Release day for Luktic Drink had finally arrived.
A young couple stood in front of a convenience store shelf,staring at the neatly lined bottles of Luktic Drink as they chatted.
"Wait—Luktic Drink?Isn't this the new product from the company that made Luktic Cream?I saw it on Onstagram a little while ago…!"
"Oh, really?Let's see… is it some kind of fatigue recovery drink?"
"Looks like it.Should we try one?People say Luktic Cream's effects are insane, so I'm curious what this is like."
"Sure.Unlike Luktic Cream, it's not something you have to order and wait weeks for.You can just buy it right away.Let's grab one each."
"Huh?This smells amazing."
"And it's really sweet.Almost like fruit juice.It's actually delicious."
Glug. Glug.
They emptied their bottles in one go.
"Wow… it's super refreshing and sweet."
"It tastes better than most regular drinks.Maybe Luktic Cream's reputation isn't just hype after all…"
"I feel… healthier somehow!"
"Haha, come on.There's no way a drink works instantly.It's probably just in your head."
"No, seriously.Something feels different.My body feels lighter."
"Wait…I kind of feel it too.My body feels refreshed, and my head's clearer.Does this have caffeine or something in it?"
"Well, it is a fatigue recovery drink.Maybe it does."
"It's weird—my rhinitis feels a lot better today."
"Really?Is the air quality good today?"
"No, it's actually marked as 'bad' today.Normally my nose would be completely blocked, with mucus running nonstop…but right now it's perfectly clear.Like it's been opened up."
"Huh? That's strange.Didn't you say you'd gone to every hospital and clinic imaginable trying to fix your rhinitis,and nothing ever worked?"
"I think…it started right after I drank that fatigue recovery drink from Luktic."
"…What?Pfft—come on.How could a single fatigue drink cure rhinitis?That's a severe chronic condition—even surgery barely keeps it under control for a few years."
"No, I'm serious.Just a few minutes after drinking it,I could actually feel my nose clear up.It was so strange I still remember it vividly."
"…Really?Now that you mention it,isn't the skin cream they make supposed to be crazy too?People say their skin gets unbelievably better once they start using it."
"Yeah.That's why I'm thinking of buying the cream too."
"Wow…Then maybe it's not just viral marketing.Maybe that company actually has real technology.If that's true, that's incredible."
The long-awaited release day of Luktic Drink had arrived.
For several days already,Daesung Distribution's cargo trucks had been transporting our productto every corner of the country.
And on release day,Luktic Drink appeared on shelves at every major retailer nationwide.
"…This is unreal, Si-woo.The product we made is lined up across retail stores all over the country…!"
"Yeah.Every time I see this, I'm reminded just how terrifying large corporations really are.In just a few days, they can distribute and display products nationwide like this…"
"Heh.Someday, let's make Luktic a company just as big.With this momentum, it might not even be that far away."
"Yeah.Let's work hard and make it happen, Dong-sik."
Orders for Luktic Cream shipped to overseas forwarding warehousescontinued to increase day by day.
At some point,the volume of overseas orders had grown nearly equal to domestic orders.
The Korean forwarding companies handling international proxy purchaseswere reportedly nearing operational paralysis due to the surge.
On their overseas websites, notices like these appeared in English:
[Urgent Notice – Shipping Delays Due to Surge in Korean Product Orders][Notice – Temporary Suspension of Korean Product Order Intake][Notice – Delays in Korean Direct Purchase Shipments]
If even logistics companies accustomed to handling massive cargo volumeswere being overwhelmed,what about us—a newly founded startup?
At this rate,even though we had expanded our factory just weeks ago,we might once again face a severe production capacity shortage,just like when we were operating out of that tiny warehouse in the past.
Meanwhile, consumer reactions to Luktic Drinkfar exceeded even our most optimistic expectations.
Just a few days after release,testimonies began flooding online—people claiming their bodies suddenly felt lighter,or that long-standing chronic conditions had dramatically improved.
Of course, since this was a diluted product,it wasn't a complete cure.
At best, it likely alleviated symptoms for several days per bottle.
But for people who had never witnessedthe true healing power of the undiluted elixir,even the effects of Luktic Drink felt astonishing.
Consumer response was explosive.
A representative from Daesung Distribution told methat retailers nationwide were placing additional orders nonstop.
In other words,actual demand had already surpassed their initial forecasts.
Dong-sik and I immediately called an emergency meeting.
"We've barely finished expanding the factory,and we're already facing supply shortages again, Dong-sik…Do we need to expand again?"
"…Honestly, given the quality of our products,I don't see demand ever decreasing.If anything, it'll only keep growing.I think we can safely expand production capacity aggressively."
"Yeah.Once someone starts using Luktic products,I doubt they'd ever go back to other brands."
"The problem is—"
"Funding."
"Exactly.Even renting factories is becoming difficult—the scale we need now is massive.And if we scatter production sites across the country,management becomes a nightmare."
"That might work for established conglomerates,but we're still a rapidly growing startup barely keeping up with our own size."
"Right.What we desperately need right now is a large amount of capital.Orders are pouring in, sure—but raising enough money quicklyto massively expand production facilities is another matter entirely."
