“Didn’t you learn that if you cause trouble in someone else’s house and get caught, you’ll get beaten half to death?”
Since I caught him as a prisoner, the next step is torture, no questions asked.
And setting fire to someone else’s house?
Even if your major is fire magic, that’s way out of line.
“Yeah, it was fun while you were acting cocky, huh? C’mon, try setting fire again. You damn fire-crazed bastard.”
[I just wanted to become stronger…]
“Fuck you.”
After stuffing him into a water jug and shaking it hard for a while, the red mage left behind painful thoughts.
Of course, I shook it even harder so he’d suffer more.
My shirt, full of burn holes as if someone had stubbed cigarettes on it.
The stretched-out T-shirt I’d worn since high school for ten years straight.
The scorched floorboards that wouldn’t clean no matter how hard I scrubbed.
And thanks to all that water-spraying, I now had a mountain of laundry to dry in this damp weather.
“In the middle of monsoon season, you son of a bitch!”
I shook him wildly in fury, torturing him—then a system window popped up.
[Your level has increased.]
It jumped up by 15.
“Uh….”
Just like that, I reached Level 69.
More notifications appeared.
“What, already dead after just that much…?!”
Maybe I shook him too hard inside the jug, because the red mage went limp, leaving only his remains in the water.
When the death confirmation appeared, my level rose again.
He must’ve been a tough opponent, but I got carried away.
Still, thanks to it, I saved my room, my blanket, my wallpaper, my clothes, and everything else from burning down.
Swinging a wet rag around during the water fight, I thought it looked like some drunken thug spitting liquor everywhere. I guess I got too into it.
“This water should be thrown away, right?”
But now… it had turned into water infused with the red mage.
Just as I was about to dump it, the water inside the jug began glowing red and melting.
***
<Water Infused with Magic>
Water that restricts fire attributes. Treats burns, heat wounds, and inflammation, and extinguishes flames with great effectiveness.
***
“What the…”
All I did was trap another-world being in water, and now it’s some kind of medical saline?
Still, the part about burn treatment really stood out.
I had some burn scars myself.
Once, in the middle of winter, I fell asleep clutching a hot pack to my chest because it felt so warm—and ended up searing my skin.
‘Did you iron your heart or something?’ people had joked.
The scar looked like I’d pressed it with an iron.
“Oh.”
And from before, when I got stuck with those blue flames that wouldn’t go out, some burn scars still remained.
That had been one hell of a fight.
I poured the magic water onto the area.
And then—
The burn scars, which had looked permanently discolored, healed as if I’d applied some miraculous ointment.
In fact, the area turned so white it looked like I had slapped on a patch and gone tanning around it.
“What the…?”
And I hadn’t even used much of it.
Even old burn scars, and the fresh blisters and pus-filled marks from the cigarette burns—all were healed completely.
Since I had 2 liters, I tried watering a fairy sprout with some of it.
[Due to the effects of the Magic-Infused Water, Fire Resistance has increased.]
Not only did it act like regular water, but it added special effects too.
The sprout danced again.
“Wow, it’s dancing again! Huh? Wait a sec, what if—”
If I infused this into some kind of liquor, would I become a potion merchant?
I plugged in the rice cooker.
[Do you want warm, delicious rice? This is Ricecooker Man.]
“Why do you sound like you’re answering a phone call?”
[Because I’m an electronic appliance.]
Fair enough.
“So then… what happens if I cook rice with this burn medicine water?”
[Would you like me to try? I can cook it for you.]
“Yeah, do it.”
So I cooked rice with the medicine water.
<Rice effective against internal heat>
[Well? How is it?!]
“What do you mean, ‘internal heat’? Like inflammation?”
I’d already experienced stomach heat plenty while attending that damned school.
An endoscopy once revealed I had gastritis and acid reflux.
I took a spoonful.
[How is it? Do you feel better?]
Ricecooker Man didn’t have hands, but I could almost feel a thumbs-up from him.
I nodded.
“Rice really is medicine.”
The effect was incredible.
And I suddenly realized—
“…Wait. There’s a perfect use for this.”
***
Thud.
Dayah collapsed to the floor again as the rope around her neck was untied.
The news had called it a fire accident, but it was actually an acid attack.
She was lucky to survive, but burns still scarred her ears, cheeks, neck, shoulders, chest, and back.
Even with skin grafts and plastic surgery, some areas couldn’t be fixed. Her once flawless face was disfigured.
Her thin frame left little donor skin, so everything below her neck had to be left untreated.
‘Sorry, but those burns are like full-body tattoos now.’
‘Can you really put an idol with tattoos on stage?’
The company only made sure she wouldn’t do anything drastic during her contract period.
