Ch.1010. Choi Min-seo’s Descent into Drugs

As if in a trance, Choi Minseo entered the room and slowly looked around. The subtle fragrance in the air made her body relax and feel comfortable.

“Oh my, is that Green Nature?”

Minseo turned her head. It was a famous actress whom everyone who watched dramas would recognize.

“Ah, hello!”

“I didn’t expect to see you here. I enjoyed your commercial.”

Minseo’s heart fluttered. The actress had a nickname of “Nation’s Mom” because of her friendly and warm image.

Could someone like her be doing drugs?

“Judging by that expression, is this your first time in this room?”

“Ah, y-yes.”

“Hehe. No need to be nervous. They only deal with premium products here that aren’t addictive. They give you happy dreams, so I use them every time I come. Agent, if you please.”

The actress instructed her secret service to prepare something. She sat on a nearby sofa, took a deep inhale from something resembling an electronic cigarette that her agent had prepared, and closed her eyes.

Her eyebrows twitched slightly as she smiled.

Minseo was becoming increasingly curious.

So this is the culture that celebrities enjoy.

Would I look unsophisticated if I couldn’t adapt?

Seeing the actress relax as if all her worries had been lifted, Minseo began to feel at ease.

‘R-right. They call it drugs, but celebrities wouldn’t do anything dangerous. It must be something like aromatherapy.’

Minseo turned to look at Lu-a.

“Could I try some too? Something mild since it’s my first time…”

Lu-a smiled gently.

“Of course.”

Lu-a guided Minseo to a plush sofa. Minseo leaned back comfortably.

“Relax and first inhale the fragrance.”

Lu-a seductively touched Minseo’s shoulders, massaging her tense muscles. A device emitting a strange, slightly tingling scent was brought to her nose.

“Next is inhalation. I’ll place a straw for you, so take a deep breath through your nose as if you’re swallowing air.”

Following instructions, Minseo sniffed deeply. Pink powder instantly entered through the connected straw.

“…Haaah?”

Minseo unconsciously let out a soft moan. Her pupils dilated.

“This drug is called ‘Cherry-colored Cloud.’ It shows you the happiest moments of your life, and when you wake up, only good feelings remain.”

Lu-a’s voice wavered. Minseo’s consciousness became increasingly hazy.

“The main ingredient of this drug is.”

Everything was getting farther and farther away. Was someone pushing the sofa? When did it get wheels? Agent, where are you going? Someone is pushing me. But it’s okay. I feel good. Though I can’t hear what you’re saying clearly.

“Pestam.”

Boom.

◈ ◈ ◈

Blackness.

Here is blackness.

The left is also black, no wait. The left is the hand for eating rice. I ate rice tomorrow. Tomorrow was a rainy day. If it rained, I would feel better. If I feel good, I don’t have to get hit. It’s raining. I said it’s raining, didn’t I? Why are you angry? I told you it’s raining. I’m not doubting you. You’re the one doubting, aren’t you? Are you going to hit me again? If it rained, I would feel better. I don’t have to get hit? If it rains, those kids won’t go outside. If they go outside, I have to get hit. If I get hit, I turn red. I hate red. I hate red so much that I keep digging, and when I doubt, I have to dig more, so I dig and dig and dig until it’s white, and since white is the complementary color of black, when I see black,

So it’s the left.

“You bastard! You freak!”

It was a rainy day.

Usually on rainy days, she wasn’t dragged out and beaten. The bullies who tormented Choi Minseo didn’t like getting wet.

“Kill him! Why is a freak like you at the hero academy!”

But that day, they seemed angrier than usual. She didn’t know the details. They just needed someone to use as a punching bag, and as always, it was her.

“Ugh, aaaah!”

“Monster, it’s a monster!”

It was worse than usual. Five people bullying her. Three boys, two girls. Though she was always beaten, sexual harassment was rare.

But that day, her clothes were torn. Even her underwear was torn. She was hit on her chest and genitals. Her neck was strangled, her legs forcibly spread, and yet she couldn’t resist due to the fear ingrained in her body.

“What undisciplined punks. School violence and gang rape? Is this what happens at a hero academy?”

A dragon-person appeared before her.

“You can’t even assess the difference in skill, can’t distinguish whether someone is a hero, monster, or villain based on their abilities, yet you call yourselves hero aspirants? Education standards have really hit rock bottom!”

The dragon-person beat the bullies to a pulp. Afterward, he looked at her, then turned his head away as if embarrassed, quickly grabbed a blanket from nearby, and threw it to her.

“Cadet Choi Minseo. I came looking for you on business, but first we need to go to the hospital. And um… I didn’t see anything.”

That day changed Minseo’s life.

Being scouted by S-class hero Red Dragon.

The ordinary, unremarkable academy cadet was reborn as an S-class hero through training.

Minseo respected Jung Ui-seok.

He pulled her out of hell, recognized her talent.

That consideration—pretending to be embarrassed when looking at her bruised body, which had no feminine charm and was about to be raped just moments ago.

Respect and gratitude, and the sense of achievement she could learn from training with him.

The bonds with new colleagues.

She fully enjoyed the positive emotions she had never felt in her life until then.

‘I’m happy.’

‘I’m happy, I’m happy.’

‘I’m the happiest person in the world right now!’

She wished that time would last forever.

It began to gradually twist when the battle with the Dark Kingdom started.

The Dark Kingdom was cruel. Many heroes and citizens died.

To reduce their casualties, the Dragon King Sentai had to defeat them as quickly and as many as possible.

It was fine at first. The Dragon King Sentai fought on, encouraging and supporting each other.

But one day, two days, a month.

