"Naturally, clearing the battlefield is our responsibility. We owe a great deal to Mr. Fengyi's timely support; otherwise, more Resistance soldiers would have fallen. We shall reconvene at the Sangonomiya Shrine hall later!"
Gorou nodded, expressing his gratitude for Fengyi's assistance.
As far as he knew, the Shogunate general Kujou Sara was peerless in her loyalty and would never divulge information easily. He wondered what methods Mr. Fengyi would employ. Even if it were himself, Gorou wasn't confident he could pry any secrets from Kujou Sara's lips.
Watching Fengyi's retreating figure, Gorou held no real hope.
After leaving the Nazuchi Beach battlefield, Fengyi found a secluded spot and quietly entered the Serenitea Pot.
Upon entering, he found Kujou Sara had already woken up and was by a stream, washing the scorched areas on her body with the water.
"Little Sara, you're truly hard on yourself! It was just an act, there was no need to injure yourself so badly..."
Fengyi approached the stream and sighed as he saw the scars left by lightning burns on Kujou Sara's body. If it were him, he would have at most smeared some black ash on himself.
"If I can't even deceive myself, how can I deceive everyone present? These are just external wounds, nothing significant..."
Kujou Sara shook her head. Even when acting, one had to be serious and not show any flaws. To do anything, one had to give it their all, treating it with 100% dedication – that was Kujou Sara's life creed. Moreover, these were minor injuries; she wouldn't even flinch.
"Let me take a look. I know a little bit about medicine, perhaps I can help remove your scars..."
Fengyi found a place to sit beside Kujou Sara and said. The matter of gathering intelligence was important, but not urgent.
"No need. Scars are a soldier's medals. Though I am a woman, I am also a warrior!"
Kujou Sara politely declined Fengyi's offer, continuing to wash herself. Her clothes, scorched black by her own lightning, were beyond repair, so she had taken them off and set them aside, wearing only a camisole and panties. Although she had agreed to become Fengyi's bed warmer, she still hadn't overcome a certain hurdle and didn't want him to touch her body so easily.
"While scars may be a soldier's medals, everyone has a desire for beauty. I spoke with A'ying last time, and she also feels that the fewer scars a warrior has, the better. Because the weak always bear scars, while the strong inflict them upon others..."
Fengyi began to talk nonsense with a straight face, trying to coax Kujou Sara. Seeing the look of doubt and belief in Kujou Sara's eyes, Fengyi knew his deception was having an effect. In reality, A'ying had never said such a thing.
"Does the General truly think so?"
Kujou Sara looked down at the wounds on her body, a flicker of panic in her heart. What if the General saw so many scars and deemed her incapable, sending her away?
"Little Sara, you wouldn't want A'ying to know you have so many scars, would you?"
Fengyi chuckled, making Kujou Sara's heart race. For some reason, hearing this, Kujou Sara suddenly felt like he had some leverage over her, making it difficult for her to resist.
"Then... then I'll trouble you. However, if you do anything excessive during the treatment, don't blame my fists for not recognizing you!"
Kujou Sara extended an injured arm towards Fengyi. Though she had compromised, she still warned him sternly not to take advantage of the situation for any lewd purposes.
"You can rest a hundred and twenty percent assured about that. I, Feng, am a benevolent physician with a clear conscience. Don't use your vulgar gaze to speculate about my noble character!"
Fengyi took Kujou Sara's arm and brought it closer to examine the electrical burn marks. The affected areas of her skin were completely scorched, capillaries rapidly expanding causing subcutaneous bleeding, forming a frightening, snowflake-like red pattern. In a few severe spots, the subcutaneous tissue had completely necrotized, turning into black, dead skin. It truly showed how ruthless Kujou Sara was to herself, enduring such severe injuries without a sound.
"Does it hurt here?"
Fengyi gently pressed his finger onto the bloody red, grotesque pattern and asked.
"It's bearable, just feels like being burned by flames."
Kujou Sara frowned, as if enduring great pain.
"That's good, the nervous system here hasn't been completely destroyed yet..."
Fengyi nodded. These injuries were relatively minor and easier to repair.
"And here? Do you feel any pain here?"
Fengyi then pinched the area of the blackened dead skin.
"No pain!"
Kujou Sara shook her head. There was no pain or itchiness there, she felt fine. However, upon seeing Fengyi's sudden frown, her heart sank, sensing something was very wrong.
"Fengyi, what's wrong? Is the situation serious?"
Kujou Sara had initially thought it was fine since it didn't hurt, and she just needed to wait for the dead skin to shed and new skin to grow. Now, it seemed it wasn't that simple.
"Mm, the subcutaneous nerves have been completely burned, and this part of the tissue has completely necrotized. To heal it, we must first remove this dead tissue before new tissue can grow..."
Fengyi gained a new understanding of Kujou Sara's stubbornness today; she was truly harsh on herself.
"Then remove it."
Kujou Sara said expressionlessly, as if she weren't talking about excising her own flesh.
"This process will be very painful, and we don't have any anesthetic right now. How about I knock you out? That way, you'll suffer less."
"No need, proceed directly. I can endure this much pain!"
Kujou Sara said calmly, possessing a heroic demeanor akin to Guan Erye undergoing bone scraping for detoxification. Fengyi was impressed and didn't insist further. He took out a small knife and heated it over a flame to sterilize it. Kujou Sara turned her head away impassively, trying not to watch Fengyi heat the knife. She feared that if she watched any longer, she might change her mind. Fengyi, while heating the blade, gestured as if contemplating the angle of the cut, but delayed making it. The torment of waiting for the knife to descend was more agonizing than the actual excision of flesh. Kujou Sara suddenly found Fengyi's earlier suggestion tempting. If she had agreed to be knocked out, would she have been spared this torment of anticipation?
"Um, Fengyi..."
"Preparation complete. I'm about to make the incision. Hmm? Little Sara, is something the matter?"
"No, nothing..."