Her groupmates kept earning money as a five-member unit, trying to support new treatments and surgeries for her. But those promises were always delayed.
In truth, they weren’t being proactive at all.
Fans knew most of what happened.
While some antis spread rumors she’d taken time off to give birth, others battled those rumors online.
But over time, even her fans lost interest.
“Let’s just let her go. Think of Dayah as dead. Her face is gone.”
Even obsessive fans who found out her true condition eventually admitted she was too disfigured to return.
‘We also have the right to remember her as she was—when she was beautiful.’
Hearing that, Dayah decided to die.
What scared her more than antis spreading rumors was the thought of being abandoned by those who once loved her.
“It would’ve been better if I really had been pregnant.”
At least then, the antis’ rumors would’ve had some truth.
“…Tch.”
Outside, boxes piled up.
Deliveries had arrived.
Even on the brink of death, Dayah’s ears perked up at the sound.
She’d been about to let go of her life—but the thought of packages and gifts still made her curious.
Fan letters and gifts had dwindled as her activities ceased, her fandom shrinking rapidly.
So she had little reason to open them anymore.
“What’s this…?”
Among the packages, there was a plain gray envelope, looking careless and insincere.
Normally, fan gifts—mostly from female fans—were wrapped cutely.
But this one looked like office supplies ordered online, with just a shipping label. No sender.
Normally, a manager would screen such packages, but her company had already withdrawn all support.
No manager, no care—just the occasional call.
So things like this reached her directly.
‘How utterly insincere…’
It was so careless, it drew her attention.
She opened it.
Inside was a small 100ml bottle of liquid, along with a letter.
[I heard you’re suffering from burn injuries. If you use this water, the scars might heal. It worked for me. I hope to see you healthy again someday.]
“What kind of lunatic…”
Her cynical self cursed reflexively.
Once she’d been cute, bubbly, dancing on stage with a bright smile. But now, such words were unimaginable.
Her head hurt.
Having suffered an acid attack, just seeing a bottle of unknown liquid triggered her PTSD.
But—
“…I was going to die anyway.”
Her fans had already abandoned her.
This might be medicine, or it might be a second-stage attack from an anti.
Her skin was already ruined, and part of her wanted to tear it all off anyway.
If it was poison, she’d rub it in until the bone was exposed.
“…Ah? Huh? W-what?!”
The moment she applied the liquid to her face—
The burn scars truly healed.
“Ah!?”
It was like magic. The scars vanished as if she were dreaming after death.
Her reconstructed but wrinkled ears and cheeks healed.
Her shriveled skin plumped back into her original beauty.
“A-ah… ahhh…”
She couldn’t speak. She simply collapsed, weeping endlessly at the miracle before her.
***
“So… you can still send parcels without a sender? I thought that wasn’t possible anymore.”
I had sent one to idol Dayah, who had fallen from the spotlight after her burns, and to a man on TV who’d been scarred while rescuing others.
Not because I didn’t feel sorry for them, but because my own scars weren’t severe enough to test this medicine properly.
I couldn’t go around looking for burn victims, nor could I do something insane like burning people just to test the cure.
So I needed people whose conditions would naturally draw public attention.
Idols, heroes—whose recoveries would make the news.
If the anonymous burn treatment helped them, the results would be known.
‘P-please… can I buy more of this medicine? I’ll pay anything.’
That was the kind of response I hoped for.
Money wasn’t the only thing, either.
‘Because of you, I still have a life. I want to spend the rest of it with you.’
‘Sorry, oppa. I can’t go outside looking pretty anymore.’
‘Wow, the bride is too pretty. Your son doesn’t deserve her.’
‘What’s wrong with my son?!’
‘So, what should we name our grandchild?’
‘Do you want a boy or a girl, oppa?’
“…As if that would ever happen.”
It was fun to imagine, but I didn’t send it expecting that.
Besides, what charm could I possibly have?
<Charm> 21.
A force that attracts others.
“…Hm.”
I still had about 15 unspent points from defeating the red mage.
The guide said it’s best to save points and use them when you can double-stat.
The red mage’s teleportation and fire attacks had been dangerous, sure.
But honestly, if I had just sprayed him with a shower head from the start, the fight would’ve been over easily.
Ricecooker Man insisted Charm was useful too.
Of course, for battle, Strength, Speed, and Endurance mattered most.
But given how huge I was compared to otherworld beings, I could hold my own regardless.
Charm and Luck, though—they seemed useful for real life.
“…Haa.”
I held back.
Better to wait for a double-stat event.
Still, when I raised Strength, my muscles bulked up like a gym rat.
And despite eating tons of rice and lazing around indoors, I didn’t gain fat.