Fighting without rest, their minds gradually became devastated.

When did it start? The increasing arguments between Jung Ui-seok, Ji Se-hwa, and Shin Yukyong.

When did it start? When did Minseo’s respect and gratitude for Jung Ui-seok turn into jealousy and envy?

At the rear of the Dragon King Sentai, equally tired and equally crossing the line of death.

The feeling that no one was looking at her or acknowledging her.

It felt like going back to those times.

Ah, that’s when.

Minseo realized.

‘What do you mean?’

One day, while eating in the middle of the battlefield, using the corpses of monsters as chairs.

‘You’re saying Ui-seok is dating Somi?’

‘What are you talking about? It’s been a while. Since the beginning of the Dark Kingdom battle, you idiot.’

Ji Se-hwa snapped back at her.

Clang!

For some reason, Kang Yerin, who was eating nearby, dropped her combat rations and had a look of despair, but Minseo didn’t pay attention. They weren’t close anyway.

‘Eh, eh? Shouldn’t we be focusing on fighting the Dark Kingdom right now?’

‘I agree. Jung Ui-seok is increasingly going berserk. At this pace, we’ll burn out before we even meet Dark Arthur.’

Shin Yukyong said. Minseo looked at the backs of Jung Ui-seok and Han Somi eating together in the distance.

Why do you get to have everything?

Didn’t you save me for my sake?

It was for yourself.

Your life.

Your money, honor, love. To achieve those things.

Am I just a tool?

I was saved by you that day and now I’m suffering like this, but you don’t share anything.

—Crackle.

That’s how the jealousy began.

So when Han Somi died, Minseo was partly relieved.

Because she knew that Jung Ui-seok couldn’t have everything.

But what happened? Jung Ui-seok instead became physically and mentally stronger, speeding up the eradication of the Dark Kingdom.

Like a machine that only knew battle.

‘That can’t be. How can he be sane when his lover died?’

Minseo searched Jung Ui-seok’s house on the association chairman’s words and found drugs in the basement, finally feeling relieved.

Ah, Jung Ui-seok is human too.

A person with such a big weakness, nothing special.

That’s what he was using to endure.

So when that unremarkable Jung Ui-seok died, she was happy—

Happy—

Happy——

“There’s no way I could be happy.”

“There’s no way I could be happy, there’s no way I could be happy, there’s no way I could be happy!!!”

“Aah, aaaah, aaaaaaah!!!!”

The darkness returns. Minseo screamed. Black blood poured from her vocal cords. She couldn’t tell if it was inside or outside her throat.

“I’m happy because I took away Ui-seok’s honor? I’m happy because I put Ui-seok beneath me? No! This is jealousy! How can I be happy when I’m jealous!!”

She faced the truth she had been avoiding all along. Honor, attention, fame. Those were fake goals.

They were just compensation psychology for losing the emotions that had been the driving force of her happiness.

“I, I.”

Minseo scratched under her dilated pupils with all her might. Black blood flowed through the wound and floated toward the sky.

“I needed someone to respect.”

Following his back,

Receiving his encouragement,

Being grateful to him,

The time spent with him.

That alone was happiness.

“Ui-seok. What, what have I done?”

Thud!!

Jung Ui-seok’s face appeared before her eyes.

The face of a corpse with hollow pupils.

“What have you done?”

Jung Ui-seok’s mouth opened, and black blood poured out. It soaked Minseo’s face. Somehow, her vision remained clear.

“You killed me.”

“Aaaah! No, no, nooooo!!”

The nightmare had only just begun.

◈ ◈ ◈

“Ah.”

Choi Minseo opened her eyes. She stretched pleasantly.

“Did you have a good dream?”

Lu-a smiled brightly. Minseo wore a comfortable smile.

“Yes. I don’t remember it clearly, but I was really, really happy. Thank you, Agent.”

As Minseo said this, tears were flowing from her eyes.

◈ ◈ ◈

“Is it working? She just seemed to be enjoying it.”

“That’s the scary part of Cherry-colored Cloud. It makes you experience both up and down simultaneously, enough to break your brain, but only the up feeling remains.”

“Hmm. But will once be enough?”

“It’s sufficient.”

I was confident. The security at that party venue was strict, making it very difficult to infiltrate Lu-a.

They also didn’t handle dangerous drugs like Pestam, so bringing it in was complicated.

But it was worth it.

“The addiction rate of Cherry-colored Cloud made with Pestam is 100 percent. This drug doesn’t cause physical addiction.”

“You mean mental addiction?”

“Even that is subconscious addiction. This can’t be treated even with Quetzalcoatl. Because it’s not physical damage. There’s a reason it’s considered a dangerous drug.”

“That’s scary.”

Lu-a rubbed her arms as if she had goosebumps.

“But if she just enjoys it, it’s not much of a revenge, is it?”

“Haha. You’ll see soon. I can’t miss Choi Minseo’s expression at that time.”

“At that time?”

“The main purpose of working on Choi Minseo is the Pestam she has. The storage amount exceeds 20 tons. That’s essential for dealing with the Galaxy Empire.”

When the time comes, Minseo will voluntarily bring me the stored Pestam.

Suddenly, Lu-a stopped walking. Looking back, I saw her staring far into the sky.

“Hmm?”

I followed Lu-a’s gaze to the night sky.

A sharp crescent moon. Next to it was something white and oval, larger than the crescent moon.

It’s still much farther than the moon. I can’t even imagine how massive this object is.

“Geo, what is that?”

“They came quickly. Galaxy Empire Raniakain.”

[Notice: Scenario ‘The Song of the Final Duel Beyond the Galaxy’ has begun]