The S-Classes That I Raised

Chapter 271: Changeling (1)

“Grr… ugh…”

In contrast to the welcome chirping, my condition was rapidly deteriorating. My entire body felt so hot it was as if I were melting. My vision blurred, and both ears were ringing. My stomach churned, and nausea surged. It felt like someone was holding me up to keep me from collapsing, but I could barely sense their touch.

The appearance of Grace meant my stats had returned to F-rank. As my stats dropped, the surrounding magic became even more distinct than when I was at C-rank. Almost violently so.

It wasn’t just the external magic. My equipment and even my skills stimulated every nerve in my body. My mind went completely white from the sheer overload of information forcibly flooding in. I couldn’t hold on any longer—my consciousness faded.

— Chirp! Chirp!

Blue flitted around, chirping in distress.

Seong Hyunjae caught Han Yujin’s limp body in his arms. Even without touching bare skin, it was easy to notice the fever. Han Yujin’s F-rank body couldn’t withstand the forcibly activated senses caused by the mana engraving.

“Are there any records of special engravings done on F-ranks that aren’t for the purpose of increasing mana capacity?”

At Seong Hyunjae’s question, Sigma searched his memory before answering.

“There haven’t been any for F-ranks, or even for E or D-ranks beyond the basic mana engraving. At least, not in Solemnise. Even if someone has a unique skill, low stats make it hard to participate in combat. Medsang, where non-combat skills are widely used, might be a different story, but even there, they wouldn’t spend resources to give special engravings to lower-ranked guards.”

“They said there wouldn’t be any particular side effects.”

Seong Hyunjae had watched over Han Yujin when he received the mana engraving. He had also received a detailed explanation. But it was all based on a prediction using a C-rank physical record. No one had survived after receiving this level of mana engraving. Han Yujin had only obtained it by offering up a life.

Seong Hyunjae skillfully manipulated White Tail’s barrier skill to completely block the flow of external magic from reaching Han Yujin. He also simplified the flow of the barrier skill as much as possible.

“…Cough, khk.”

As Han Yujin’s blocked breath finally burst out, his eyes barely opened, still unfocused and blurry. Seong Hyunjae looked to Sigma again.

“If you have a painkiller that bypasses poison resistance or an item that can dull senses, give it to me.”

“Something like that…”

Trailing off, Sigma pulled out a bottle of liquor from his inventory. Moon Hyunah had forced him to take just one bottle, saying he might not be able to bring out inventory items once outside. He handed over the bottle to Seong Hyunjae—it was a Medsang wine that could intoxicate regardless of resistance or stats. True to Moon Hyunah’s taste, it was very strong.

After drinking more than a glass, Han Yujin broke into a harsh cough again.

“M-my mana…”

Sigma helped open a mana potion he’d barely managed to pull from his inventory. The strong alcohol had dulled his senses, but Han Yujin’s complexion remained pale. His head was still spinning.

“Why… ugh… how do S-ranks even deal with this kind of thing…”

They said you’d get used to it.

Muttering his complaint, Han Yujin was helped to his feet by Seong Hyunjae.

“It seems you’re a unique case, Han Yujin.”

“…Huh? Ugh, why?”

“Normally, the weak are more sensitive to external stimuli. But for awakened individuals, the ability to sense mana is proportional to one’s stats.”

Which meant, simply put, that S-ranks could manipulate mana more delicately and sensitively than F-ranks.

“Your environment feels completely different—like comparing a butterfly fluttering through a breeze to a dragon pushing through a typhoon. What do you think would happen if you suddenly threw that butterfly into the typhoon?”

“…It would be torn to shreds.”

“It’s probably something like that. Fortunately, you weren’t completely torn apart, but even the faintest breeze, unnoticed by a dragon, would strike your body powerfully.”

Han Yujin blinked, then grimaced. It was a side effect he hadn’t considered. With low stats, he had become more sensitive to mana than an S-rank. Seong Hyunjae lightly pressed the back of Han Yujin’s neck with his fingers.

