I Became the Childhood Friend of a D*ug Dealer

The Yoo Seo-A you knew has long since disappeared.

Might as well just kill her here.

Think about your future.

How long are you going to let the doctor hold you back?

Han Si-Hoo, get a grip.

It’s better to deal with that spirit right here and now.

It’s just a shell of Yoo Seo-A left.

It’s rotting because of the drugs.

No one will know.

Just say she died because of the drugs, and that’s that.

Do you really think this is the way your friend looks?

Licking the medicine spilled on the floor?

She’s just a junkie you’d see in the slums.

-Si-Hoo.

I see Seo-A smiling brightly.

She’s asking for medicine.

“Here, a gift.”

That’s not it.

The gift was a paper crane made from origami.

The same paper crane I folded as a repayment for the ribbon back then.

I couldn’t fold it properly because the book was torn.

But now, I have this great thing called a smartphone.

It’s a useless gift.

Throw it in the trash.

Still, there wouldn’t be any reaction.

As long as you give her the drugs, it won’t matter what you do.

She probably did the same before coming to you.

What did she do?

She must have needed money badly.

You know best, Han Si-Hoo, don’t you?

“Si-Hoo?”

I know the fake tone when I hear it.

Han Si-Hoo, you’re more sensitive to those vibes than anyone.

Yoo Seo-A only struggles to get drugs.

It’s not a gift for you.

[Status Window]

Level: 26

Health: 1291, Magical Power: 910…

Skills: Swordsmanship IX, Magecraft VI…

Status: Purification Penalty (5 hours)

It’s because of [Purification].

To be precise, it’s Purification I.

There’s a reason it’s still a level one skill.

She was really reluctant to use it directly.

Purification is like a vacuum cleaner.

It sucks up dirt.

But in return, dust collects inside.

Han Si-Hoo is only taking the penalty for a similar reason.

“Not liking it?”

The magical power that clung to Yoo Seo-A.

The weapon that she said couldn’t be created was in my hand.

A thick, sticky black magical power filled with malice.

I definitely shouldn’t have used Purification.

Seo-A hated it too.

I didn’t treat her like a monster, did I?

No, right?

Make sense!

A voice constantly whispers in my head.

If I use Purification often enough, my skill level might go up, but it’s not the time now.

“Ahaha…”

That’s not the laughter you knew.

It’s because of the drugs that she’s become like this.

Shut up.

“Ah, thanks for the gift.”

I answered, regaining my senses.

Yoo Seo-A looked flustered as she stared at Han Si-Hoo, who was just standing there.

The Purification penalty is more bothersome than I imagined.

No matter how much I sleep, it doesn’t go away.

It was similar when I used Purification on a monster.

It was a simple voice saying “kill, destroy,” but after that unpleasant experience, I decided against using it directly.

If I keep it passive, I only feel a slight discomfort, so if I do use it, that’s all I’ll feel.

How long are you going to keep Yoo Seo-A alive?

You might find me unpleasant, but that’s not wrong.

Training, growth, and even relationships are falling apart.

If you’re not receiving messages from people, it won’t do you any good.

“Si-Hoo.”

If we leave her like this, Yoo Seo-A will continue to suffer.

How painful must it be not to even control oneself?

Let’s strangle her here to end it.

If you don’t want that, stab her with a knife.

Or mix poison into the drugs and give it to her.

The deadly poison and the drug she’s using are similar anyway.

“Si-Hoo, I need some medicine…”

Seo-A has come back again.

It’s time to sleep.

But she can’t sleep well.

Honestly, you find it annoying too, don’t you?

How long do you plan to keep this up?

Yoo Seo-A wants you to kill her.

She said it back then.

“Please, kill me.”

“Here.”

Offering medicine means you’re planning to let her die slowly.

New wounds have formed on her arms and hands.

She’s even wrapped her hands in bandages.

You really think taking that medicine would help?

You know it’s not a cure.

“Thanks.”

Letting her use tranquilizers would be easier.

I’m just acting on Lee Yoo-Ram’s advice.

Let’s just kill her.

No need to feel guilty.

You’ve heard what Seo-A said.

Murmuring that dying isn’t so bad after all.

That’s the real gift, huh?

Shut up.

You didn’t even clean up the used syringe.

It’s just lying around all limp.

Like a bug.

She even called herself trash.

Just waste.

Shut your mouth.

I’m just speaking the truth.

The Academy entrance ceremony is coming up soon.

What do you think will happen in the special class if Yoo Seo-A looks like this?

Do you really believe in the Academy?

-And now for tomorrow’s weather news. Tomorrow, strong winds and rain are expected in the newly declared Gate alert zone of the first area of old Seoul…

Seo-A stares blankly at the broadcast screen.

“Si-Hoo.”

She suddenly opened her mouth.

“Yeah?”

“I’ll pay the debt back.”

-The estimated damage is roughly 5 billion won…

Looks like it was about the borrowed money.

“No, you keep the money. I gave it to you. I might need it later.”

“……”

She looks like she’s about to do something but can’t seem to do anything at all.

Yoo Seo-A is the most frustrated with herself.

