The Chairman of Pharmaceutical Company is a Poison King - Chapter 1
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 1: Same Soul in a Different World (1)
One day, 300 years ago.
The world suddenly changed.
An unknown substance permeated Earth’s atmosphere.
Later, people would name it ‘mana.’
As a result, 90% of Earth’s population vanished in a nightmare.
Time passed and passed, and 300 years later.
All people in the world were divided into four categories.
First, the ‘Mana Rejecters’—those who still couldn’t accept mana despite the world’s transformation, cursed from birth with mana acting as poison in their bodies.
Since mana doesn’t suit their bodies, they usually don’t live past their early to mid-twenties, dying when their internal organs, especially their hearts, rupture.
In other words, untouchables.
Second, the ‘Mana Adapters’—those who can accept mana without any hindrance to their daily lives. Think of them as ordinary people.
The so-called producer class.
Third, the ‘Mana Compatible’—those who gained physical abilities stronger than ordinary people due to mana. The new humans.
When they accept mana, their muscles, blood vessels, and internal organs become stronger.
Also, 99% of Awakened come from the Mana Compatible. That’s why they’re sometimes called pre-Awakened.
From this group onward, they’re essentially the ruling class.
The fourth are the highest tier mentioned earlier—the ‘Awakened.’
Along with mana, one of the supernatural phenomena that science simply cannot explain.
When awakened, tattoos are carved on their faces.
A mark showing connection to the System.
They grow stronger and develop through the System.
Only the Awakened can face Elite and Champion magical beasts.
Actually, there is a fifth type.
‘Demons.’
Awakened whose awakening went in the wrong direction.
However, Demons aren’t treated as human, so they’re excluded.
* * *
The Samhan Empire.
A rising power on the Eurasian continent.
300 years ago, it was called the Republic of Korea.
The territory it rules is also vast.
That’s why it’s an empire.
The flooded Japanese archipelago that lost half its territory, the vast Manchurian granary and the lush green Mongolian plains and Gobi grasslands, and the Primorsky region lined with factories and industrial facilities—all were part of the Empire’s domain.
Second Lieutenant Kim Tae-ju of the Samhan Imperial Forces was taking a brief rest at the Daecheongbong temporary barracks of the eastern coastal ‘Seorak Mountain Outpost,’ downing a cool can of beer.
“Ahh!”
Now he felt like he could live.
In a life with limited time, this was his small happiness.
“Damn it.”
The curse came out naturally.
A life where he didn’t know when he’d die.
He wanted to prepare for his end in some peaceful resort-like place, but the place where he actually stood was a frontier where battles with magical beasts took place.
Tae-ju was a Mana Rejecter.
That’s why his life had a time limit.
As a Mana Rejecter, Tae-ju had lasted quite a long time.
He was still alive despite being 29 years old.
However.
“…Ugh,”
Tae-ju suddenly clutched his chest and collapsed from the intense pain that struck him.
“D-damn it!”
The periodic seizures—their intervals had started getting shorter since a few days ago.
“Gah! Gaaahhh!”
He collapsed on the bed, groaning in pain, but not a single person entered the barracks.
Was this just a day or two?
Rather, there were more people hoping for his death.
He was trash who couldn’t accept mana, an untouchable.
That trash was a Second Lieutenant of the Samhan Empire.
How?
Tae-ju’s father was Master Kim Woong-bang, a Brigadier General.
He even had a domain under his direct rule.
The Samhan Empire’s ‘Paju Domain.’
It wasn’t a wealthy domain.
Ordinary and small, poor and insignificant Paju in some ways.
Still, with his father being a Brigadier General and a powerful figure with a domain, no matter how much Tae-ju was a Mana Rejecter, to drive his son to the frontier?
There were complicated circumstances.
Kim Tae-ju, the rightful heir to Paju Domain.
However, unfortunately, Tae-ju’s birth mother passed away while giving birth to him.
After that, his father took a new wife.
Honda Mitsui, the second daughter of the ruler of the Samhan Empire’s Kyushu Domain, located in the land once called Japan.
She married into Paju and bore two sons.
From then on, Tae-ju’s position became ambiguous.