“I’ll temporarily paralyze the mana engraving. Once you’re out, ask Hunter Yu Myungwoo for a mana sensitivity suppression item.”

“You could’ve… ugh, done that in the first place. This alcohol… is way too strong, blegh.”

“It would’ve been dangerous to touch it while your senses were intact.”

Saying it needed to be dulled to a certain degree, Seong Hyunjae urged him to drink more, then suddenly looked up at the sky. The rain was easing.

Though this dungeon—and this world—hadn’t completely collapsed yet, interference from the outside had already begun. Han Yujin’s stats had also reverted. The power of this world’s filial duty addict, White Tail, was weakening.

“It’s time to say goodbye.”

“Goodbye… you mean Sigma?”

Han Yujin looked at Sigma. His face flushed from the alcohol, he furrowed his brow slightly and rummaged through his inventory.

“The new place might make it hard to restore mana… Is your inventory spacious enough?”

Every mana potion in Han Yujin’s inventory was pulled out. Even the smaller items were added in. Weapons and equipment too—saying they’d disappear once he left anyway.

“Miss Hyunah…”

“Tell her I’ll be a bit late.”

Sigma said, picking up a mana potion.

“See you again, C-rank.”

His attitude was light and composed, as if he were just going on a short trip somewhere not far away. But it wasn’t an act. Han Yujin smiled. That’s just not who he was.

“Sure. I’ll tell her nicely. Bring back a gift.”

Rumble—accompanied by a tremor, a rift opened. Sigma turned his body. Soon, his figure vanished beyond the rift. Han Yujin slowly blinked as he watched the closing gap.

“…You really don’t know where he’s gone?”

“Not just the place—we can’t even know the time. He belongs to the past, originally.”

“It’s an impossible notion, though.”

Han Yujin spoke in a low, slightly dazed voice.

“I don’t want to go through goodbyes anymore. I’ve had enough. …Far too many.”

“Aren’t there many who won’t leave your side, Han Yujin? Especially your brother—he’ll be there no matter what.”

“…Yeah. He will.”

Han Yujin clenched his hand tightly, as if deep in thought. With eyes now clearer, he looked around and gave a troubled expression.

“The portal the rookie made must’ve disappeared, right? I need to log you out so I can leave.”

Only this area barely held its form—everything around it was vague and blurry. Han Yujin recalled everything that had vanished, then shook his head.

“Let’s just get ready to leave.”

“It might be dangerous, so let’s take care of this first. Starting with the mana engraving. It’ll sting a bit.”

Strong mana was injected along the mana engraving. The pain remained a dull throb, but Han Yujin’s body lost strength and collapsed to the ground.

“This… my senses… I can’t really see right now.”

“They’ll return soon.”

“…Can’t hear well, either.”

— Chirp!

Grace, who had perched on Han Yujin’s shoulder, fluttered anxiously, hopping about. Then, as if something came to mind, she flapped her wings and flew toward the fading mana hole. The small bluebird leapt into the blue light. Seong Hyunjae watched for a moment, then turned away.

His heavy footsteps moved toward the sixth fragment of Crescent Moon, who lay collapsed. The centaur twitched its head at the sound of footsteps. The spear lodged in its neck prevented it from lifting its head, but its eyes rolled.

“You…”

The centaur gritted its teeth and spoke.

“As I thought, something’s off. The Gellows you entered… was originally just an ordinary cat. It happened to devour a dragon whelp and partially dragonized, gaining the power to consume every dragon in its world. But its essence was still that of a beast.”

Though it was considered a transcendent, compared to races that were intelligent and capable from the beginning, it was inevitably a step below.

“It had outstanding combat power, sure, but there’s no way a beast could momentarily steal system authority! And… there’s no way that thing could know about Crescent Moon. Not in that much detail…”

“It wasn’t White Tail.”

Golden eyes curved faintly. Seong Hyunjae’s foot rested on the centaur’s head.

“Just as you guessed.”

The one who helped hijack the system. The one who told him about Crescent Moon.

