TE 9

Humans are slaves to their hormones.

In other words, hormones alone can make humans happy.

And the way to save an unhappy human is simply to make them happy.

So how does one make an unhappy person feel happiness?

While it might sound like a deep philosophical question, the solution is surprisingly simple.

Give them medicine.

Just as we apply ointment to skin wounds and take medicine for colds, humans suffering from the virus of unhappiness can be treated with drugs. All it takes is medication that floods them with dopamine to defeat the virus.

Seo-ha found joy in creating this white powder of happiness. Though she was no saint and her father no messiah, the drugs she made were genuinely helping people.

This was the only work that gave Seo-ha any sense of purpose.

After completing her quota, she turned off the gas burner that had been heating the flask.

At the inspection station, before the packaging phase, Seo-ha examined the final product – fine powder filtered through wire mesh. After meticulously completing all steps and final inspection, she signaled to the other workers that they could proceed to the next stage.

The other workers were busy too.

Though the daily production volume was high, Seo-ha didn’t handle it all herself.

While she created the overall recipe, she personally made only the VIP-exclusive products.

The drugs crafted by the chef herself were, in essence, premium products.

“Hoo… ha…”

Entering the sterilization room, Seo-ha removed her gas mask and released her pent-up breath. Though making drugs that brought happiness to many was exhausting work, it was the only thing in her empty life that gave her any sense of pride.

Emerging into the break room with its many ventilation ducts, Seo-ha removed her work clothes and sprayed herself with perfume from the cabinet – to eliminate even the faintest trace of scent.

“Good work, miss.”

The work supervisor, who still had overtime ahead of her, followed Seo-ha into the break room to see her off.

Unlike Park Hee-jung who occasionally played stepmother to Seo-ha, the supervisor was old enough to be her real mother – a rail-thin woman who never lost her smile. Eight years ago, she had taken bank loans, illegal loans, and borrowed money from everyone she knew to buy a “ticket to heaven.” She became buried in debt and separated from her family. But under Pastor Moon Seok-ho’s grace, she was able to live a life of service, making drugs in the church basement during all her waking hours.

All this was supposedly Yahweh’s will for her to cut ties with the secular world and become a true disciple of the Second Christ.

Whatever the real truth might be, this was at least what the woman believed.

Perhaps that’s why the supervisor always wore a friendly smile not only for Moon Seok-ho who had shaped her life this way, but also for his daughter Seo-ha. And that wasn’t all.

“It must have been hard today too. I noticed you don’t handle heat well, miss. I worry about how difficult this is for you…”

She was desperate to interact with Seo-ha and be kind to her.

But Seo-ha had never once returned even a smile to the supervisor.

“Supervisor.”

After roughly removing her latex gloves, Seo-ha slammed the metal cabinet door loud enough to echo and fixed the woman with a cold stare.

Though she hadn’t done anything particularly wrong… the supervisor flinched at that icy response and averted her eyes. Even that reaction irritated Seo-ha.

That submissive attitude toward someone she should rightfully resent.

It was too foolish. Too frustrating. Too annoying.

…Too uncomfortable.

“Even though we differentiate our products, can we afford mistakes in items made by others during every production run?”

“Oh my, of course not! Absolutely not!”

“I’ve explained that methamphetamine and amphetamine are fundamentally different, but you seem to keep getting confused? I told you the front-side products contain sympathetic nervous system stimulants while the back-side ones don’t.”

“I-I’m sorry, miss…”

“What if we end up with actual defects in the products? Father will…!”

He won’t forgive you if it impacts the business.

The words caught in her throat, refusing to come out. Even if she said it, this woman would only feel guilty about burdening the “messiah.” That sight would be even more unbearable.

The products were broadly divided into premium ones made by Seo-ha and regular ones made by other workers, with further differences between front-side and back-side variants.

The drug named after Janus, the two-faced god of Roman mythology, was manufactured in two varieties called front-side and back-side, with slightly different production methods and ingredients. This sometimes led to confusion during production.

Until now, Seo-ha had managed to prevent problems through careful coordination, but you never knew what might happen. Her already on-edge father might decide to replace the workers…

“Please be more careful from now on.”

“Yes, yes. Of course. I’ll work even harder for the pastor and you, miss.”

Making drugs without pay except for minimal living expenses, and she says she’ll work harder? How much harder could she possibly work?

Ah, irritated words dangled on the tip of her tongue.

“As long as you understand, that’s enough.”

But she knew expressing more emotion would just be taking out her frustrations needlessly.

On this woman who had lost her former plump, well-fed appearance and was now nothing but skin and bones in her perpetually shabby slippers.

On this zealot who didn’t even realize she’d been deceived into ruining her life while thinking she was living in service.

On this foolish person who believed heaven’s gates would open for her when she died…

While lacking the courage to tell her that her father is not the son of God and she need to wake up, expressing discomfort through sharp words was clearly not the right approach.

Seo-ha hitched her bag higher on her shoulder and turned her back on the supervisor, practically fleeing.

“It’s dark out. Please be careful on your way home. Alright?”

Though she clearly knew a driver was waiting, Seo-ha didn’t respond to the genuinely concerned voice and roughly shut the break room door.

The church interior was dark at this late hour. The production area in the basement was especially dark. Seo-ha took the elevator, swiped her card, and went up to the first floor.

