Chapter 144: The New Pill's Side Effects
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 144: The New Pill's Side Effects
After dinner, I had some time to myself in my room.
To be precise, Sakuya, who was possessing me, was also there, so I wasn't completely alone.
「Hey, if you're just going to sit there reading, can I borrow your phone?」
"What for?"
「There's nothing to do here, and I'm bored.」
"Fine."
As she requested, I pulled my smartphone from my pocket and tossed it to her.
Even as a ghost, she seemed to have no problem handling a phone. She held the smartphone and began tapping away at something.
「What the! There's no Wi-Fi here?!」
I answered without looking up from my book.
"We're in the mountains."
「Ugh...」
She ground her teeth in frustration and started fiddling with something else.
Anyway, I only ever used my phone for games or watching videos, so there was nothing dangerous for others to see.
A good while passed as Sakuya fiddled with the phone by herself.
I wondered what she was doing, being so quiet, and turned my head, only to be startled.
She was shedding transparent tears.
"Why are you crying?"
When I asked in alarm, she jumped and shook her head.
「I wasn't crying.」
Sakuya said, playing dumb, and handed the smartphone back to me.
Then she said she was going out for some fresh air and left the room.
It was obvious she was running away, but I didn't point it out.
I'm at least that kind.
Instead, I turned on the smartphone she'd left behind. Seeing the gallery in the recent apps, I opened it.
What Sakuya had been looking at was a group photo of the Group D members from our recent trip to the beach.
In the picture, Ryuji was grinning broadly, making a V-sign with his fingers.
Looks like that guy has been striking the exact same pose since he was a kid.
That alone was enough for me to guess why she'd burst into tears. I put the smartphone in my pocket and gazed at the hallway beyond the door she had just left through.
I'm not the one who can comfort her.
So for now, all I could do was watch.
*
Swift Wind and Lightning was a more advanced martial art than I had thought.
Generally, ancient martial arts are considered less practical in combat than modern ones.
There are many reasons for this, but I suspect it's mainly because the nature of battle has completely changed since those days.
However, Swift Wind, an assassination art created with the one-hit kill in mind, focused on efficiently targeting and destroying the vital points of the human body. Because of this, it was no less practical than modern martial arts.
There were a total of seven forms in Swift Wind, all named after types of wind.
The 1st Form: Kamaitachi
The 2nd Form: Hayate (Swift Wind)
The 3rd Form: Arashi (Storm)
The 4th Form: Tatsumaki (Tornado)
The 5th Form: Oikaze (Tailwind)
The 6th Form: Tsujikaze (Whirlwind)
The 7th Form: Ryunobori (Waterspout)
I guess they were intentionally themed.
It's cooler that way.
Anyway, by the time I'd finished reading the book once, it was already quite late, so I decided to go to sleep.
I set the book I'd finished by my head and blew out the candle.
As the room darkened, Sakuya, who was floating in mid-air, asked.
「You going to sleep?」
"Yeah."
「...Good night.」
Surprisingly, Sakuya didn't act grumpy and just said that before turning her back to me.
I don't know if ghosts sleep, but I didn't have the luxury to worry about that.
Honestly, I was exhausted.
My eyes felt heavy, and before I knew it, I had fallen asleep.
*
I had a nightmare for the first time in a while.
I don't remember exactly what it was about, but I think it was related to my past life.
A place that looked like a laboratory was burning, and I was wandering through it alone before being engulfed in flames, struggling.
I rolled on the floor, but the inextinguishable fire only grew larger.
Eventually, I woke up to a vivid pain, as if I were being burned to the bone.
"Heok, heok, heok, heok."
Even breathing was agonizing.
I clutched at my chest, struggling to take a breath that wouldn't come.
The inside of my stomach was unbelievably hot, as if I'd swallowed a ball of fire.
I grabbed the kettle by the bed and gulped down the cold water.
Despite that, the heat didn't seem to subside.
I put the kettle down and wiped my dry face with my hands.
"Hoo... What in the world is going on?"
My body was in the worst condition it had ever been.
It was the first time I'd experienced anything like this since possessing Kim Yoo-Sung's body, and I had no idea how to deal with it.
