Is This Possession or Reincarnation? (1)
My godfather had collapsed. Even after I administered healing magic, he would improve briefly, only for his condition to worsen again after three days. ‘Classic malaria.’ If there was any silver lining, it was that I had the medicine to treat malaria right in my hands. I immediately administered quinine to my godfather.
“Julian… that medicine is…”
“It is a treatment for the southern fever. Its efficacy has been verified by other soldiers, so please rest assured.”
“Have you… been making things like that all this time?”
With those final words, my godfather closed his eyes. He hadn’t passed away; he had simply fallen asleep because he lacked the strength to speak. I immediately began the quinine treatment for him. After giving him the medicine, I spent the night in a corner of the infirmary. The healer periodically cast healing magic, and the servants took turns wiping the sweat from his forehead. In between, I counted his respiratory rate, checked his pulse, and recorded the progression of his fever.
Three days passed. Previously, his fever would have spiked around this time. But this time, it didn’t. And the next three days, and the three days after that—the symptoms of malaria no longer appeared.
‘It worked.’
On the morning of the ninth day, my godfather sat up on his own and asked for water. The head butler hurriedly brought a glass of water, and the healer rushed over. I could hear someone bursting into tears in the hallway. Amidst the commotion, I quietly took a step back. My godfather had successfully recovered and risen from his sickbed.
Just then, as I was turning away, my godfather spoke to my back.
“Julian. Thank you. Is there a reward you would like?”
“I know you are exhausted, but may I ask one favor?”
“Speak.”
“I would like to supply this medicine to the merchant guild under your name.”
“…Is that all?”
“That is more than enough.”
Thanks to that, I was able to cleanly resolve the distribution issues for the quinine. ‘As expected, since this is a misunderstanding-based world, things are going smoothly.’
After he was revived thanks to the quinine, my godfather kept his promise and signed a contract with the merchant guild under his own name. The guild immediately began selling the quinine, and within a few months, the medicine began to spread throughout the entire southern region. The military, which was in charge of the southern front, also began to take notice of the quinine.
Originally, the military had to deal with both malaria and magical beasts simultaneously. But with the advent of quinine, they could now focus their full attention solely on the magical beasts. As a result, news reached the guild that the military had decided to sign a large-scale contract for the quinine. And a few days after that—
‘Today was the day the results were supposed to come out.’
The day the results were to be announced had arrived. Early in the morning, as soon as I woke up, I stood in front of the mirror to tidy myself up. Standing before the glass, I saw a gloomy boy with a face that looked as if he had lived through everything. Heterogeneous black hair with a blue sheen like crow feathers. Beneath that, cold grayish-blue eyes. Droopy eyes that were half-closed. As I groomed the disheveled hair of the boy in the mirror, I tried to guess his character from the original work.
‘Looking at his appearance, I must have been a quiet and gentlemanly character in the original.’
Perhaps a genius character who was gentle, dignified, and seemed to have a hidden past. Or maybe not. Regardless, I decided to build Julian’s character in that direction. A character like a gentle church brother who was calm, soft-spoken, and always spoke in a measured tone.
‘…Good. This is enough.’
Having done this since I was four, it had become second nature. I turned away from the mirror, wearing a face that was somewhat gloomy yet never lost its warmth. I was in the middle of changing clothes after finishing my mirror routine when—
Knock, knock.
There was a knock at the door. It was the head butler’s voice.
“Young Master, did you sleep well?”
“Yes, I’m awake.”
“The Master is waiting for you in his office. He asked if you could stop by briefly before your meal.”
The office, first thing in the morning. I had an inkling of what it was about. It had been a few months since I started selling quinine with my godfather’s help. It was about time for the results to come in.
“Understood. I’ll be right there.”
My godfather treats me like his real son. Of course, he sent me to an annex where the only servant was a butler and left me pretty much to my own devices, but still, as the son of a deceased friend, he bought me the books I asked for and made sure I had enough pocket money. A young master in the capital who receives all the essential education and gets a steady allowance? There is no doubt that my godfather treats me like his real son. Or maybe not. Anyway, my godfather called me to the main office. When I opened the door and entered, I saw my godfather sitting at his desk and the head butler standing by his side.
He still looked gaunt, as if the aftereffects of the malaria remained. Or perhaps it was related to the time I saw the godmother muttering in front of his door that being an only child was worrisome.
“Julian. It’s about the medicine you made.”
“Yes, are you talking about the quinine?”
“Yes. I have something to say regarding your request to supply the quinine to the military at a low price.”
“Yes. What is it?”
“The military has placed a much larger order than expected.”