Tae-ju was a congenital Mana Rejecter.
A fatal flaw as an heir to a domain.
Perhaps because of this, his stepmother Mitsui just left Tae-ju alone.
For the first few years.
Since he’d obviously die in his twenties anyway.
If things had continued that way, Mitsui would have remained a good stepmother, but the situation took a strange turn.
Still alive even after turning 20, passing 25, and even surpassing 28?
Lady Mitsui began to grow anxious.
Because Mana Rejecters didn’t necessarily face death without exception.
In very rare cases, Mana Rejecters would sometimes suddenly awaken.
The longer they survived, the higher the probability became.
In fact, looking at cases of Mana Rejecter awakenings, they all awakened around their thirties.
What if Tae-ju awakened?
What if he rose from untouchable to the highest class?
Wouldn’t her own biological children become like ducks on the Nakdong River overnight?
So she pestered her husband to drive Tae-ju to Seorak Mountain Outpost.
How could the son of a general, now 29 years old, just stay inside the house?
Wouldn’t moving around actively outside and facing magical beasts increase his chances of awakening?
Brigadier General Kim Woong-bang also accepted, pretending he couldn’t win against her.
In fact, the biggest obstacle to his promotion was his own son, Kim Tae-ju.
His eldest son, a Mana Rejecter.
The father was a Master, but the son was trash.
It would be better if he died fighting magical beasts.
If he died during military operations, he could at least receive a medal of honor.
That would help his own promotion.
As a result, Tae-ju was driven out.
To Seorak Mountain Outpost.
“Phew.”
Fortunately, the heart pain subsided.
I endured today as well.
Suddenly!
“Second Lieutenant Kim, are you inside?”
Tae-ju bolted upright from his bed.
“Second Lieutenant Kim Tae-ju!”
It was the voice of his direct superior, Lieutenant Jang In-dong.
“Destroy the demons!”
“Destroy the demons.”
After exchanging a simple salute.
“I heard groaning sounds earlier, are you hurt anywhere?”
“Ah! I’m fine. I’m better now.”
“Good, you have to endure like that. If you survive, opportunities will come.”
Lieutenant Jang In-dong was one of Tae-ju’s few allies.
A superior who had comforted and looked after him since he first came to Seorak Mountain Outpost.
“But what brings you here…?”
Lieutenant Jang In-dong’s expression wasn’t good.
“Your assignment has been changed.”
“Changed?”
“From administration to field operations. Orders came down from above for combat deployment.”
“…Suddenly?”
Tae-ju belonged to the 51st Regiment, 3rd Battalion, Combat Support Company of the Imperial Army.
Due to his physical condition being almost at disability level, he mainly handled administrative duties.
But field operation deployment?
“I looked into it, but this can’t be refused. It’s an order directly issued from Army General Staff Headquarters.”
“…”
Could this be?
Was stepmother Mitsui’s will at work here?
Well!
Since he was still alive at 29 years old.
“Even the General’s influence doesn’t seem to work.”
No, father might have stepped in directly himself.
The General’s child died during an operation.
What a perfect picture that would make?
So die honorably.
“Since combat is still too much, let’s start with reconnaissance missions. Command would be too much, so I’ll assign squad members for you to just follow along.”
There was no choice.
He was also a soldier.
He had no option but to follow orders unconditionally.
“Who knows? You might catch a chance for awakening. It’s rare, but even rejects sometimes awaken.”
Lieutenant Jang In-dong patted his back warmly as he spoke – he was both a mana compatible and an awakened one.
Because his face bore the tattoo that showed he was an awakened one.
“Yes! I understand.”
Right, someday he too would have a tattoo carved on his face like Lieutenant Jang In-dong.
If he just endured and endured.
The next day.
Tae-ju was performing reconnaissance missions with his squad members.
The main reconnaissance area was Jungcheongbong, a little away from Daecheongbong.
Sergeant Go Young-ho gestured and spoke to Tae-ju.
“Down there is the area where the Orc Village is located.”
The most common magical beasts in Seorak Mountain were orcs. Originally wild boars that became walking pigs under mana’s influence.
Since they resembled the orcs from fantasy novels, they were just called by that name.
