I Became the Drug-Addicted Childhood Friend

Translator: Elisia

Editor/Proofreader: SemiPickle

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I’m being raised.

[950 hours, 26 minutes]

That’s the only way to describe it.

It feels like I’m being raised by the doctor.

I feel very drowsy and comfortable.

But I’m uneasy inside.

Something is screaming that I shouldn’t be here like this.

“…Give me a bit more medicine…”

Why do I sound like this?

I’m ruined.

I’ve been pickled.

But there’s nothing I can do.

I might as well just go with my instincts and rest like this.

…

Rest?

What am I even talking about?

Am I just going to keep resting in this state?

How much has this drug eaten away at my brain for me to think like this?

“Ugh…”

I’m ruined.

There’s no going back.

Actually, maybe it doesn’t matter.

It’s already too late, that’s certain.

I’m just going to keep going like this…

Going like this…

What’s going to happen to me?

That’s the question.

Even the dose I took today is likely lethal.

I remember people in the lab talking about the lethal dosages and such.

Anyway, I’m not dead.

So, I can use a bit more.

The more, the better.

The drug must be good for my body.

Even if it’s not, who cares?

My life’s already wasted.

As long as it makes me feel better, that’s enough.

“Heh…heh.”

Do something, anything.

Where did all my plans go?

I was supposed to do something.

But I’ve forgotten everything.

No wonder most of my memories have evaporated like this.

I used to pass out all the time in the lab because of the drugs.

I erased all the bad memories.

My mind feels uneasy, but I like the tingling sensation unique to the drug.

I want to get up, but I have no strength.

I don’t even know where I am.

“Drug…”

“You just used it five minutes ago.”

Did I?

I can’t even wait that long anymore?

There’s no trace of self-control.

Well, actually, there’s a reason.

I have a reason to use every last drug here.

I’m sure there was a reason.

What was it again?

It feels like my brain is melting.

I can’t think.

It’s broken.

But just a little more.

I want to feel happier.

“Still…”

Still, give me more.

Give it to me.

“[Give me more.]”

“It seems like you’re at least controlling your words.”

I don’t care.

It seems like the doctor is unaffected by whatever I say.

“It’s more like a pseudo-incantation than a real spell.”

I don’t understand.

It doesn’t sound like he expects me to understand.

“The drug is here.”

-Thud.

It’s the drug.

[953 hours, 1 minute]

The filling time has significantly decreased.

Since I passed 800 hours, the time hasn’t increased much.

But there should still be a lot of drugs left.

“More. Give me more…”

I push the needle in again.

[955 hours, 46 minutes]

This feeling of every nerve waking up.

Not enough.

It’s still not enough.

Because there are plenty of drugs left.

I’m going to use them all.

Ah, I remembered.

The reason I have to use every bit of the drug.

There’s a reason I have to do it.

So, it was this room.

The study.

The place where the doctor reads complicated medical books.

And I’m just lying on the carpeted floor.

There’s a hidden device in the bookshelf in the study.

“Haah…”

If you push the bookshelf, there’s a space inside.

A space with a large stash of drugs.

I have to use them all.

I will.

I will use them all.

-There’s a lot of drugs.

-Yes, they’re meant to be distributed to the people here.

-Distributed?

I don’t understand why he wants to hand out drugs.

I really don’t get it.

-Yes. Not yet, since it’s not time, but eventually.

-Why?

Why are you planning to spread the drugs?

If he means the people here, he’s probably referring to the slum-dwellers near the factory.

Does he intend to give it to kids like Yula or Hyun?

Why?

That’s not right.

-Because happiness grows the more it’s shared.

What is he talking about?

This kind of happiness is enough for me to have alone.

-Why?

-Well, although the people here aren’t Awakeners, with drugs, they can experience it temporarily…

-No.

I grabbed the doctor and said.

-Because I’m going to use all the drugs myself.

And so, this is my state now.

How many have I used?

A hundred?

No, maybe not that much.

If I keep using it, eventually the stock will run out.

I can’t let anyone else use these drugs.

I can’t create more addicts.

That’s the way it should be.

Come to think of it, the doctor didn’t charge me when he first gave me the drugs.

For free.

He must have handed them out to a lot of people, not just me.

So I…

“Heh…”

The drugs.

The drugs.

“More…”

I have to use it all.

All of it, even the portions meant for others.

-Thud.

“Ugh.”

[958 hours, 24 minutes]

I’m in ecstasy.

It’s like I’m dead.

So I have no future.

But I didn’t have a future even without the drugs.

So using up all the drugs before I go is probably best for everyone.

It’s the smartest choice.

[958 hours, 23 minutes]

Actually, I don’t care about that; I just want more drugs.

As long as my pleasure center is stimulated, that’s enough.

I only need the reward circuit to keep firing.

Just using the drug is my whole world.

It’s quite a vast world in its own way.

Just a prick with the syringe, and I’m happy.

It’s a sensation unlike anything normal.

Prick. Then pleasure.

