I Became the Drug-Addicted Childhood Friend

Translator: Elisia

Editor/Proofreader: SemiPickle

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I never knew stepping on someone could feel so satisfying.

But this isn’t something a normal person would do.

Yeah. Now I understand.

Si-Hoo, you’re not sane either.

You’re hurt.

You need treatment.

“…Were you like this with your sister, too, Doctor?”

Stepping on her, barging into her home.

“What?”

“Kidnapping, confinement, using threats. All of this just to find Seo-Ah, right? What’s tangled up in all of this?”

Now I understand.

“……”

“If I told you Seo-Ah was dead, would you give up?”

“…No.”

“I see. Now I understand why you’re angry.”

Seo-Ah’s very existence is the problem.

Like a thorn lodged in his heart, the mere presence of Seo-Ah causes issues.

“How pitiful.”

An Awakener of the Healing Branch.

I can heal a wound from a blade, but I can’t cure a common cold.

I can reattach a severed arm, but there’s no way to treat a mental illness.

But I’m different.

They don’t call me a Saintess for nothing.

I can heal anything—body or mind.

“I’ll treat you.”

It’s not a power I can use just anywhere.

Nor can I use it on just anyone.

“What?”

Si-Hoo steps back.

But it doesn’t matter.

Even if I’m lying down, even if Si-Hoo takes a few steps back.

“[Treatment Start-!]”

Bang!

A bursting sound echoes.

The space is blanketed in white.

Pure white.

It’s begun.

Si-Hoo doesn’t move.

Nothing moves except for me.

As if time has stopped.

The skill is already activated.

A light sparkles.

Si-Hoo’s light sparkles when he attacks, but mine sparkles when I heal.

I’m going to heal what hurts.

I’ll show why they call me a Saintess.

What hurts?

It’s the heart.

That’s the real issue.

Pain in the heart is invisible.

“Relax.”

First, I’ll get up.

This is a space where only I can move.

I now understand why Si-Hoo is hurting.

I thought I’d learn slowly, like embarking on an adventure together, but things turned out this way, so I have no choice.

I’ll just have to treat him right away.

As long as I roughly know the cause, I can heal it.

“It’ll be okay.”

The healing skill is also one of the most troublesome skills.

An attack can be blocked.

But recovery?

There’s hardly a way to prevent it.

“I’m here.”

I whispered in his ear.

This is healing.

A treatment that mends twisted memories, healing trauma.

It’s a skill that exhausts me after just one use.

But Si-Hoo is someone I like.

Specially.

“[Mind Release]”

With a bang, the background shifts.

***

Inside Si-Hoo’s Memory

Looking into someone else’s memory is tough.

It looks like an alley in the Slum.

“Is that you, Si-Hoo?”

It’s Si-Hoo from his younger days.

“Yes.”

He’s cute.

He’s holding something in his hand.

I never thought I’d see young Si-Hoo.

“What’s that in your hand?”

“A bird.”

“A paper crane.”

Did he try origami?

It looks like he tried folding it but didn’t finish.

I used to be interested in origami, too.

“A friend gave it to me as a gift.”

A friend.

I wonder who.

“Was it Seo-Ah?”

“Yes. Do you know Seo-Ah?”

“Yeah. But it looks like you didn’t finish folding it.”

It’s odd for a bird.

“Yes.”

“Are you sure it was a gift? It seems like she just threw it away.”

“…It was…a gift, probably.”

Let’s say it wasn’t a gift.

The less close he is to Seo-Ah, the quicker Si-Hoo’s recovery will be.

The problem arose because they were too close.

So, I’ll treat his memories one by one, starting from his childhood.

For treatment, all methods are allowed.

Therefore, anything can be treated.

Even the illnesses of the heart.

Even any trauma.

That’s why they call me a Saintess.

Let’s move to the next scene.

Bang.

The space scatters and gathers again.

Another memory.

This time, it’s a playground.

Si-Hoo is sitting alone on a swing.

“Si-Hoo?”

“Yes?”

“Playing alone?”

“Yes.”

Seo-Ah isn’t here.

“What about friends?”

“I had a fight with Seo-Ah. I need to make up.”

They fight too, huh?

Well, they are kids.

“What did you fight over?”

“We were playing, but we had different rules…”

“I see.”

Seems like they fought over something trivial.

“Are you going to apologize?”

“Yes, because we both made mistakes.”

“Do you usually apologize first?”

“Yes.”

I thought as much.

“Why not wait for Seo-Ah to apologize? Always giving in isn’t necessarily good.”

“…Really?”

“Yes.”

“Then, I’ll just wait for her to apologize?”

“You could ignore her or stop talking for a while. Seo-Ah should learn to apologize too.”

Right?

It’s perfect advice.

What’s wrong with a little distance?

“…I guess.”

“The problem is Seo-Ah.”

So, now, let’s move on to the next scene.

Bang.

Space twists.

I dive deeper into Si-Hoo’s memories.

This time, it’s inside a shabby house.

The interior is relatively tidy.

Si-Hoo is sitting at a table.

There’s a meal prepared on the table.

He looks a bit older than in the previous memory.

“Are you eating with Seo-Ah?”

But I don’t see Seo-Ah.

“Yes. She should be here by now.”

“Seems like she’s not coming.”

“Well… maybe her clock broke again. Or maybe she’s just late, busy with something.”

“Is she often late?”

“Yes. I still set the table with that in mind.”

He speaks as if it’s not a big deal.

“Still, keeping time is important.”

“That’s… true.”

