By Zephyria Sa-young gripped Eui-jae’s hand tightly. The touching wounds throbbed as if branded by fire. It was a pain he hadn’t felt in a long time.
Red blood mixed with black blood, flowing down his wrist. Golden vines bloomed around their palms. Something tingled and burrowed into his body. It crawled up his palm, wrist, and arm, settling near his heart.
At the same time, a hot lump surged up from his solar plexus. Eui-jae bit his lip hard and groaned. He felt like he couldn’t hold back the constant urge to retch.
“…Ugh.”
“Hold on.”
[Trait Basilisk’s Poison (S+) is activated.]
‘Wait.’
Eui-jae’s eyes widened at the sudden System Window.
It was the Antidote trait he’d obtained after catching the Basilisk at the West Sea Rift, but it had never actually activated before. It was a strange trait that never reacted to weak Poison. But why now?
Unable to overcome his bewilderment, Eui-jae coughed, and bright red blood splattered out. A faint sweetness lingered amidst the metallic taste of blood.
‘Ah, that crazy brat.’
“…Shit, Hyung. What’s wrong?”
Why are you cursing? I’m the one who should be cursing. Eui-jae spat out blood between his teeth, trying to hold onto his fading consciousness. Through his slightly wavering vision, he saw Lee Sa-young frozen in place.
“Hyung?”
‘Putting Poison in someone’s body and acting like this.’
“Hyung, open your mouth, quick.”
‘I clearly said I’d kill you if you touched…’
“Hurry!”
Sa-young, muttering anxiously, shoved the thumb of his gloved hand into Eui-jae’s mouth. Eui-jae instinctively bit down on Sa-young’s thumb. He wanted to bite the finger off with his teeth if he could. His head was too hot.
Eui-jae glared at the pure white System Window filling his vision with bloodshot eyes.
‘Why is an S+ grade trait so slow? Do you want to die?’
[Trait Basilisk’s Poison (S+) is activated.]
[Detoxifying.]
[Trait Basilisk’s Poison (S+) is activated.]
[Detoxifying.]
[Trait Basilisk’s Poison (S+) is activated.]
[Detoxifying.]
The System Window blinked repeatedly as if it felt wronged. It seemed like its own way of expressing that it was working hard, but Cha Eui-jae didn’t care.
He didn’t like Lee Sa-young, nor did he like the Basilisk’s Poison. What gave this crazy brat the nerve to put Poison in someone’s body? The Antidote he’d taken seemed useless, so why did he tell him to take it? What if I didn’t have a Poison trait…
Soon, a cool liquid slowly flowed in along his thumb. The burning heat gradually subsided as the liquid touched him. At the same time, the System Window popped up.
[Detoxification complete.]
[Due to the Basilisk’s Poison (S+) effect, resistance to the once detoxified Poison is acquired.]
Hah, hah. Eui-jae gasped for breath. He couldn’t even remember the last time he’d coughed up so much blood. The heat gradually subsided, and sensation slowly returned from his fingertips. One hand was still held by Sa-young.
“Hyung.”
Eui-jae placed his remaining hand on his forehead. His blurred vision cleared, and he saw the Gas mask staring intently at him.
“…Hyung.”
Sa-young called out to Eui-jae once more. Eui-jae slowly calmed his breathing. Whether it was because the trait had worked hard or because of the unknown liquid Lee Sa-young had given him, his body was recovering quickly.
‘Good, at this rate…’
Although some pain remained, it was manageable enough to ignore and move.
As he was about to answer the repeated calls, warm leather gloves, heated by body temperature, gently wrapped around his cheeks and chin. The hand that had been feeling his cheek for a moment slowly moved down, gripping his chin and lifting his head.
The black Gas mask looked a little clearer. Sa-young asked in a whisper.
“Can you see me?”
As if he wouldn’t be able to see this pitch-black face. Eui-jae obediently nodded. Since his head was fixed in place, it was closer to a slight tilt. Sa-young muttered in a worried tone.
“It seems like you can hear too.”
“……”
“What about speech? Blink if you can’t speak.”
If he opened his mouth, he felt like he would curse right away, so Eui-jae blinked instead of answering aloud with as much restraint as possible. It wasn’t so much that he couldn’t speak, but rather that he wasn’t speaking, but it was the same either way. He felt the grip on his cheek tighten a little more.
“…Is his vocal cord damaged?”
“……”
“What about other places?”
What kind of Poison does this crazy brat have?
Listening to him, it was absurd. So, if he put together what Lee Sa-young was worried about now… that crazy brat’s Poison could damage his sight, hearing, vocal cords, and even his organs all at once. It was even a potent Poison that worked on an S-class Awakened.
‘Can a simple Poison be this strong?’
“Cha Eui-jae.”
The anxious voice cut off his train of thought. A strangely cautious hand touched his neck. Suddenly, Eui-jae wondered what kind of expression Lee Sa-young was making right now. So he reached out with the hand that had been on his forehead,
“……”
“What―”
And gripped the Gas mask tightly.
