Chapter 1

Chapter 1<Once in a blue moon(1)

AN General Hospital Main Building

The young man got out of the taxi, his eyes were full of tension. At the entrance of the hospital, he took out his phone and carefully checked the text message he had received that morning:

[KG Chemical Dietary Supplement Phase 1 Clinical Trial: December 9-10, 2-day trial, 4th floor Pharmacy Support Center]

With a deep breath, the young man threw his shoulders back and confidently walked through the door.

Just 3 seconds, thats all it took.

As he passed through the automatic doors, his pupils shrank slightly. The smell of the hospitals disinfectant made him feel even more nervous than he already was.

Hey, Han Jeong-woo. Dont be nervous. Its just a simple task of taking nutritional supplements and earning some money.

The receptionist who met him in the lobby gave him a look as if asking if there was anything uncomfortable. Jeong-woo gave a faint smile, indicating that he was okay, and quickly walked through the corridor to the elevator.

While waiting for the elevator, he looked at himself in the shiny door with a silvery sheen.

He was a tall young man in his mid-twenties, with a muscular build and a relatively tall stature. His eyes were mostly brown.Follow the latest novels at novelhall.com

Today he was participating in a clinical trial recruitment that he had stumbled upon while browsing job sites. The problem was the additional conditions listed below:

[Have experienced a coma for more than a week.]

[Suffer from both insomnia and excessive sleep disorder, alternatingly.]

[Sometimes I feel like someone who I cant see is talking to me.]

[There are many things that feel like Ive already experienced them even though I havent.]

There were several unusual conditions, and even one of them matched, which made it even more chilling.

Its not like theyre selecting people with mental illness. But still, I

Who would have thought that having experienced being hospitalized after a traffic accident would be helpful in this way?

Ding dong.

As I got on the elevator that arrived, there was a man who came running and shouted, Wait a minute!.

Junwoo, who naturally glanced at him, was slightly surprised. The man was of similar build and looked somewhat pale, fitting the external conditions of the recruitment notice. The man asked Junwoo.

Are you going to the clinical trial?

Yes? Oh, yes.

Phew, thank goodness. This is the right place.

The man, who had put his hands in his armpits and shrank his body because of the cold, glanced at Junwoo. Then he asked, Is it your first time?

Yes?

Newcomers usually get nervous. Clinical trial. Its a scary word, to be honest. I dont even know what strangers might do to my body.

Thats true.

The man said it as if there was nothing new.

I went to test high blood pressure medicine once, and they gave me a laxative first and then told me to run on a treadmill all day, saying they had to check my blood pressure changes under extreme conditions.

Ugh, that sounds terrible.

Well, thats for medicine. When I was testing an erection enhancement drug, they would play porn and tell me to masturbate all the time

Masturbate?!

They asked me if I wanted them to use a syringe to extract the semen or if I wanted to do it myself. But then they said something like, just ask the nurse to help you, and I got corrected right away.

!

Anyway, there are all sorts of strange things when you wander around clinical trials. But it pays pretty well.

He seemed like a specialist in clinical trials. Im not sure if he was trying to calm me down or make me more anxious.

Ding dong.

At that moment, the elevator stopped and the doors opened. As soon as I stepped out into the corridor, I saw about six other participants standing there.

There are a lot of people who are as nervous as I am.

I found a spot and waited for the clinical trial that would take place shortly. Soon, a voice called out my name. I entered the room and found myself in a space that looked like a scientific laboratory filled with various medical equipment. Many people dressed in white gowns caught my attention. A woman approached me.

I am Dr. Moon Chae-eun, a senior researcher at KG Chemicals. Please call me Dr. Moon, she said in a clear voice that matched her neat, tightly tied hair.

Follow me, she gestured, leading me to where the test would be conducted.

On the table, there was a vial labeled AF-12 and a syringe with a needle. I was momentarily confused.

Am I supposed to take this orally? Its a dietary supplement, right?

Dr. Moon replied coldly, The administration method was stated in the consent form you signed, wasnt it?

A stack of papers with dense text flashed through my mind. Though I read through them carefully, I couldnt remember the technical terms.

Dr. Moon, noticing my surprise, continued speaking in a business-like tone, apparently having encountered many participants like me before.

Each applicant has a different testing method. To properly confirm their bodys ability to tolerate it, we need to diversify the administration methods. Cream, patch, pill, aerosol, suppository

Suppository?

Injection was very favorable.