I decided to get some fresh air and tried to get out of bed, but then I realized something was strange.
"Huh?"
My clothes were huge.
The yukata that had fit me perfectly was now strangely large.
Stumble!
My leg got caught in the hem of my pants, and as I stumbled forward, I instinctively caught myself with my hands and realized.
It wasn't that the clothes had gotten bigger, but that my body had gotten smaller.
「Mmm... What's going on? At this hour...」
Hearing the commotion, Sakuya, who had been sleeping while floating in mid-air, rubbed her eyes and sat up.
Our eyes met. She stared blankly for a moment before scrunching up her face and asking.
「Who are you?」
"...It's Kim Yoo-Sung."
Sakuya's eyes went wide.
「No way! The guy I know is a much bigger lump than this!」
She wasn't wrong, but it still felt bad.
I thought to myself as I pushed myself up from the floor.
「How did this happen to you?」
"I don't know for sure. I think it might be a side effect of the pill I took when we fought."
There was nothing I could do right now, so I figured I should just sleep on it and think about it in the morning.
*
And then, morning came.
After finally grasping the situation, Fuma-senpai muttered with a shocked expression.
"Unbelievable. To think the new pill I developed had a side effect like this."
"That's what happened, so I'd like to get back to my original body as soon as possible."
I said, moving my shrunken body around.
The Ghost Pill.
The last time I took it, the worst that happened was feeling lethargic for a few days. But the side effect of this new pill was completely absurd.
It had defied all laws of physics and regressed my physical age.
I looked even younger than when I first possessed this body, somewhere between upper elementary and lower middle school.
"Hmm... We might have made the discovery of the century. A pill that makes people younger. Honestly, this is an unprecedented event."
I had to admit, it was strange.
It's not like I'm some detective with the body of a child and the brain of an adult, but my body's clock had suddenly turned back just from taking the wrong pill.
But that was that, and this was this.
The muscles I'd spent years working so hard to build had vanished overnight.
Honestly, it was hard to accept this fact with a clear mind.
Anyone who didn't know what I used to look like probably wouldn't believe me if I told them I was Kim Yoo-Sung.
My body was incredibly small now.
"I did change the formula for the Ghost Pill a bit, but it's not that different from the previous one. If it's a temporary side effect, there's a chance you'll return to your original body in a few days. Until then, you'll just have to bear with the inconvenience."
"And if I don't change back?"
"Then I'll take responsibility and look after you."
"...Somehow, that sounds like a deal where only you benefit, Fuma-senpai."
"Of course not."
"Hah, I guess I have no choice. For now, all I can do is wait and see."
I let out a deep sigh and clenched and unclenched my hands, which were now incredibly small.
It was during the spring break of my third year of middle school that I started hitting the gym seriously and finally shed my perpetually skinny frame.
There was a huge disconnect between my original body and this slender body from the past.
I flapped the repeatedly folded sleeves around a few times before asking Fuma-senpai.
"First, could you get me some new clothes?"
"Alright. I'll go find some."
Fuma-senpai said, getting up. Then, as if he'd just remembered something, he asked.
"By the way, how is your progress with learning Swift Wind?"
I nodded.
"I started by memorizing the contents of the book. It'll be tough to master all the techniques in three days, so I'm focusing on getting a thorough understanding of the theory behind them."
"Can you really memorize it just by reading?"
"Yeah, I can."
The old me might not have been able to, but Kim Yoo-Sung's body could.
He wasn't the top student in his grade for nothing.
And even if I couldn't memorize it all, I could just take pictures of the pages beforehand.
"You're still amazing, even after getting smaller."
When I shrugged with a smug look on my face, Fuma-senpai stared at me for a moment and then suddenly patted my head.
"...What are you doing?"
"Oh, you just looked cute."
For a moment, I was at a loss for words.
'Cute'? That was a word I hadn't heard directed at me in years.
With an awkward expression, I touched the hair Fuma-senpai had just patted and said in a strained voice.
"Let's just get some breakfast."
Fuma-senpai nodded with a warm smile.
"I'll get it ready right away."