician, a man of great pride and arrogance, scoffed at the notion. "You, a mere child, think you can do what I, a trained physician, cannot? Ridiculous!" He waved away Vijay's words with a dismissive gesture.

Vijay's determination remained unshaken, and he stepped closer to the physician, his eyes locked onto the wounded workers. "Please, sir," he implored, "I have knowledge that could make a difference. Let me try, for their sake."

But the physician's arrogance was unwavering, and he turned a deaf ear to Vijay's pleas. "This is no place for a child's games," he declared, his tone condescending. He ordered his assistants to prepare the injured for amputation, his decision final.

The Mantri, standing nearby with his family, was torn between his trust in his son's conviction and the physician's authority. The determined look in Vijay's eyes, combined with the pained expressions on the workers' faces, made him morally question the physician's swift dismissal.

With a heavy heart and a sense of helplessness, the Mantri spoke to the physician, his voice filled with uncertainty. "Give my son a chance," he said quietly, "even if the amputation is inevitable, let him try. We owe it to these workers to explore every possibility."

The physician, his pride wounded by the Mantri's request, muttered curses under his breath. Reluctantly, he agreed, not out of faith in Vijay's abilities but rather to appease the Mantri's wishes. To him, the boy's attempts were little more than a futile exercise.

As the workers were prepared for Vijay's unconventional treatment, a sense of tension hung in the air. The Mantri, caught between his son's determination and the physician's contempt, was left to wonder whether he had made the right decision.

With the atmosphere thick with uncertainty, Vijay stepped forward. His gaze shifted from one wounded blacksmith to another as he recalled the medical knowledge from his memory. He knew that alcohol, when used correctly, could disinfect wounds and prevent infection.

Vijay motioned for the physician to bring a flask of raw alcohol. As it was handed to him, he poured a small amount onto a clean cloth and carefully began to disinfect the wounds of the workers, one by one. His movements were deliberate and gentle, his young face a mask of concentration.

The workers, their expressions a mix of pain and hope, watched in awe as Vijay worked. It was a desperate experiment, a leap of faith into the unknown, but the stakes were high, and the alternative was the loss of limbs.

As Vijay continued to disinfect the wounds, something remarkable began to happen. The infected areas, once red and inflamed, gradually started to show signs of improvement. The workers' pain began to subside, and their expressions shifted from agony to relief.

The physician, who had been observing with a skeptical eye, was stunned by what he was witnessing. He had never seen such a rapid improvement in wound conditions. The experiment was working, and it defied his understanding of medical practices.

However, the physician's arrogance wouldn't allow him to acknowledge Vijay's success. Instead, he clung to his disbelief and muttered curses under his breath. In his mind, the only explanation for this unexpected turn of events was black magic.

As Vijay completed the disinfection of the last wound, the physician couldn't contain his disdain any longer. He turned to the Mantri and his family, his face contorted with anger and fear. "This is black magic!" he declared, his voice trembling with conviction. "No ordinary treatment could have achieved such results. I will report this to the king's court."

The Mantri, his heart heavy with the knowledge of the consequences that could follow, could only watch as the physician stormed away, leaving behind a cloud of uncertainty and suspicion. The fate of the Mantri and his family now hung in the balance, caught between the undeniable success of Vijay's experiment and the physician's determination to brand it as black magic.