I Became the Drug-Addicted Childhood Friend

Chapter 63

The black dome surrounding me remains unbroken.
The thorns I sent out in every direction seem to have quieted things down.
But now, something strange appears before my eyes.

[Warning – External stimuli may accelerate time.]

Come to think of it, this is the first warning message the status window has ever displayed.

[98%]

The time to reach 100% seems to have sped up considerably.
The external stimuli were far too intense.

And now, another warning appears.
The once-silent status window starts to speak.

[Warning – External stimuli may result in progressive self-loss, cognitive pattern deterioration, loss of language function, neural system and mana circuit reconstruction, physical and mental overload, confusion, and fear.]

“…Since when did you start being so detailed and helpful?”

This external stimulus must be far stronger than before.
It’s speaking with absolute certainty now—no “may cause,” just “will cause.”

“But why?”

Wasn’t this supposed to make me normal?
Didn’t I repay my debt?

[99%]

Ah.
Did something go wrong?
But there’s no other way.

“…Why?”

Self-loss, loss of language, all terrifying keywords.
Even rereading the warning doesn’t help me understand.
Wasn’t I supposed to go back to being normal?

“Wait, wait, hold on, why?”

Why does it feel like I’m not becoming normal?
My brain already feels rotten—can it really get worse?
Would avoiding external stimuli fix this?

“I-I’ve survived this far! I’ve held on until now!”

I don’t even know who I’m yelling at.

“If I disappear… If I disappear…”

People will regret it.
But will they really?

“…Shihu…”

Would he be sad?
Or relieved that the obstacle is gone?

Shihu has to exist for there to be a happy ending.
He’s the protagonist who will bring peace to the world, isn’t he?

“I just need to stop using the drugs. I’m sorry!”

I’ve used far too much until now.
Is this my punishment?
I don’t know what’s happening, but it’s terrifying.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry! But I still have hope—”

Do I?

Light pierces through the black dome.
The barrier is breached.
Cracks widen, and the dome starts to split apart.

And then, someone appears.

“…Shihu?”

“Yes. It’s me, Seo Ah.”

The hand wielding his sword is trembling.
He had just risen from being collapsed moments ago.
There’s no way his body is in good condition.

“Shihu, Shihu, why are you trying to kill me? Please don’t.”

“I’m not. We didn’t call those people here.”

“Th-then… I attacked you…”

I remember attacking him recklessly.

“It was a misunderstanding.”

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

“It’s fine. Calm down. I’ve already told them to stop attacking.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

[99%]

Ah. No wonder the number hasn’t increased further.
It used to go up by 1% every time I got attacked, but now it’s stopped just shy of 100%.

“Don’t attack anymore, okay?”

If I do, it’ll hit 100%.
I thought I was repaying my debt, thought I was becoming normal.
Why did I think that?
I don’t understand at all.

“It’s fine. Calm down.”

Calm down.
I try to calm myself.
How?

“Oh, oh, right. That purification skill—you have it, don’t you? Can you use it? I’m kind of in a dangerous situation here.”

“Purification? N-now?”

Shihu replies hesitantly.

“Yes. Can’t you?”

“Well, I’m sorry. My body’s not in great shape. I probably can’t.”

He’s bleeding.
Shihu is clutching the wound on his chest with the hand not holding his sword.

“Oh, right, you’re hurt. I’m sorry. I keep asking for impossible things and being a burden.”

“Don’t worry about me. Let’s just get out of here first.”

“Okay!”

The dome-shaped barrier is almost completely destroyed.
The continuous attacks have filled the air with thick smoke.

Grabbing Shihu’s hand, I start running.
There must be a safe place somewhere.

Bang. Bang, bang, bang, bang!

The sound of gunfire rings out from somewhere.
And the one hit—

Is me.

[100%]

Ha.
The number has reached its limit.
So, what happens now?

First, it hurts.
It feels like something is bursting inside me.

Breath scattered in chaotic fragments.
How did it come to this?

I was nothing special.
I didn’t do anything to deserve this.
I wanted to be someone great, someone important, but I never became that.

I just want human warmth.
Because I’m not a monster—I’m human.

[System shutdown in 3 seconds.]

I’m sorry.
I’m sorry.
I’m sorry.

[System shutdown in 2 seconds.]

But I don’t want to die.
I want to live.
I will stay here.

[System shutdown in 1 second.]

Shutdown (euthanasia).

So that’s what this is.
Shihu is holding my hand.

“Ahaha.”

I see a memory from when I was young.
Was it when I was very sick?
Shihu was by my side—

[System shutdown.]

***

“Seo Ah?”

Shihu had also been shot in the leg.
Someone had fired recklessly.
But that didn’t matter now.

“…Seo Ah? Hey?”

Please let this be a mistake.
Let this be a hallucination caused by blood loss.

He shook her, but she didn’t wake up.
He needed to stop the bleeding.
But the wounds were in a difficult area.
At the academy, they taught that even a single hit to this region could be fatal.
With rapid-fire shots, the damage was overwhelming.

“……”

Pain he had momentarily forgotten came rushing back.
Shihu tried to lift Seo Ah, to carry her, but his leg throbbed in agony.
He couldn’t walk.
He staggered, falling alongside her.

In the background, Cheon Yuhwa was shouting, fighting whoever had fired the gun.
The situation was falling apart.
Even among the "Awakened," internal discord had broken out, with someone from the military intervening.

- Who gave the order to fire?!