It’s fun.

I’m happy.

I’m thrilled.

Prick. Then pleasure.

It’s fun.

I’m happy.

I’m thrilled.

Endless repetition.

When the pleasure laps over my body, nothing else comes to mind.

Common sense doesn’t apply.

Ethics and morals crumble.

As long as I feel good, that’s all that matters.

Someone said it once.

The ultimate goal of life is happiness.

So maybe I’ve already achieved my goal.

“Hehe…”

Honestly, saying I don’t want others using drugs is just an excuse.

If I truly meant it, I’d have destroyed the syringes and containers with every drug in them.

So what now?

If I’m going to destroy them, I should use them as much as possible before that.

It’s only practical to save resources.

It’s obvious.

But why is the doctor giving me so much of this drug?

He used to charge for it.

I hope when I check later, I’m not racking up a debt.

“More…”

He gives it all when I ask.

Although, all I ask for is drugs.

“Let’s stop here for today.”

Thud.

The doctor closes his book.

He doesn’t seem inclined to give me more drugs.

[970 hours, 39 minutes]

Why?

I can’t stop here.

“Drug…”

“Can you stand up?”

My strength is completely drained.

But standing up is at least manageable.

“[Stand up…]”

I pressed my arm against the wall and rose.

Somehow, I managed.

“Now that I’m up, drugs…”

Give me more.

It’s too late to stop now.

If you suddenly stop a car going 500 kilometers per hour, the people inside will get hurt too, right?

I don’t think drugs should be cut off like that.

Sure, 970 hours is a lot, but still.

“More…”

I need more.

***

I need more information.

When did Seo-Ah become friends with Si-Hoo?

And why are they friends?

So I investigated.

Si-Hoo isn’t the only person I know at the Academy.

A lot of people have benefitted from the ‘Saintess.’

Some of them are Academy students.

Gathering information from them is no problem.

But there was hardly any information.

It seems she was enrolled briefly, but no one knows her, and no one’s seen her.

No one from her class has even met her.

In the picture, she was in a uniform.

The Academy uniform.

As I questioned if the picture was doctored, I finally found someone.

A person who knows Yoo Seo-Ah.

Someone who has at least met her.

“Seol Ha-Jin?”

“Ah, Saintess?”

The white hair leaves an impression.

He’s handsome, but not as much as Han Si-Hoo, with a bit of a punkish look in his eyes.

“Well…long time no see.”

It’s a café near the Academy.

There aren’t many people around.

“So you’re looking for this girl named Seo-Ah?”

“Yeah, something like that.”

“Well, she’s not at the Academy right now. I found that strange, too, and did some digging, but it’s like the Academy decided to keep it hidden.”

“Tell me everything you found out using your Observer abilities. Then I’ll treat that person you want treated.”

It’s a deal.

In exchange for information about Yoo Seo-Ah, I provide treatment.

Though my treatment ability isn’t all-powerful, it’s close enough compared to other Awakeners.

“Alright. Yoo Seo-Ah and Han Si-Hoo, both from the slums. One

is undeniably an ace. The other, mentally disturbed.”

Brutal.

“Mentally disturbed?”

“Probably? More like a case of chuunibyou, with the eye patch and all. Kind of cute, actually. Maybe that’s why Han Si-Hoo liked her.”

“Like? Han Si-Hoo?”

Did he?

Were they that close?

“It’s past history, but… Han Si-Hoo did seem to stand up for her. Toward the end, he even threatened to kill anyone who tried to watch or mess with her.”

“Hmm.”

That’s new.

I’ve never seen Han Si-Hoo get that angry.

“I also know that…she was in the Special Class, or something. But she disappeared one day. That’s about it. Han Si-Hoo threatened to kill anyone who tried to monitor her, so we couldn’t really do anything.”

“Sounds like he messed up somewhere.”

“As her senior, I just wanted to look out for her, but it got misunderstood… Oh, by the way.”

Something else came to mind.

“What else?”

“Yes. When she first arrived, I heard… she was stabbed with a sword, or something. There was a witness. An Academy staff member told me after transporting the victim.”

“Getting stabbed with a sword… what could have happened?”

“I don’t know, either. That’s all I know. But why are you so interested? You seem to know something.”

“Just because.”

It’s personal.

Not his business.

“So who is it you want treated?”

“My teacher’s younger sister.”

“Huh?”

An unexpected choice.

Is there a story here?

“There’s a teacher named Lee Yu-Ram. I heard her sister’s not in good shape. I thought this would be a good chance to help her out.”

“Hmm, sure. So where’s the sister?”

“Ah…that’s the thing.”

He hesitated.

“I need to know in order to treat her. Unless she’s coming to me.”

“Well, her sister is…”

“Yes?”

I wish he’d just say it already.

“It seems Han Si-Hoo is taking care of her.”

“…What?”

I need to treat the teacher’s sister, but Si-Hoo has her.

I see.

“Si-Hoo?”

Why him?

I don’t understand.