My godfather picked up a document from the desk. The number written on it was… one, two, three, four… Oh my. How many digits is this? I thought I would earn a lot, but this is beyond my imagination. Couldn’t I live off the interest alone for the rest of my life with this?
‘Isn’t it a good thing if there are so many orders?’
Why would this be a problem? Is the military trying to take away my patent rights? As I was worrying about that, my godfather continued.
“If we accept all of this as is, it seems like you will suffer a not-insignificant loss in the share you were originally supposed to receive, so why don’t you reconsider?”
Aha. So that’s what it was—a matter of dividends.
“Do you really have to reduce your share?”
“….”
Actually, when I introduced this medicine, I made one contract with the merchant guild. In exchange for giving up a portion of my dividends, I would sell it to soldiers at half price.
“Of course, in places like the Demon Realm, mosquitoes kill as many soldiers as magical beasts do. I almost died myself. But I wonder if it’s worth going this far.”
“Godfather. But if the medicine is too expensive, the soldiers won’t be able to afford it. Not every soldier is a noble.”
“….”
“The merchant guild said they couldn’t lower the price any further, so I have to be the one to give it up.”
Soldiers’ salaries are stingy in every world and every country. I heard that the cost of quinine was quite a burden for them, too. So, I made this contract to build a favorable image among the soldiers as well.
‘I can earn money later. With quinine, I need to build my image first.’
My goal isn’t to be some rich upstart. Since I’ve become the protagonist, my goal is to become the greatest doctor in the empire, one who will go down in history.
‘And soldiers never forget the people who were good to them.’
The fact that I still look for the same razor I used after leaving the South Korean military is proof of that. Honestly, I think it’s just because I’m used to it, though. ‘And this is the right path for a protagonist.’
Above all, in a world of misunderstandings, you earn more money when you do things that don’t seem profitable. This choice will eventually return as a greater benefit.
“It’s fine. Please proceed as planned.”
“Julian. You might not realize it yet because you are young, but a 2 percent difference in distribution is by no means a small share. You might regret it later.”
“It’s okay. I can earn money later, but human lives are not like that.”
“….”
My godfather lost his words for a moment. Even the head butler standing by his side seemed to have stopped his hand holding the notebook. ‘Did that hit the mark?’
But the silence was longer than I expected. Is he that deeply moved? To give them enough time to ruminate on their emotions, I waited calmly for the two of them. Eventually, my godfather took off his glasses, pressed his eyelids, and let out a sigh.
“…Alright. I will proceed as planned.”
“Thank you.”
“You may leave now. Study hard today as well.”
“Then I will take my leave.”
I bowed to my godfather and walked toward the door.
“Oh, Julian.”
Just as I was about to put my hand on the doorknob, my godfather called me back.
“Today was your birthday, wasn’t it? Happy 10th birthday. Tell me if there is anything you want.”
When I looked back, my godfather was smiling faintly. It was a phrase I felt like I had heard somewhere before. As if… I had heard it even in a dream.
“…Thank you.”
I didn’t hold onto the feeling that something was about to come to mind. Instead, I bowed my head once more and stepped out of the door. As I walked, I suddenly remembered where I had heard those words.
‘Come to think of it… it feels like it might be related to the nightmare I had this morning…’
But like a thick fog, the content of the dream wouldn’t become clear. I shook my head and hurried my steps. I had a lot to do after creating the quinine. I wasn’t a person idle enough to dwell on a dream I couldn’t even remember.
There was a boy. He wanted to be the sun, he wanted to be loved, and he wanted to save the world. Once, the boy was even called a prodigy. But shining first did not mean rising higher. Even when the night deepened and the stars climbed to the very top of the sky, the boy only hovered around the grass. The boy was not a star. A lowly insect that could only shine by borrowing the darkness of the night. He was a 「Firefly」.
To the firefly, the world was cruel. The parents who should have given him love passed away before he could even form memories. The new parents who tried to give him love passed away before they could even bestow it. And for the falling boy, no one reached out a hand. All that remained for him was a single revolver and a cheap lead bullet. The boy opened the cylinder and pushed the bullet in with dirt-stained hands. And with trembling hands, he brought the muzzle to his temple.
If, right now, there was someone left in this world who loved him. What would they have said to the boy? After much deliberation, the boy muttered the words he wanted to hear.
“Happy… 10th birthday, Julian.”
Bang—!
There was a single gunshot, and the boy’s body collapsed onto the grave. The city did not react to the sound of the gunshot. And so, the boy’s story seemed to end.
“…Huh.”
The boy, who had closed his eyes, let out a gasp along with a cold breath.