She’s an existence that doesn’t belong here.

“…Si-Hoo, what’s the one thing you want most?”

-Tracking the typhoon’s predicted path…

“What I want?”

To heal Seo-A.

To return her to how she used to be.

That’s the priority right now.

“What are you wishing for?”

I want to turn back the choice.

I want to go back in time and save Seo-A.

I want to save her from the evil that has infiltrated from who knows where.

But now it’s too late.

In terms of a story, we’re nearing the climax.

I feel like Yoo Seo-A’s story is slowly coming to an end.

Maybe it should have already ended.

Shut up.

There must be hope.

“…to return to the way things were.”

Back to when there were no problems.

To when we could solve problems together even if they arose.

It hurts to see my broken friend.

I keep seeing her overlapping with the past.

Her cheerful smile from back in the day.

Now she just laughs weakly under the influence of drugs.

I recall the past.

-Today, I won, right? I arrived first, didn’t I?

It’s a memory of a race.

A past that’s hard to tell just by looking at her huddled at home.

-Did you think I forgot your birthday? I prepared it on purpose. Were you surprised?

A memory of her birthday.

A small cake bought with a little saved money.

When I came home, there was always a good friend there.

Even a family would be fine.

All in the past tense.

At that time, I was happy.

But what’s the current state?

My childhood friend has lost her mind.

She’s filled with wounds that I don’t even know who inflicted upon her.

“Back to the way things were…”

Yoo Seo-A said that and turned her gaze back to the screen.

“The way it was… the state…”

She murmurs again.

“What was it like originally?”

It’s something she wishes for too.

She covers her face halfway with her fingers, as if deep in thought.

The bandages and new wrappings are noticeable.

“I’ll do my best to make it happen.”

*

First, I should change my voice a bit.

It’s too languid and tone-dead.

I’m tired, and it’s largely due to the tranquilizers.

Practicing in front of the mirror in the room.

With the door closed, softly.

“Ah, ah.”

There’s still time until the academy entrance ceremony.

I’ll manage something before then.

Let me bring back the bright side of Seo-A.

That’s what Si-Hoo wants.

“Hello.”

Smile and try to laugh naturally.

It’s my specialty, after all.

Besides that, I don’t have much else to show.

I can definitely put on a smile.

I feel a bit relaxed around my eyes.

Let’s recreate the bright Yoo Seo-A, the opposite of my current state.

I summon good memories from the past.

Situations where Yoo Seo-A would laugh.

How did I smile on those happy days?

“Hello, Si-Hoo.”

Want to play together?

Did Yoo Seo-A ever say something like that when she was little?

“Hello.”

Fortunately, I remembered how to smile.

I smile every day anyway.

I smile better than when I went to borrow money from Han Si-Hoo last time.

What a miserable situation.

Even while thinking that, I try to maintain my expression.

It’s not working well.

There’s a peculiar foolish-looking brightness about it.

It’s very different from the expression soaked in pleasure.

[5 hours 11 minutes]

There’s plenty of time, so it’s okay to smile.

It’s not like I don’t get to smile anyway.

Yoo Seo-A hardly meets people with a blank face.

Some people find it harder not to smile.

Yoo Seo-A is one of those types.

She was so bright by nature.

“…getting hit, getting stabbed, yet keeping up a bright demeanor feels…”

Weird.

Scary, right?

No, it was somewhat funny even while being hit.

Am I a scary person?

“Should I start exercising again?”

Of course, I won’t match up to the Awakeners anyway.

It’s just to take me back to the active days of Yoo Seo-A.

If I overdo it, the drug’s effects will wear off.

[5 hours 9 minutes]

This is the reason I’ve hardly gone outside since starting the medication.

The warnings that the drug’s effects might wear off occasionally appeared too.

I feel sorry for Han Si-Hoo.

I couldn’t even repay what I borrowed.

I just existed there, as if watching a broken friend.

If this keeps up, it’s indeed trash.

Staying as dead weight is a problem.

It’s wise not to drag down Han Si-Hoo.

“Again.”

I try to smile.

Yoo Seo-A didn’t always smile monotonously.

Let me give it a try.

It’s a strangely fear-tinged expression.

I look lacking in confidence.

Even if Yoo Seo-A lived in the slums, she was overflowing with self-confidence.

“Smile.”

Was it from the moment she couldn’t overcome the drugs?

Or from the moment she pushed Han Si-Hoo away?

Maybe from the moment she acknowledged her own incompetence?

“Again.”

I want to break the mirror.

Why are you still here?

You’re just shamelessly living and moving around.

It feels like I’m cursing at you.

“Again.”

I recall my happy memories.

The doctor gave me medicine.

That 100-hour one still sticks in my memory.

“If I do well… I can use the drugs.”

[4 hours 54 minutes]

I have an extra syringe on hand.

After all, Han Si-Hoo doesn’t know how much medicine I should use.

It’s wise to keep an extra one in stock.

This is just for moments like this.

Smile well.

Heh.

Hehe.

Ahaha.

It feels like I’m smiling well now.

I look happy.

Heh.

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