Chapter 633: Medication
At noon, Doug arrived from the workshop with Wayne, bringing the allicin and Chef Parker’s special burgers that Wayne had ordered via pigeon.
The former was a product Wayne had thought up with the mindset of, “I can’t just not take any medicine, right? What if something really goes wrong?”, and due to limited conditions, he could only ask the Chef to whip something up casually.
The latter served as a Solace, intended to treat everyone’s tired and injured bodies, as well as soothe their injured spirits, which might be ravaged by the strong garlic smell.
Allicin is not an inherent component of garlic itself, but rather a product formed when enzymes in garlic react with the garlic itself. In simpler terms, after mincing garlic into a paste, if you wait a little, allicin will naturally be produced.
The extraction of allicin requires organic solvents. A proper laboratory method should involve first extracting with a high-concentration ethanol solution, then performing vacuum distillation. The entire process must be kept below 60 degrees Celsius to prevent thermal decomposition. The rest is patience and prompt use.
Distillers were not common household tools in this era, and Wayne couldn't possibly write down all the technical details on one small piece of paper. He might even forget some crucial points in the moment, leading to errors in the process.
So, the method he told Chef Parker for preparation was primarily simple and crude:
Since there was a “windmill mixer” readily available in the workshop, they would just buy a “lethal amount” of garlic from the market, throw it all in to make garlic paste, wait for a while, and then transfer it to a container to mix with an organic solvent.
The purest harmless ethanol solution available on the America market at the time was actually sold under the trade name “High-Distilled Rum.” With an alcohol content exceeding 75%, it was a cold-weather product born during the Age of Sail to prevent alcohol from freezing on extreme northern routes. At this time, it was primarily used as a base spirit for mixing alcoholic beverages—and if purchased in bulk, it even came with original oak barrels, so no need to find extra containers, which was convenient.
Mixing and stirring the two, with the carriage still bumping along the road for a while, counted as a crude but effective room-temperature extraction.
If “quality” wasn’t enough, then “quantity” would make up for it.
It’s industrial production, why be so meticulous?
So, the “allicin” Doug brought was actually several oak wine barrels filled with a large amount of garlic paste, pulled by a carriage. When taking the medicine, it wasn’t about “drinking alcohol,” but rather drinking the layer of “oil” floating on top.
Considering that the garlic essential oil at this concentration would likely have a strong taste, to prevent everyone from having a mouth full of garlic, Wayne also asked Doug to check if there were any apples or similar items in the market, to bring along with honey and fried flour.
Lina, who had just rushed back after a busy morning, looked puzzled when she saw a pile of large wine barrels next to the table full of burgers. “Didn’t you say no drinking during the mission? You had Doug bring so much… Wow… What on earth is this thing?!”
Wayne, with his temples tensed, was scooping garlic essential oil from a freshly opened barrel. “This is a preventative medicine for plague and wound infections. In principle, everyone who was bitten by rats last night should take it.”
There was no helping it; compared to the “dumpster” and “rubber warehouse,” the high-concentration garlic essential oil, though not smelly, was quite pungent.
Even with Wayne’s most generous filter, this stuff still couldn’t be considered “food.” He could only call it “medicine”…
“Oh—well, I wasn’t bitten, so you all enjoy it yourselves. The intelligence team is still busy; we’ll contact you when we have news.”
Lina quickly grabbed a few burgers wrapped in cheap paper from the table, hugged them, and turned to flee, almost bumping into Inessa, who had just reached the doorway.
Inessa hadn't rested for two consecutive days before, and after an unsuccessful attempt to track the injured cultists that morning, she finally managed to catch a nap. She was likely woken by the noise of things being moved.
Without even entering the dining room, the uncombed cowlick on her head seemed to frizz up even more, and her question was similar to Lina’s: “What is this for?”
Wayne explained again. Inessa at least didn’t run away immediately, but she frowned as she looked at the scooped-out garlic essential oil. “Do I have to take it?”
“At least it will be safer than not taking it, after all, plague and cholera are contagious and fatal.” Wayne wasn’t entirely sure if allicin was effective against them, but it was a desperate measure. “And it’s not that terrifying, is it? Compared to directly drinking holy water, it should be easier to accept… right?”
“If I had a choice, I might be more inclined to drink holy water…” Inessa leaned in slightly for a sniff, then quickly sat upright at the dining table.
At this point, Agents and monks who had finished their naps began to trickle into the dining room. After witnessing the power of the allicin and hearing about its effects, some looked as if a great disaster was upon them, while others quickly felt relieved or gloated.
Perhaps because the protection of her hunting gear and bird-beak mask was truly effective, or perhaps because Inessa’s extraordinary abilities protected her well, she had rushed into the rat swarm and was barely bitten. Nevertheless, she was willing to show support for Wayne’s approach, holding the small bowl of garlic essential oil in both hands, seemingly preparing to demonstrate in public, lest no one drink the stuff.
Fortunately, Wayne had already anticipated the unpopularity of garlic products. Following ancient Eastern wisdom, he mixed the garlic essential oil into fried flour, rolling it into pills that were easier to swallow. If one didn’t want to chew, they could make them smaller, dip them in honey, and then swallow them whole; at most, they’d just eat a few more.
Theoretically, semi-solid maltose would be even better, but unfortunately, it was hard to find in America; maple syrup was easier to get.
After this whole process, although everyone still held a certain reverence for the smell of garlic essential oil, it was much more acceptable compared to the potential fatal risk of disease.
Two monks even actively began to help and inquire about the recipe and efficacy, seemingly finding Wayne’s method quite insightful.
So, after demonstrating by rolling a few pills for Inessa and himself, Wayne no longer needed to do it personally.
In any case, the garlic essential oil should be sufficient. Everyone bitten by rats would get some, and those who hadn’t arrived yet could catch up a little later. Theoretically, in a room-temperature environment, this stuff would be effective for at least one or two days, and in the end, even a few people who hadn’t been bitten tried one or two pills.
After lunch, everyone, having had a preliminary rest, gradually resumed their activities.
The total number of those troublesome cultists remained unknown, but clearly, the majority were stragglers. Lina had encountered two at once, and there should be more.
Therefore, the search of the Dock Area could not stop, only the focus shifted from “finding places” to “finding people.”
Some of the scenes from last night hadn’t been thoroughly examined. Now, with good daylight, going back to look might reveal more clues.
As for the group that attacked Wayne and the other two monks from the emergency response team…
Lina hadn’t said anything when she came back with food earlier, so it was likely that the intelligence team was still investigating separately and hadn’t confirmed the results yet.
If the Cathedral suddenly asked, they might as well say they were from the Sailor Gang. It was a shot in the dark, but worth a try.
If that didn’t work, the backup plan would be to blame the Ireland Violent Group.
After all, this cultist stronghold was located in their territory. With mud on their backside, they couldn’t blame others for being suspicious.