"Should we consider bank loans?Or maybe bringing in investors?"
"Well… that's something our CEO needs to think about~"
"…You've been dodging responsibility on every major decision lately, Dong-sik."
"Heh.I told you—I'm swamped dealing with the factory.I'll leave the thinking to you."
"Tch…I can't even argue, because you're right."
I mulled over the situation carefully.
That morning,the progress of the Stage 1 Elixir I'd checked on the quantum computer was:
[Stage 1 Elixir] (Tier 1)Progress to next knowledge: [467 / 500]
It was nearly full.
Which meant new knowledge would unlock very soon.
And judging by past experience,that knowledge would almost certainly beovertechnology far beyond modern human science.
In other words—another powerful candidate for a new product.
But even just supplying Luktic Cream and Luktic Drinkwas already stretching us to our limits.
A new product on top of that…?
No matter how I looked at it,Luktic simply didn't have the capacity right now.
Should I accept Chairman Choi Chang-sik's investment offer…?
Orders were flooding in,but our current production capacity had clear limits.
Securing the massive funds neededto aggressively expand facilities in a short timewasn't something we could manage on our own.
As I was seriously weighing options for funding—
"Si-woo!There's a strange car pulling in!"
I ran to where Dong-sik was standingand looked toward the factory entrance.
"What is it?A black sedan… a Grandeur?"
From the second floor of the small warehouse we used as an office,we watched the car enter the factory grounds.
"Could it be Secretary Park Jae-seok?"
"Oh—yeah.Now that you mention it,the only Grandeur that ever comes here is his."
Given the distribution issues with Luktic Drink,he'd said he would visit whenever necessary, even without prior notice.
…Come to think of it,maybe we really should set up a security gate and guards.
Because the factory was built in our hometown,we'd been lulled into a false sense of comfort.
But this was now a facility producing high-tech productsdistributed nationwide.
Some level of physical security was clearly necessary.
I should probably look into contracting a reliable security firm soon.
The man stepped out of the black Grandeurand began walking toward our small warehouse office.
But—
That man wasn't Secretary Park Jae-seok.
That familiar silhouette could only be…!
Dong-sik whispered sharply,
"…That—that guy is…Chairman Choi's eldest son—that jerk…!"
"Hey—keep your voice down.He'll hear you."
Outwardly, I tried to stop Dong-sik,but inwardly, I couldn't entirely disagree with his assessment.
Meanwhile, at the MFDS Commissioner's Office,the Vice Commissioner burst in, panting.
"Huff… huff…I'm sorry, Commissioner!There's an extremely urgent matter I need to report…!"
"Hm?What is it?"
The vice commissioner handed over a stack of documents.
They were interim reportsfrom the Phase 1 clinical trials of Luktic's so-called 'Elixir.'
Clinical trials are divided into three phases—Phase 1, Phase 2, and Phase 3.
Phase 1 focuses on verifyingwhether a new drug is harmful to the human body,and whether its effective dosage acts as a toxin.
In short,it determines whether the substance can even be administered to humans at all.
That's why Phase 1 trials are usually conductedon healthy volunteers rather than patients.
"…Right.Phase 1 already started, didn't it?That was fast."
Normally, Phase 1 begins only after nearly a yearof prior evaluation of a drug's components.
But in this case,Luktic had been exempted from ingredient disclosure,and there was strong presidential backing—so Phase 1 had begun at an unprecedented pace.
The vice commissioner spoke breathlessly.
"Yes… that's correct.But during Phase 1, something happened—something you absolutely must be informed about, Commissioner…!"
The commissioner frowned.
"What is it?Don't tell me there was a problem…?!This is exactly why procedures shouldn't be ignored.Testing an unknown substance on humans—this isn't animal testing!No matter the President's directive, I never liked this—"
"No—no, that's not it!"
"…Then?"
"Phase 1 participants are healthy adults,but even they usually have minor chronic conditions—rhinitis, allergies, reflux, atopic dermatitis, and the like."
"Yes…?"
"Well—all of those chronic conditions were completely curedafter administering the drug currently codenamed 'Elixir.'"
"…What?"
The commissioner stared blankly.
"You're saying that after administering this so-called Elixir,the Phase 1 volunteers' chronic illnesses were completely cured…?That's absurd.No matter how effective a drug is, that's impossible.Are you certain the Elixir caused this?"
"The medical staff and researchers were skeptical at first as well.But after repeated reviews,they concluded that the Elixir is the most likely cause."
"…This is insane…"
"More importantly,after recruiting new volunteers and administering the Elixir again,the same phenomenon occurred.Every chronic condition was completely cured."
"…Is that really true?"
"Yes.The report includes detailed data and documentation."
The commissioner scanned the documents briefly—then froze, his mouth hanging open.
"So the story about Daesung Group's youngest sonbeing cured overnight wasn't an exaggeration…"
He quickly gathered the documents and stood.
"This is no time to hesitate.If this is real,Luktic's Elixir isn't just a new drug—it's a revolution that will overturn global medicine itself.This far exceeds anything we anticipated."
He turned sharply.
"We must report this to the President immediately."