"…Hmm.So this is the business item you were talking about?"
"That's right."
"It smells nice, sure—but what is it actually used for?"
"A universal cosmetic.A burn treatment.A skin recovery agent."
"…What?Si-woo, don't tell me your 'business' is selling miracle ointments on the street."
Dong-sik clearly doubted the effectiveness of the finished Skin Regeneration Agent.
I smiled slightly and replied,
"No.Try applying it yourself."
As I spoke, I dipped a prepared brush into the cream and moved it toward the small burn scar on Dong-sik's calf—a mark that had remained since childhood.
"H-Hey, wait!Why are you putting some unknown substance on my skin?!"
"Just try it, Dong-sik.Do you really think I'd put something harmful on you?"
The Next Day
I had also applied the Skin Regeneration Agent to my own face the night before.
After a deep sleep, I woke up and immediately noticed something was wrong.
Very wrong.
Acne scars from my teenage years.Rough skin from months of stress and physical labor.Enlarged pores.A face darkened by outdoor work.
All of it—
Gone.
Shockingly clean.
The scars had vanished without a trace.My pores had shrunk to the point of being barely visible.My skin tone had turned milky-white, like that of a newborn baby.
"…This is insane."
It genuinely felt like my skin had reverted to infancy.
The kind of skin celebrities achieve only through extreme care, professional treatments, and makeup—
Now covered my face, unwashed, first thing in the morning.
This wasn't normal skincare.
Not even steroid abuse would produce results like this.
Was there some kind of side effect?
I walked over to the quantum computer in the living room and asked,
"Does this Skin Regeneration Agent have any side effects on the human body?"
[System Message: If no side effects are documented in the knowledge decrypted from the Akashic Records, then no side effects exist.]
The information I had decrypted contained no mention whatsoever of side effects.
Which meant—
This cream produced miraculous results with zero downsides.
That was absurd.
So absurd it bordered on fraud.
They say sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.
Apparently, that saying was true.
Just then—
Someone pounded on the front door.
"Holy shit, Si-woo!What the hell is this?!"
I opened the door.
Dong-sik rushed in, visibly excited—
Then froze when he saw my face.
"…Uh.Excuse me, who are you?"
"…It's me. Hyun Si-woo.Why are you acting like that?"
"I mean—your build and features match, but your skin… your face…What happened? Don't tell me…"
"Yeah.I applied it last night."
"…You're kidding me.This is insane, Si-woo. Look at my calf!"
Dong-sik pointed at his leg.
The burn scar he'd carried since childhood—
Was completely gone.
As if it had never existed.
It wasn't healed.
It was replaced.
"This is crazy. Absolutely crazy.How did you make something like this?This isn't just cosmetics—it outclasses most pharmaceuticals!"
"Now you get it?You were so lukewarm yesterday."
Dong-sik stumbled over his words.
"I—I had no idea it was this good!If we market this properly, it's guaranteed to be a hit. A massive one!"
"…That good?"
"Obviously!"
Seeing Dong-sik—normally cautious and restrained—this excited told me everything.
Even I had been shocked when I looked in the mirror that morning.
Then he suddenly clasped his hands together and spoke seriously.
"Thank you, Si-woo.Honestly, that scar was a bit of a complex for me.Wearing shorts in summer always bothered me.And now it's just… gone.It feels unreal."
"Hey, that's what friends are for.Didn't I tell you yesterday?I wouldn't put anything harmful on you."
He chuckled softly.
"…Fair point."
"So.Are you interested in running a business together now?"
His eyes lit up.
"Of course.Not releasing something like this into the world would be a crime."
I had a partner now.
If we were going to sell the Skin Regeneration Agent, online distribution was the only realistic option.
That meant bottling, packaging, printing invoices, and handling mass shipping.
There was no way I could manage that alone.
Even with just the two of us, we'd quickly reach our limit.
Eventually, we'd need to hire people.
Form an actual company.
In that regard, partnering with Dong-sik—someone I trusted, and who had helped with family businesses since childhood—was ideal.
And if the business succeeded, I could finally repay his family in a meaningful way.
"So we'll need to sell online, right?"
Dong-sik nodded.
"Yeah. Supplying offline stores right away would be difficult.But to sell cosmetics legally, we'll need proper certification."
"…Right.This really isn't the same as selling goods at a street market."
"Give me a moment.Let me look up the cosmetic sales requirements.Can I use your desktop?"
"Sure."
The desktop that had been confiscated by the NIS and later returned.
Dong-sik sat down and started searching.
About twenty minutes later, after browsing association sites and government regulations, he spoke.
"Most of the paperwork is manageable.The key issue is appointing a Responsible Sales Manager."
"…And the requirements?"
"…A bachelor's degree in engineering, medicine, pharmacy, nursing, chemistry, biology, chemical engineering, biotechnology, life sciences, cosmetic science, or related fields."
"…Wait.You majored in electrical engineering, didn't you?"
"Yeah.That should qualify.Looks like I'll register under my name."
"Sorry, but I'll need your help with this."
"Don't apologize.If we're doing this together, I should take responsibility too.You developed an insane product, after all."
That hurdle seemed manageable.
Which left manufacturing, packaging, and sales.
Then a thought hit me.
"Wait, Dong-sik.Should we really sell this as-is?"
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"Isn't the effect too strong?This isn't just functional cosmetics—it's closer to a revolutionary new drug."
"…That's true."
"Wouldn't it be safer to dilute the effectiveness?Just enough to pass as cosmetics."
"…You can do that?"
"Yeah.The recipe allows us to adjust the potency."
Specifically, by increasing the water ratio.
"Wow…What the hell are you, Si-woo?"
He stared at me like he was seeing me for the first time.
"What? Why?"
"You suddenly come up with this insane formula…Are you secretly a genius?Have you been hiding it all this time?"
I waved my hands dismissively.
"Don't be ridiculous.If I were a genius, I'd have gone to a top university."
"Not necessarily.There's that saying—'Korean public education can't contain geniuses.'Maybe you were buried talent all along."
"Enough with that nonsense.Let's focus on the business plan."
He laughed awkwardly but still looked impressed.
I couldn't tell him the truth—not yet.
About the quantum computer.About the Akashic Records.
Even now, I might still be under surveillance.
Carelessness wasn't an option.
"So we'll need a building for production, right?We can't do everything at home."
Dong-sik nodded.
"Yeah. A warehouse would be ideal."
"Buying land and building would take too long.Maybe we should just buy an existing warehouse."
"That's reasonable."
"And we should start production as soon as possible."
"…The money, though—"
He suddenly blinked.
"Oh. Right.We have gold."
"Exactly.That should be enough seed money."
"With that much, we can set up basic facilities.We're not installing factory-grade automation anyway."
He was right.
Even diluted, this product would outperform most pharmaceuticals.
With proper marketing, massive revenue was inevitable.
After setting aside money for my father's treatment and living expenses, I'd have around 500 million won available.
Enough for a small warehouse.
"So we should start looking for one?"
"Yeah.Regular real estate agencies sometimes handle them, but there are also ones specializing in warehouses and factories."
Then—
Dong-sik's expression suddenly turned complicated.
"Si-woo…"
"What is it?"
He looked at me with an oddly embarrassed expression.
"…Can I try putting that cream on my face too?"
There was a brief silence.
So even you care about that kind of thing, huh.
I grabbed a generous amount of the Skin Regeneration Agent—
And smeared it straight onto Dong-sik's face.