Crack. The front of the Gas mask was crushed in his grip. He twisted and pulled on the crumpled mask, and a pale face without a trace of color appeared behind the torn Gas mask. Purple eyes widened in surprise, lips parted, and bangs stuck slightly to his forehead with cold sweat.
‘His eyelashes are really long.’
He quite liked the way his usually indifferent face was filled with surprise and bewilderment. After admiring Sa-young’s face to his satisfaction, Eui-jae tossed the remnants of the torn Gas mask aside. Then, he removed Lee Sa-young’s hand, which was stiffly fixed around his neck.
He rubbed the blood remaining on his lips with the back of his hand and replied.
“I’m fine. What do you mean my vocal cords are damaged?”
“……”
“This is the first time I’ve seen such a potent Poison in my life…. Do you have any conscience?”
“…Shit.”
Lee Sa-young’s pretty face contorted hideously. He took off the Gas mask with the torn front and threw it to the floor, glaring at Eui-jae.
“Why didn’t you say anything? Are you messing with me?”
“I thought I’d curse at you as soon as I opened my mouth, why?”
“Ah… shit, really. Annoying….”
Lee Sa-young ran his hand through his hair nervously and turned away. Only then did Eui-jae take a closer look at his surroundings.
The table, soaked in blood, was blackened and melted in places, the dagger that had cut his palm was thrown carelessly, and next to it, a bottle he had never seen before was rolling around.
Eui-jae picked up the bottle that had rolled nearby. A System Window popped up, indicating that it wasn’t an ordinary bottle.
[Nectar of the Golden Tree (S)
Upon consumption, removes all status ailments and curses.]
‘…Could it be.’
It was an ominous item just by its name.
Most status ailment cures have a set type and grade that they can cure. Items that unconditionally remove all status ailments and curses are so rare that they are priceless. And that precious item is now…
[Now it’s an empty bottle.]
Rolling around empty on the Hanover Soup Restaurant table….
Could it be that the cool liquid that had entered his mouth was this? The thought of grabbing him by the collar and demanding how he could put Poison in someone after giving them an Antidote faded a little. Come to think of it, Lee Sa-young seemed quite flustered too.
‘The Nectar of the Golden Tree… is a waste.’
If he had waited a little longer, his trait ‘Basilisk’s Poison’ would have taken care of the detoxification on its own. Maybe he should have just told him honestly that he had a detoxification trait.
Eui-jae glanced sideways, clutching the now empty Nectar of the Golden Tree bottle. Lee Sa-young was still standing with his back turned.
“…Um, Lee Sa-young?”
“……”
“This Nectar of the Golden Tree… is it expensive?”
“Just say one more word.”
As Lee Sa-young growled, Eui-jae stretched his philtrum and sized him up. Well, he must be feeling inwardly regretful, so asking about the price would be like rubbing salt in the wound.
Eui-jae reflected inwardly. Anyway, he had never been good at comforting others. After much deliberation, he came up with the most innocuous answer.
“Thanks for now.”
“Haha.”
‘Did I finally get it right?’
“Thanking the person who used Poison. You’re quite the saint….”
‘Even if I say thank you, he’s still being difficult.’
Modern society, where you get sarcasm instead of praise even after giving thanks. It’s more suffocating than eating chicken breast without water….
He didn’t think he’d hear anything good even if he talked more. Eui-jae carefully put down the Nectar of the Golden Tree bottle he was holding and checked his palm. The wound from the dagger had already healed, and a faint golden chain shimmered on the thin scar that remained.
‘It seems the contract has been concluded.’
Eui-jae clenched and unclenched his hand, then spoke to Sa-young.
“Now that the contract is over, how about you finish explaining what we were talking about back then?”
“……”
Only then did Lee Sa-young turn back and meet his gaze. His face was subtly sulky, as if he was expressionless. He approached hesitantly, pulled out a chair, and sat across from Eui-jae. After a moment of silence, he opened his mouth.
“There are guys spreading drugs, and I’m looking for them.”
“……”
“Did I talk about this far?”
When Eui-jae nodded, Sa-young continued slowly.
“Drugs are circulating at very low prices. So that they can be easily accessed anywhere. The more easily they are accessed, the faster they become addicted, and those who are addicted want stronger and stronger stimuli.”
Generally, Awakened are more sensitive in every way than ordinary people. Because their senses are so finely developed, there are many things to be concerned about. That’s why they live a life with many unpleasant things and few enjoyable things.
For those Awakened, the stimulus of drugs came as a powerful sensation. It must have been like a magical drug that eliminated the unpleasantness of everyday life and gave only pleasure. It wasn’t unreasonable for them to fall into it, as it wasn’t easy to shake off the pleasure they had tasted after a long time.
“If they gradually increase the dosage like that, at some point, that alone won’t be enough. Then they go directly to the suppliers.”
“……”
“Most of the guys who go that far have already undergone physical Mutation, or are about to. The suppliers take the guys who crawl in on their own two feet.”
“To where?”
“A laboratory.”
A chilling light flickered across Sa-young’s face.
“Drugs are just bait to gather test subjects.”