Dr. Moon took out a blood pressure monitor from the medical equipment on the cart and placed it on the table.

Ill start with the basic test. We need to figure out if the side effects are due to other conditions.

If its a side effect?

For a moment, there was a look on Dr. Moons face that seemed to say, This doesnt mean were going to waste a million won.

After that, it was a familiar sight to Junwoo as well.

Checking blood pressure and electrocardiogram, measuring external size such as height and weight, were not much different from the physical examination he had in school.

stomach growling

Jeong-woos hunger signal interrupted their conversation.

Huh? Did you hear that?

Which side?

Jeong-woo, who caught the attention of the conversation, raised his hand as if he couldnt help it.

Excuse me.

As soon as he stood up, the two who had entered were surprised.

Can I go down to the convenience store and have some cup ramen? Im hungry and cant sleep.

Smiling coolly and patting his stomach, the two mens faces turned blue and they rushed out.

Why are they so scared?

What was even more terrifying was that the two men had run out with such a loud noise, but the other participants in the hospital room did not react at all.

Jeong-woo, who was shivering, approached the clinical specialist on the next bed.

Hey.

The man who was deep in sleep didnt seem to have any intention of waking up even after his shoulder was lightly shaken.

A sudden sense of anxiety arose.

Clinical trials that pay unusually high amounts of money. Illegal procedures. Side effects. Stealing organs from comatose patients to sell them.

All sorts of thoughts were passing through his mind at that moment.

He heard the sound of several deer running down the hallway. Then, two men who had run ahead and the pretty researcher he had met earlier in the day entered the room.

Doctor Moon?

Youre really awake now.

Doctor Moon stopped in front of Jeong-woo and looked him up and down before swallowing her saliva. She then turned to the men who came with her and said,

You two can go back now. Thank you for your hard work.

The men bowed their heads and left with their mouths tightly shut.

Doctor Moon approached Jeong-woo, trying to keep a calm expression on her face.

Can I talk to you for a moment?

Why arent these people waking up?

They took a sleep-inducing drug.

What about me?

Jeong-woo gave her a questioning look. Doctor Moon calmly opened her mouth.

One of the protein cells that make up AF-12 is a powerful sleep inducer, and the other contains a compound infused with specific knowledge information.

Im not sure I understand

The reason for this dual structure is to target people like you. However, I didnt expect to find a sample that actually responds so quickly. It was predicted that only one out of ten thousand people would react this way, given that there were only participants who couldnt even reach this area for three months. I apologize for the lack of a smooth response.

Jeong-woo was taken aback by the unexpected excuse.

Im sorry, Dr. Moon. My major is in humanities.

You didnt even take it as an elective course?

Should I have?

Dr. Moon nodded immediately, showing an attitude of explaining it so that it can be easily understood with common sense.

Jeong-woo suddenly became annoyed at such a reaction.

Thinking back now, I really regret not taking a pharmacy-related course as a business major student.

Its molecular biology.

Thats what I meant!

As Jeong-woo muttered under his breath, Dr. Moon suddenly opened her hands, as if feeling awkward.

AF-12 is structured with two molecules facing each other like a mirror. This is called chirality or optical isomerism.

She flicked her fingers as if reflecting each other in a mirror.

The principle is simple. Even if your hands look similar, your left glove wont fit on your right hand. These people have been affected by a sleep-inducing substance, but for Han Jeong-woo, its a knowledge-information component thats at work.

The explanation continued in Korean, leaving the listener confused.

Do you know about chirality?

I dont know about chirality, but I feel like talking nonsense.

As the conversation continued without any clear direction, Jeong-woos headache began to worsen. So why did you put all these people to sleep and keep me awake?

Well, only Han Jeong-woo himself would know better. Cant you think of anything?

This woman is real!

Dr. Moon maintained an indifferent attitude despite Jeong-woos serious tone.

Why are you doing this to people? Its one thing if the sleep-inducing substance was in the injection I received. But optically active compounds? Knowledge information embedded in molecules? Does that make sense? Recording information on a molecular level requires technology that involves genetic engineering and genome projects in biology. Moreover, its impossible to understand the genetic encryption of knowledge without a base sequence analyzer in your head.

Its usually impossible.

Thats right, impossible. Genetic encryption translates RNA into amino acid sequences. Without a complex molecular recognition process where transport RNA attaches to amino acids, its

Jeong-woo paused.

Why am I saying this kind of stuff?

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