I Became the Childhood Friend of a D*ug Dealer

– After the accident, the perpetrator said, “I was so drunk I didn’t know what I was doing…”

This feels like something I saw on the news once.

What trash.

It’s strange that drinking would be a mitigating factor.

You should take responsibility for what you’ve done.

Aren’t drugs similar?

But I didn’t use the drugs willingly.

Sure, I did stick every syringe in me by my own will, but in my current, clear condition, I would never have done that.

I know.

That must have been the case.

“Yun-Hwa, can you move over a bit? Just for a sec.”

Han Si-Hoo looks at me with a complicated expression.

That girl over there is still eyeing me suspiciously.

“They say it’s dangerous, right? With the whole seventeen hundred and all. Are you really okay?”

Dangerous?

I have no idea what they’re talking about.

“I’m fine.”

“…Just be careful.”

Yun-Hwa says that and leaves the room.

What am I supposed to be careful about?

Now it’s just Si-Hoo and me left.

Something feels off about the atmosphere.

Anyway, I should say what needs to be said.

“Um, Si-Hoo, thanks. I think I’ll be okay now. I’m healed.”

[Paused]

Am I really healed?

“Paused” sounds like there’s a chance for a replay later on.

As long as I don’t use any drugs, I should be fine.

I have no intention of using drugs, so I’m good.

“I’m sorry for attacking you. I’m really sorry. It won’t happen again. I’m sorry.”

I know this level of apology isn’t enough.

Someday, I’ll find a way to repay it.

“I’m normal now, so I won’t hold you back.”

Han Si-Hoo doesn’t react to my apology at all.

He just stares at me with a cold expression.

Is he really angry?

Well, it’s only natural since I tried to kill him.

He doesn’t seem inclined to accept my apology either.

“It’s fine.”

This feels different.

The atmosphere is not the same as usual.

Han Si-Hoo reaches out his hand.

For some reason, his hand inches closer to my neck and then comes to a halt.

“…For now, stay away from me. My condition is off.”

“Uh?”

“It’s a side effect of my skill. I might attack you right now. I’m sorry. Don’t come closer.”

Han Si-Hoo says this with his eyes closed.

If he’s going that far to say it, something must be going on.

“Okay. I’ll come back later.”

I guess there must have been a price to pay.

This world is exceptionally harsh when it comes to treatment.

Wounds can be treated quickly, but that’s about it.

If you don’t get treated quickly, it becomes hard to heal, and internal injuries or unseen diseases are beyond the capabilities of an Awakener.

Generally speaking, of course.

I’ve heard that sometimes exceptionally skilled healing Awakeners ignore such limitations, though.

But Han Si-Hoo hasn’t exactly shown strengths in healing.

He seems to be fully committed to combat.

Yet, he managed to restore Yoo Seo-A to normal.

He mentioned a side effect of a skill.

I think it relates to the Purification skill.

“Wait a sec.”

He covers his eyes with his arm.

He must think I shouldn’t see him.

“Wait… where were you before this?”

“I was in the medical room on the lower floor.”

“Oh, I see. With who?”

“With the doctor.”

“…Doctor?”

“Yeah, I saw him after a long time.”

Now that I say it, something feels off.

Didn’t Han Si-Hoo dislike doctors?

It’s clear there’s some misunderstanding here.

Doctors are good people.

“Was it Lee Yoo-Ram?”

“Huh? No.”

“Then who?”

“You know him. The one from when I first came to the Academy… Come to think of it, I haven’t seen him since then.”

Han Si-Hoo lowers his arm that was hiding his face.

“…Who did you mean?”

“You know, the guy who gave me medicine.”

“A doctor was with you?”

“Yeah. If that’s the case, maybe I should clear up any misunderstanding I have about doctors…”

Misunderstanding?

What is he talking about?

There must have been a reason to be hostile.

Suddenly, I don’t even know why I’m so positive about doctors.

I didn’t even use drugs.

[Paused]

“…Ah, I see.”

Han Si-Hoo opens his eyes at some point.

He seems to check the injection marks on my arm, then sighs.

“So, no matter how many times we go through this, it’s the same.”

“Huh?”

“Of course it’s true. Wanting to go back to the way things were is delusional, isn’t it? Am I supposed to just shut up?”

That’s scary.

Is he talking to himself?

I’ve never seen him mumble like that before.

“No matter how much purification I do, if I use even one dose of medicine, I’ll just revert back.”

“I won’t use it anymore.”

I have no intention of using drugs even if a doctor offers them.

“What the doctor has been giving me until now isn’t necessary anymore. I’m not in pain, so I don’t need it.”

Rambling on.

“Anyway, so just rest easy—”

Han Si-Hoo doesn’t reply.

He just comes closer and extends his hand.

A handshake?

Gack.

My neck got grabbed.

I can’t shake off the hand that’s holding me.

As my mind begins to go blank, Han Si-Hoo releases me.

He gives me a moment to catch my breath.

“Ah, haah.”

He seems really angry.

That expression is truly the look of someone disgusted.

I’m genuinely feeling the terror of having Han Si-Hoo as an enemy.

I never imagined he could be this angry.

Could it be because of the skill side effects?

He did say he might attack me.

Or did I say something I shouldn’t have?

Was it the talk about the doctor that caused the problem?

[Paused]

“Wait, one moment.”

He tightens his grip on my neck again.

