Chapter 3

#3. Potion Consumption

“I’m back!”

Fortunately, the first to return was his younger brother, who was easier to deal with and had a lower difficulty level. It was better that it wasn’t his mother, the final boss who knew him inside and out.

“Bro, are you in your room?”

“Huh? Oh! I’m in my room.”

It wasn’t that his brother was completely easy to handle, just better than the alternative.

Jae-in didn’t want even his brother to enter the room, the only place where he could truly relax. He tried to get up to go downstairs, but had to sit back down. His brother, who moved so quickly, had already opened the door to this floor in less than a minute.

“Bro, it’s been a while.”

“...It has been a while.”

Jae-in almost blurted out, “Who are you?” before the greeting. He swallowed the exclamation. His brother, who sat on the bed with a friendly expression, looked nothing like the brother he remembered.

‘Why has he grown so much? Has he been eating nothing but chicken breast for 365 days a year?’

His brother, a middle-aged employee at a company who enjoyed online games, was a shrimp with a protruding belly. He didn’t look like someone who had been exercising.

Still, the change in appearance was better than the sharp and threatening aura he exuded. If his brother hadn’t been so friendly, Jae-in would have called 112 immediately.

“Bro, take this.”

“What is it?”

“Don’t you know? It’s really famous these days.”

“A potion?”

“Yeah. It’s said to be good for the skin, and it’s all over the news.”

Jae-in didn’t know why his brother was giving him a beauty potion, but he took it anyway. He thought he could pass it on to his mother later.

“I reserved it as a birthday gift for Mom, but I ended up with an extra bottle.”

“Then you should drink it.”

“Nah, you drink it. It doesn’t work on Awakeners.”

“Then let’s give both bottles to Mom.”

Jae-in tried to hand back the cherry juice-colored potion, but Jae-hyun stopped him.

You can only drink one bottle of the skin beauty potion at a time. If you want to drink it again, you have to wait a year.

“It has a three-month expiration date, so you can’t keep it for long. Just drink it, bro.”

“Alright, thanks.”

Jae-in was grateful his hand didn’t shake as he placed the potion on the desk. His brother was trying to be friendly, but the look in his eyes when Jae-in hesitated was quite fierce.

For a moment, Jae-in wondered if he was being suspected, but the look in his brother’s eyes quickly softened, indicating that wasn’t the case. It seemed his brother just wasn’t used to being refused.

“So, bro, have you thought about it?”

“Thought about what?”

“That thing. The guild model.”

“What can I do about it?”

“What do you mean? Why not you? The PR director said you’d be great.”

What was he talking about? A guild model?

A guild is a company-like organization for Awakeners, but why would he be a model for one?

“Why are you so serious? Honestly, you’d be more than enough.”

Jae-hyun must have noticed Jae-in’s stiff expression and tried to reassure him.

“I’m not interested. I’ve never even thought about being a model.”

“Everyone has to start somewhere.”

“Still...”

“You said you’re not planning to go back to school, right? You don’t have anything to do, so think of it as a well-paid part-time job.”

Jae-hyun sighed inwardly at Jae-in’s stiff expression.

Looking at him, you’d think he was the kind of person who causes trouble and gets into accidents, but the reality was the opposite. His brother was an outsider who disliked standing out and preferred to be alone.

Being ordinary isn’t bad, but knowing the reason behind it, Jae-hyun didn’t want to leave his brother as he was.

“But...”

“The guild decided to use a civilian model for the recruitment ad. There’s one more male and female, and they’re also family members of guild members. They’re all civilians, so even if you’re a bit awkward, they won’t say anything.”

“Hmm. No, I still don’t think...”

“500,000 won per day.”

“!”

500,000 won per day. Jae-in’s eyes widened. He didn’t know much about the cost of living in this world, but even so, it was a significant amount for a day’s work. Especially for a 23-year-old dropout, it was blood money that could make life more comfortable.

“Will you do it?”

“Yeah, I’ll do it.”

After hearing the pay, Jae-in’s hesitant attitude vanished. He straightened up and asked actively about the time and place of the shoot. 500,000 won per day was a tempting amount, even if it was a job he had never done before and was a bit worrying.

“From noon the day after tomorrow at the studio...”

The question of whether this brother was really his brother in this world had disappeared from Jae-in’s mind. The distance he felt due to the change in appearance and aura was forgotten. The capitalist-based familiarity that arose from bringing him a profitable part-time job was the reason.

* * *

After his brother returned to the guild dormitory, Jae-in was deep in thought. It was because of the potion his brother had given him.

The price of the potion he found online was shockingly expensive. The thought of drinking it made his hand tremble.

“Still, I should drink it, right?”

Since it was good for skin beauty, drinking it was better than reselling it. Even for a civilian model shoot, looking good would be beneficial in the long run. He didn’t want to accidentally create a black history.

‘It looks delicious just by the color, but it might taste fishy...’

He wanted to avoid creating a black history, but Jae-in was fully aware of his unique situation. He carefully searched for reviews, and fortunately, there were no cases of fishy taste or side effects.

*gulp*

The first sip was hard to swallow, even though he was prepared. It tasted like the blood of a freshly killed animal, and it was a feat to swallow it without spitting it out. However, from the second sip, it became easier to swallow. His tongue was numb from the strong iron taste, and he couldn’t taste anything.

“Ugh! Why is this happening? They said there were no side effects...”

It seemed he was the exception.

The moment he finished the beauty potion, his stomach felt like it was on fire. The intense heat that started in his stomach spread through his veins, burning his entire body. His skin and muscles felt like they were being cut with a knife.

If you were to be cut with a knife all over your body and then burned, it might feel like this. Jae-in’s body twisted in pain.