Though she finally emerged into a hallway with windows, no city lights penetrated this church located in a sparsely populated outskirts area.

While this scenery was familiar to Seo-ha who often worked late and went home at night, except during renovation periods, things had changed a few months ago.

She had been dragged to the discipline room for the first time in years and left alone in darkness.

Even now, being in pitch darkness reminded her of that time, that day.

‘It’s okay, I’m outside now.’

Seo-ha hurried her steps, forcing her tension-stiffened muscles to move.

‘This isn’t the discipline room.’

If you don’t do forbidden things, you won’t be punished.

If you don’t covet forbidden fruit, you can enjoy everything else.

The discipline room was a space that made Seo-ha re-aware of these rules whenever she might forget them. Of course, Seo-ha had never actually broken any of her father’s rules, yet was still unfairly dragged there for discipline.

Nevertheless, like a dog conditioned to drool at the sound of a bell signaling food, Seo-ha too was becoming conditioned.

To the fact that she shouldn’t cross the lines her father had drawn, even if she wanted to.

“It’s been a while.”

But what if someone reached out their hand from beyond that line?

Seo-ha pondered this as she saw the unexpected man waiting for her, leaning against the car.

Sometimes even well-trained dogs will run outside when the door is left open.

And Eve tasted the forbidden fruit offered by the serpent.

Somehow, Seo-ha felt this man might become her serpent.

＊＊＊

“What did you say?!”

Park Hee-jung’s voice, which had been making coquettish nasal sounds to her aged husband, suddenly rose in a high pitch. She immediately realized her mistake and awkwardly smiled at her husband who was looking at her while massaging his shoulders.

“You assigned Ki Tae-beom to be Seo-ha’s security?”

“Though he’s young, his work is clean. Doesn’t say unnecessary things, seems quite steady. These days young guys are unreliable – not only is their work second-rate, they’re also timid and flighty. Hard to find someone trustworthy.”

“Dear, you’re always sensitive about Seo-ha showing interest in men. That man seems a bit…”

Park Hee-jung tried her best to sound casual.

“The women seem to find him attractive…”

“Seo-ha’s been disciplined once, so she’ll behave properly. And we can’t keep her in my embrace forever. I’m thinking of looking for a good match.”

“You mean Seo-ha might go on matchmaking dates?”

“Something like that.”

At the mention of Seo-ha potentially dating, Park Hee-jung barely held back a foolish laugh that threatened to burst out.

But her heart wasn’t completely at ease.

The fact remained that Tae-beom would be staying close to Seo-ha for the time being.

Seo-ha was objectively pretty enough to catch anyone’s eye, and young.

Standing together with Tae-beom, they would look like a well-matched pair. If others would see them that way, there was no law saying the two wouldn’t develop feelings for each other.

Even that slight possibility, and the simple fact they would spend so much time together…

Made Park Hee-jung jealous.

“This Ki Tae-beom, looking into his background, his personal life is as clean as his looks. Maybe because he struggled to make ends meet, doesn’t seem like he’s dated anyone in the past.”

People with clean personal lives don’t have sex with their employer’s wife.

Though it was fortunate her husband remained ignorant, Park Hee-jung bit her lower lip hard.

The ripples from her one comment meant to torment that girl Moon Seo-ha, while avoiding harm to Tae-beom, were larger than expected. Moon Seok-ho had reacted more severely than she anticipated, and the fallout affected not just Seo-ha but Tae-beom as well.

Demoted for several months, Tae-beom hadn’t answered any of Park Hee-jung’s calls. Usually one would realize and accept this meant the end of the relationship, but Park Hee-jung couldn’t.

She couldn’t accept that Tae-beom wanted to end things with her.

Whatever Tae-beom felt, at least she had been sincere with him.

“By the way, Hee-jung.”

Pastor Moon grabbed Park Hee-jung’s hands that were massaging his shoulders, his voice heavy with fatigue.

“Do you also think Ki Tae-beom is good-looking?”

“…”

“Hmm? Do you?”

Though Pastor Moon’s grip wasn’t tight, the tension that he could apply crushing pressure at any moment dominated Park Hee-jung. After gulping down dry saliva, she smoothly withdrew her hands and instead wrapped her arms around her husband’s neck.

“To my eyes, my dear husband is the most handsome.”

Stroking the arms embracing him, Pastor Moon spoke in a deep, gravelly voice.

“Adultery of the heart is also a great sin. You know that?”

“Oh come on, why do you keep saying such things when there’s no chance of that-“

Whether it was jealousy speaking playfully or a serious warning…

The sleepy man’s voice didn’t reveal his true thoughts, leaving Park Hee-jung confused.

But since Moon Seok-ho showed no intention of discussing Tae-beom further, Park Hee-jung decided it was just her needless anxiety. She concluded the situation well by kissing her husband’s wrinkled face.

Though they appeared an affectionate couple on the surface, Park Hee-jung had no intention of giving even a cramped corner of her heart to this frightening, disgusting old man. She only felt miserable about her situation, having to kiss and act coy with this filthy elderly man. Meanwhile, that cold-hearted Ki Tae-beom would be with Moon Seo-ha.

Intense jealousy set her insides ablaze.

Park Hee-jung’s sin of adultery was still ongoing.