“I’m not sure Seo-Ah cares about you as much as you care about her.”

“……”

Honestly, I don’t know.

Right?

On to the next scene.

On to the next scene.

On to the next scene.

I treat him so he won’t obsess over Seo-Ah.

So that Seo-Ah’s existence no longer becomes an issue.

So that Si-Hoo won’t fixate on Seo-Ah.

On to the next scene.

To the next, the next, the next.

As time passes, Si-Hoo’s memories change.

He becomes less attached to Seo-Ah.

On to the next scene.

Next, next, next.

I continue modifying memories by going through each scene.

The treatment is progressing well.

As I explore, I point out aspects Si-Hoo didn’t notice in the past.

On to the next memory.

Bang.

A new memory emerges.

It’s dark, like nighttime.

But I think I know this place.

In front of Seo-Ah’s house.

After going through so many of his memories, I can’t not know.

“……”

Si-Hoo just stands, staring at the closed door.

Waiting for something.

He waits.

And waits.

Eventually, he turns away.

“Well, whatever.”

I don’t know what he was waiting for.

Probably Seo-Ah.

But it doesn’t seem like he planned to wait long.

I walk up to him and ask.

“What’s up?”

“When I joined the Academy, she seemed to hate it.”

He answers while walking.

He must be on his way back to the Academy.

“Really?”

“She cursed me in every way possible.”

Seo-Ah cursed him?

Is this memory distorted?

I don’t know where the truth lies.

“I joined partly for her sake. But if she hates me that much, I see no point in trying.”

Even without my interference, the memory has already shifted.

The treatment is successful.

Si-Hoo won’t suffer anymore.

So is this when Si-Hoo and Seo-Ah drifted apart?

The altered memory doesn’t match reality exactly.

The treatment is almost complete.

On to the next scene.

Bang.

The background changes.

A café.

A café within the Academy.

Si-Hoo sits alone, drinking something.

“What are you doing alone?”

“I… lent some money.”

“To whom?”

“To Seo-Ah.”

She borrowed money?

“What did she need it for?”

“For medicine or something. An excuse, probably. There’s no way medicine costs that much.”

Ah, it’s drugs.

This is when she started using them.

Maybe she felt lonely after Si-Hoo left.

“Do you think you’ll get the money back?”

“No. It’d be fine if I never got it back.”

“I see.”

Then, on to the next scene.

Bang.

Now it’s in a forest.

A dark forest.

I see Si-Hoo standing, staring at the ground.

“What’s wrong?”

“……”

No answer.

He seems frozen.

“Si-Hoo?”

“……”

“Is this an untouchable memory?”

Sometimes this happens.

Moments that can’t be altered, as if frozen in time.

Something shocking must have happened around this time.

I don’t know what.

So it’s best to just move to the next memory.

“Who are you?”

“Huh?”

A girl’s voice.

It’s the first time someone else in Si-Hoo’s memory has spoken.

Usually, the only people present in his memories are Si-Hoo and me.

It’s dark, but I’m sure it’s Seo-Ah.

So Seo-A

he was at this place too.

“Ha ha ha.”

“Seo-Ah?”

“Why are you doing this?”

She comes closer.

Laughing.

Though it’s only an image in Si-Hoo’s memory, it doesn’t pose a threat.

It’s just part of Si-Hoo.

Because that’s how memories work.

“Your very existence causes Si-Hoo pain.”

“Pain?”

“So I’m treating him; try to understand.”

This is a ghost that will disappear in the next scene.

I’ve seen this phenomenon when modifying memories before.

I know because I’ve used memory-based healing on others.

“You know, it was a precious memory.”

A precious memory.

Odd for it to be precious.

“Are you hurt? Did someone stab you?”

“Yes.”

She’s covered in blood.

Crying.

What happened to Seo-Ah at this place?

“Do you really think being stabbed is a good memory?”

Not in my opinion.

How could that be called a memory?

“I don’t want to be forgotten.”

“Memories naturally fade and distort.”

That’s why treatment is possible.

A treatment only I can provide.

“Why are you doing this?”

She repeats the same line.

Smiling but with a face filled with despair.

“Don’t worry. I’m here.”

You’ll disappear, and I’ll stay.

I’ll stay by Si-Hoo’s side, together with him.

I’m here, not you.

I’ll treat Si-Hoo, over and over.

Until Seo-Ah is out of his life, and I become his only friend.

It’s a long-term treatment.

Removing the root of the problem.

Then Si-Hoo won’t have any reason to be angry at me.

Not all the memories I alter will remain exactly as I changed them.

But they’ll influence him the way I want.

“I’ll stop here for today. It’s harder to intervene as we get closer to recent memories.”

I’ve learned so much about Si-Hoo.

I like Si-Hoo even more.

A lot, a whole lot more.

“Stop it.”

Seo-Ah speaks.

“One day, Si-Hoo will be free from you completely. That would be good for him. So you don’t really want Si-Hoo to be happy, do you?”

Memory Seo-Ah doesn’t respond.

“Goodbye.”

Then, that’s all.

“[End Treatment]”

Bang.

With a burst, I return to reality.

My home.

Color returns.

Time flows.

I see Si-Hoo staggering.

It’s just a pause, not an end.

I’ll continue this again soon.

Treatment needs consistency to be effective.

Thud.

Si-Hoo collapses on the floor.

I wanted to catch him, but I have no strength left.

Using this skill once drains me as if I’d sprinted for miles.

Still, I feel refreshed.

I did something truly good today.

I was able to help Si-Hoo.

It feels nice to live up to the name of Saintess.