With one hand.

If only Han Si-Hoo was okay, everything would probably return to normal.

But that sort of fortunate scenario won’t happen.

The cost of restoring the completely broken Yoo Seo-A falls on Han Si-Hoo.

It strikes me.

I remember what the Purification skill is.

“Hah, ha, ha.”

As I gasp for air, I start to feel dizzy.

My vision is blurring white.

“I should have done this earlier.”

Han Si-Hoo is looking at me with an expressionless face, showing no emotion.

He’s paying the price for his sins.

I must’ve lived like garbage all this time.

“I’m… sorry.”

It’s correct to apologize.

Han Si-Hoo remains silent.

I’m not sure if this is really Han Si-Hoo.

He looks like he’s in a similar condition to when I used drugs.

So this is how he’s been dealing with me all this time.

Han Si-Hoo must have struggled too.

“If only you had just discreetly vanished, none of this would have happened.”

Is that the way it is?

That does seem to be true.

“Hey, are you still scared of Han Si-Hoo? You’re still trying to stick close to him, huh?”

I’m barely starting to feel scared now.

“Is the doctor your close friend?”

Not necessarily a friend, but a good person.

Right?

“Didn’t you say something hurt?”

Poke.

“Ugh?”

“Tell me. What were you doing to get those injuries?”

Those are questions Han Si-Hoo would never ask.

Actions he would never take.

“Were you selling your body? Even if it wasn’t that, anything could have happened.”

My mind went blank for a moment.

“Ah, no. No, that’s not it.”

I’ve never heard such a blunt question before.

But I can understand.

The environment and situation are a total mess.

Thinking that way wouldn’t be strange at all.

“I really didn’t do that.”

I hadn’t fallen that far.

Puh-ack.

“That hurts.”

It’s painful.

It hurts so much.

It hurts, it hurts, it hurts.

My stomach got kicked.

When I opened my eyes, I found myself sprawled on the floor.

Drugs.

If there were drugs, it would hurt less.

Getting used to this kind of pain after such a long time feels unbearable.

No, I don’t need drugs anymore.

[Paused]

I’m using it because time is running out.

There’s no reason to use them now.

But it still hurts.

I hate pain.

Why was I hit?

I can’t understand.

“What—what are you doing?”

That’s not my voice.

Yun-Hwa, who was outside, comes back in.

“Did you hit him?”

She looks confused.

Either way, Han Si-Hoo is just staring at me.

I need to explain myself first.

Cough.

I coughed repeatedly until I could speak.

This is a misunderstanding.

Really.

If I had said something sooner, I would have somehow managed to explain.

Most of the injuries are self-inflicted.

It’s not a big issue.

I’m hurting more than anything.

Something feels broken.

I don’t want to take any more hits.

*

I can’t comprehend the situation.

I don’t know what’s happening.

Wasn’t he a friend?

Did Si-Hoo hit that girl?

No, of course, she tried to kill him first.

That would make him understandably angry.

I also felt anger to the point of wanting to kill her.

But Si-Hoo doesn’t seem angry at all.

I wonder if their friendship is that special.

Whatever happened between them, I thought they would resolve it amongst themselves.

“I’m really not.”

Yoo Seo-A’s eyes are welling with tears.

Is she in pain or is she sad?

I can’t tell what she means by “not.”

“I didn’t sell my body.”

What is she trying to clarify?

“There’s no such thing. I swear. That never happened.”

She speaks frantically.

Coming from the slums.

If a girl lived in a place like that, it wouldn’t be strange for her to have done something disgusting.

I was thinking like that.

But looking at Yoo Seo-A in front of me now, I feel something deeply wrong.

Hearing such things from a young girl.

Huh?

Am I really supposed to clarify that I didn’t sell my body?

What is going on?

Is this hell?

A regular girl wouldn’t even find herself in such a situation.

When I only saw her smiling, she seemed like just an average kid.

“I really never did.”

Now that I’ve wanted to kill her, my disgust for her has peaked.

As my anger subsides, I can see Yoo Seo-A better.

I notice the scars on her arms that look like they’ve been butchered.

Countless marks from needles.

I think she brought this upon herself.

Just looking at her dorm room, the syringes were all over the place.

I thought she was just a filthy addict.

A trash who would try to kill a friend.

If she wanted this, I simply found it disgusting.

I see Yoo Seo-A curled up on the floor in agony.

She couldn’t have wanted this.

“Stop…”

Han Si-Hoo doesn’t seem normal either.

His eyes are wavering.

As if something unintended has happened, he steps back.

His expression is off.

He tries to cover his eyes with his hands.

Si-Hoo does seem a bit weird.

He’s mumbling about odd numbers and rambling back and forth.

Still, once Yoo Seo-A showed up, he stepped back.

He must have wanted us to just talk it out.

This situation needs to end somehow.

But I don’t know how.

I feel like my brain has frozen in the face of this unforeseen circumstance.

Crack.

“Si-Hoo?!”

Si-Hoo grabs the sword leaning against the bed.

He pulls it out of its scabbard.

Not by the handle but by the blade.

Blood starts to drip from his hand.

“Oh. I feel a bit better now.”

“What—what are you doing?”

Self-harm.

I can see the sharp metal digging into his palm.

“I’m sorry. Please take Seo-A and get her out.”

He’s still covering his eyes with one hand.

“I’ll try to regain my senses somehow.”

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