A faint voice could be heard shouting from a distance.
No, there was no way Seo Ah was dead.
Last time, he’d thought she was dead too, but she had survived.

He had to stop the bleeding.
Even if he didn’t know how, he had to try.
Removing his shirt, he started applying pressure.
As he loosened Seo Ah’s clothes to bandage her, scars came into view.

Then he noticed something.
The scars weren’t random—they were letters.

“Canned tuna.”

It was written across her lower abdomen.

“…Oh, damn it…”

That’s why she didn’t want to show her skin.
That’s why she called herself "canned tuna."
What had she been through?

All Shihu could remember was sharing a can of tuna with her once.
Why had it come to this?

“Ah… ah…”

The writing wasn’t limited to one area.
It was everywhere.
It was cruel.

But more pressing than the scars was the blood still pouring out.
Her blood was thicker than usual—likely a side effect of the drugs.
The thought briefly crossed Shihu’s mind.

Recovery medicine.
They’d called it that once.
She needed the drugs.

Drugs.
He had a few emergency doses with him, just in case he ever ran into Seo Ah again and they became necessary.
Did he bring them?

He searched his pockets.
His fingers found something similar to a pen.

“Ah.”

It was a syringe.
But it was broken.
The contents had leaked out during the intense fighting.

She had to live.
She had to survive.

The battle around them continued.
Seo Ah had fallen, but for some reason, the fight hadn’t stopped.

He needed to protect her.
He needed to get her to safety.
To a place where she could be treated.

“I have to… get us out of here.”

His vision blurred.
He’d already been forcing himself to stay conscious for too long.
He was at the very limits of his mental endurance.
He’d pushed himself to the brink, but there was nothing left to give.

Again.
Again.
He needed to get up, to carry her.
There had to be people who could help.
But right now, he was the one who needed to be carried.

Thud.
He fell to his knees.
All around him were collapsed concrete and steel beams from the battle.

Tap, tap.
Small stones tumbled down.
Dust fell from above.

A massive section of the building’s wreckage began to collapse.

He needed to stop it.
But he had no strength left.
He couldn’t even grip his sword properly, let alone fight.
He tried to use his skills, but his mana was completely depleted.

Everything was gone.
Even passing out wouldn’t be surprising at this point.
He had used up every ounce of power he had.

So how?
How was he supposed to protect Seo Ah?

He wrapped his arms around her and braced himself for the impact.
Could he shield her from the falling debris with his back?

Boom!

***

"If anything happens in the future…"

A faded memory from childhood.
A recollection so blurry, it’s hard to know if it’s accurate.

"Tell me. We’re friends, after all."

The moment Shihu and Seo Ah truly began to grow closer.

"I’ll protect you."

So, don’t worry.

"Really?"

Seo Ah asked again.

"Yeah."

"Then I’ll protect you too, Shihu."

She smiled brightly.

"So, if anything hard happens, tell me!

With complete confidence.
Confidence that came from who knows where.

"I’ll take care of everything."

Her chest puffed out, as if demanding trust.
That carefree smile, full of sunshine.

The battle had become far too chaotic.
Cheon Yuhwa bit her lip.
It should have ended with simply retrieving Seo Ah, but the military had intervened.
Likely due to the recent monster escape in the area.

She had let her guard down because an academy professor was among her group.
But those soldiers had been trained to kill anything that even looked like a monster.
Seo Ah’s human-like appearance didn’t matter to them—they shot first and asked questions later.
Then Rena, observing from a distance, lost control, and everything spiraled into chaos.
Now, indiscriminate gunfire, rogue "Awakened," and other parties with unclear motives had turned the battlefield into a mess.
It was impossible to distinguish friend from foe.

Shihu had also been shot.
Cheon Yuhwa wanted to help him, but she was being attacked by another "Awakened."
The reason? Unknown.

Boom!

A building collapsed under the swing of a giant sword wielded by one of the intervening "Awakened."
The debris was falling right where Shihu was.
She had to stop it.

“Mana depletion?”

She couldn’t use her skills.
She couldn’t stop it.

Crash!

The sound of the building’s wreckage colliding.
Cheon Yuhwa averted her eyes.
Shihu must have stopped it somehow.
For now, she had to focus on the immediate battle.
That took priority.

Without mana, it was down to pure physical ability.
But something felt wrong.
Her mana couldn’t have run out completely.

Then the battlefield grew strangely quiet.
It seemed like everyone was experiencing the same issue—none of their skills were working.
It was as if all "Awakened" abilities had been sealed.

“Where is everyone looking…?”

All eyes were fixed on the spot where Shihu should have been crushed under the debris.
But there was no wreckage.
No Shihu.

Instead, a young girl hovered in the air.
Branches, resembling antlers, sprouted from her head, shimmering like they were made of mana.

Now she understood where all the mana had gone.
It had been absorbed—every last trace in the area.
All the mana in the vicinity had been drawn to that girl.

The air felt unnaturally clear.
Air devoid of mana.
It was eerily fresh, unnervingly so.

“A dragon.”

One of the nearby "Awakened" spoke, breaking the silence.

“What?”

“That’s a dragon. A dragon! This is why dragon hunts are so difficult.”

She couldn’t believe it.
It didn’t look human, but calling it a dragon seemed like a stretch.

“Explain clearly.”

“Mana consumption… Students like you wouldn’t know about it. It’s a skill dragons use—mana absorption. Don’t worry, the mana will return soon. Just hold out until then. Even a dragon can’t handle this many of us… We can take it down.”

A dragon.
A dragon had consumed the mana.