“Please come here and look through the binoculars.”
Tae-ju observed the Orc Village through binoculars.
The mission of the Imperial Forces at Seorak Mountain Outpost was to control the orc population and monitor them to prevent village unification.
“It’s still safe since it’s not breeding season yet.”
“I see.”
Why not just sweep away the orcs?
Large-scale combat was burdensome.
If the Empire attempted to subjugate the orcs, those bastards would also unite.
Village-level orcs weren’t scary, but a unified orc kingdom would be an enormous burden even for the Empire.
‘Hmm, no particular movements.’
It was actually a simple reconnaissance mission.
Observe through binoculars, attach drone footage, and submit a report – that’s it.
“The drone?”
“Should we launch it?”
“Yeah.”
Click-clack!
A mechanical sound from behind.
Right then!
Prick!
“Ugh!”
Something sharp touched his back.
His body froze and stiffened!
“Wh, what?”
“You’ll be in big trouble if you move.”
Sergeant Go Young-ho pressed a razor-sharp longsword against Tae-ju’s back with a sinister smile.
“Don’t worry. I won’t stab you with the sword. Second Lieutenant Kim Tae-ju will die from a fall accident after missing his footing during reconnaissance.”
“What…?”
“I’m also just following orders.”
“Or, orders?”
“Yes! Orders directly given by the squad leader.”
Squad leader – Lieutenant Jang In-dong?
“He told us to clean up the trash. Actually, the squad leader is also subcontracted. We’re subcontractors of subcontractors.”
Damn it!
Betrayed in the end?
Tae-ju didn’t want to die.
Though he had a terminal life, he tried to survive until the end.
But to die so absurdly like this?
The cold gazes of the squad members.
All in cahoots.
“Fuck! You bastard…”
“Oh my, such a powerless fellow.”
He tried to draw the mana gun from his waist, but even that was taken away.
“Now, let’s start the trash sorting. Destroy the demons!”
“Hey, you bastard!”
Go Young-ho kicked Tae-ju’s body.
Thud!
Tae-ju’s body rolled and fell off the cliff.
* * *
A moment later, Kim Tae-ju quietly opened his eyes.
It’s dark.
Is it night?
“Ugh,”
It feels like every bone in my body is broken.
‘This place…’
It was about halfway down the cliff.
It seems I rolled down and got caught on a large tree.
‘I need to move.’
You think I’ll just die here?
I’ll survive no matter what.
However!
“Huff!”
Suddenly, intense pain shot through my heart.
The curse of being a mana rejecter activated again.
“Urgh, urghhhh! Ugh!”
This time it’s serious.
The level of pain was different.
‘Th-this damn!’
My vision goes black.
My heart feels like it’s going to burst.
Am I dying now?
‘…No!’
Convulsions wracked my body.
Tae-ju’s eyes lost focus.
They say when you’re about to die, memories of the past unfold like a revolving lantern.
Father who turned away from me due to his greed for promotion, the demon-like stepmother Mitsui, and the half-siblings who always looked down on me and tormented me.
Why do only those faces come to mind?
I wish I could see my mother’s face before dying.
Though I can’t even remember her anyway.
That’s when it happened.
Like a vision, another person appeared.
‘Huh?’
An old man with completely white hair, sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed.
Who is that person?
I’ve never seen him before, so why is he appearing in my mind?
‘…Is it a hallucination?’
But it’s strange.
The more I look, the more familiar he seems.
Who could it be?
Suddenly the old man’s eyes snapped open.
At the same time, he looked at me.
Our eyes met.
We just stared at each other like that for a long time.
It felt as if our souls were connected.
Finally, the old man smiled gently.
His eyes showed he knew something.
Tae-ju realized it too.
Who that person was.
‘…Danggumak?’
That person’s name.
But more than that.
The old man’s mouth slowly opened.
‘You…’
Though he couldn’t hear it, Tae-ju understood what the old man was trying to say.
‘You are me. Me from another world.’
That’s right.
The old man was another version of himself.
The same person with the same soul.
His name was Danggumak.
The other world he lived in was Gangho Murim.
And his alias in Gangho was Jeoldaedokma (Absolute Poison Demon).
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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