“Gah!”

Was it fortunate that no one saw him like this? Or unfortunate that there was no one to call an ambulance, and he had to endure the pain?

Only Jae-in knew the answer to this question, but he couldn’t respond. He lost consciousness from the unbearable pain coursing through his body.

* * *

Jae-in woke up a full day after fainting, still writhing in pain. He had fallen asleep while unconscious and woke up due to an unbearable urge.

‘I feel like I’m going to die.’

The bathroom was only a few meters away. By the time he reached it from his room, sweat was pouring down like rain. His legs were shaking, and he kept looking around to see if anyone was watching.

“Pant! Pant! I’m going to kill you, Jae-hyun!”

After a painful time in the bathroom, questioning the performance of the exhaust fan, Jae-in regained his composure.

‘Definitely a side effect.’

Not only the pain from last night, but also the amount of what came out was unbelievable. It couldn’t be explained without the side effects of the skin beauty potion.

“Phew, the smell. Let’s take a shower and think about it.”

Jae-in put his worries aside and entered the shower. His skin and hair were sticky from the sweat he had sweated all night. He couldn’t bear the discomfort any longer.

*shower sound*

“I almost died.”

Jae-in sighed as he dried his hair with a towel after the shower.

He had drunk it thinking it was good for his skin, but what kind of misfortune was this? He had to suffer all night and deal with bathroom issues the next day.

If his skin hadn’t become much more elastic and moisturized than before, he might have suspected his brother of trying to poison him.

“I won’t need cosmetics for a while. The effect is really good.”

His skin was already clean and free of blemishes, but it had improved even more after drinking the potion. It became so clear and transparent that it looked like something from an advertisement. It was so good that he stared at the mirror for a long time, even though he didn’t usually look at himself much.

* * *

“Bro, did you go to a clinic or something?”

“No.”

“Then did you do facials for two days?”

“No. I only drank the potion you gave me.”

Jae-in turned to face his brother, who was staring at him with the expected reaction. He had been staring at his face since they started talking. His brother’s reaction was quite strong, though not as much as his parents.

‘Who are you? Is this our son?’

‘...Mom?’

‘Your voice sounds like our son, but did your face always look like this?’

‘...’

He was surprised by his mother’s teasing about his improved skin. He thought his dimensional travel and regression had been discovered, and his heart almost stopped.

After realizing that the reason for the change was the skin beauty potion he would soon give to his mother, he was able to escape the intense gaze. Of course, he still had to endure frequent pinches on his cheeks and hair tugs.

“The potion’s effect was really good.”

“R-really?”

“Yeah. Mom is really looking forward to it.”

“Haha, that’s a bit... overwhelming.”

Jae-hyun had never heard that the skin beauty potion had such a dramatic effect. He only knew that it prevented the buildup of toxins and made the skin look vibrant.

‘Is my brother just more responsive to the potion?’

He had never heard of anyone having such a dramatic effect after drinking the expensive potion. He thought his brother was an exception.

‘Even if he’s an exception, the effect is really strong.’

It was as if he had received a full-body treatment at a skin care clinic for ten days. His skin was so smooth that it seemed to glow. It was as if his skin had been photoshopped.

Moreover, his body seemed to have improved. He was already lean, but now it looked as if he had been trained by a personal trainer. His body was well-proportioned, like an actor or model who had intentionally shaped their body.

‘His face has always been good. His posture is good because of his upbringing, so there’s nothing special... But I can’t stop staring.’

His brother’s face had been famous since he was a baby. His mother had received many offers to make him a model whenever they went out. If his strict grandmother hadn’t been around, his mother might have made him a child model earlier.

Thinking about it now, it was a good decision. If he had debuted early and become a celebrity, he might not have been able to live like this.

“Bro, if anyone at the studio gives you trouble, tell me right away. Don’t hold it in.”

“Am I a kid to tattle on people?”

“I mean, if. People in that industry can be rough and rude. I’ll come to pick you up when the shoot is over. Let me know when the last shoot starts.”

“I can take the subway. It’s not necessary. I’ll come on my own.”

“Tell me. I’ll wait with the people at the studio until I come to pick you up.”

Jae-in nodded reluctantly under the persistent gaze. He couldn’t understand his brother’s overprotection. What had Jae-hyun experienced in this world to treat him like a child?

‘What’s wrong with him? He’s treating me like a child left on the street.’

While considering whether to tell him about the side effects of the potion, his brother’s behavior was even more exaggerated.

His brother acted as if he was the male lead in a drama, supporting his body every time the car stopped at a red light. When he offered a drink, he even opened the bottle cap for him.

Jae-in wanted to stop him from giving him pocket money, but he held back, wondering if this was how they were in this world.

“Still, it’s not going to work.”

“What’s not?”

“Wait. I’ll reschedule the afternoon meeting, and we’ll go together.”

“What? Don’t do that. Just go to the meeting.”

“No. I’m not comfortable sending you alone.”

Jae-in’s mouth dropped open.

What did I just hear? Is he serious?

He wondered if his brother had gone crazy. What did he think of him...?

“You don’t know how many perverts are out there.”

“What do you mean? Why are you talking about perverts?”

“There are so many villains who treat the studio changing rooms like their own homes.”

“Villains?”

“Yeah. Anyway, we need to catch all these weirdos who use their powers and lock them in dungeons.”

The appearance of unfamiliar words like villains and dungeons made Jae-in blink in confusion as Jae-hyun canceled his schedule and followed him.

Jae-in, with his brother acting like a bodyguard, entered the studio. Even though the shoot hadn’t started, he felt extremely tired for some reason.