It was the white bird. But there was no reason to say it aloud, nor was it even possible. That was the nature of the contract.

His foot slowly pressed down with strength. Not only physical force, but magic also gathered heavily.

“Wait!”

“You still have regrets, even over a fake life?”

“How many times have you done this?!”

“The first.”

“What?”

“It’s always the first.”

As if dumbfounded, the bloodied corners of the centaur’s mouth twitched, and its sagging horse body shuddered. The sixth fragment clenched its teeth and shouted.

“How long do you think you can endure while remaining human?! You’ll wear down and break apart in the end!”

As the sixth fragment, who had the duty of managing the small moon as a Scouter, it spoke even with a trace of pity.

“Unlike the others who were possessed, you couldn’t be identified at all! They said the difference in level with White Tail explained it, but you handle that body perfectly. That just means you’ve been worn down that far!”

How many times had he resisted and endured? Even Crescent Moon was said to be asleep now. What had happened?

“…This might be the last time!”

“Maybe so.”

Seong Hyunjae checked on Han Yujin, then pressed harder with his foot. Crack—with a sound of something shattering, the centaur’s head, and then its body, scattered like a mirage. The blurred surroundings now began to shake violently. Seong Hyunjae quickly returned to Han Yujin.

— Chirp!

“Grace, what did you do?”

Han Yujin, now somehow upright again, looked down at the bluebird sitting on the back of his hand and asked. A faint trace of the mana hole’s power was flowing from the chirping bird. It gently soothed Han Yujin’s overstimulated senses. His sight, hearing, and all other senses began returning to normal.

“Han Yujin.”

“Yes.”

Without needing a long explanation, Han Yujin pulled out the white gun. For some reason, it remained a gun instead of transforming into the dagger he’d originally received from the rookie. The muzzle was aimed at Seong Hyunjae’s head.

“Feels strange. Let’s see how it goes out there.”

“Alright.”

Han Yujin clenched his jaw tightly and pulled the trigger. The light spreading from the muzzle wrapped around Seong Hyunjae’s head. Fortunately, there was nothing gruesome to see. Just like the centaur, Seong Hyunjae’s—White Tail’s—body quietly dispersed.

Once again, the world shook violently, and the thing that had been lurking outside reached out its hand.

As if it had been waiting, it descended upon the dungeon, swallowing without a trace the message that should have arrived for Han Yujin.

“…Definitely not the kind of experience you go through twice.”

— Chirp.

Can’t believe I blew that guy’s head off with my own hand. There wasn’t a single drop of blood or a trace of injury—it all vanished so cleanly, it didn’t really feel like I had killed Seong Hyunjae. Still, it left a foul feeling. After putting the gun back into my inventory, I scratched at my hand and rubbed it against my sleeve for no reason. Now all that was left was for me to leave. Not that much time should’ve passed, right? The kids better not be worried. I quickly opened the quest window.

[Please log out your party

Let all party members exit the dungeon through a portal or by logging them out directly.

Reward: Han Yujin’s dungeon escape]

“…Huh?”

The quest hadn’t changed. I couldn’t claim the reward. What the hell is this? I frantically tapped around the quest window, but as expected, there was no response.

“Everyone left, though? Hey! Rookie!”

No response came back. Only silence. Even though my L-rank fear resistance had returned, a chill crept down my spine.

“Rookie! Volleyball!”

My meaningless shout scattered into the air. …Seriously, you pull this crap at the very end? As my throat dried out, mist began to spread around my feet. Mist that had come from who knows where grew thicker and thicker. Just as it wrapped around my body—

Crackle!

Something repelled the mist. It was the power given to me by the oldest spirit. Which meant… no way.

‘…King of Harmless.’

…Damn it, shit, Rookie. I’m alone. Not that having other people around would’ve made fighting that jellyfish bastard any easier. Maybe being alone is actually better—no, wait, it’s not! Seriously!

I used Grace for now. I racked my brain as the fog thickened around me, but nothing useful came to mind. What the hell am I supposed to do? All I could do was buy time with my tongue until the rookie decided to help.

…It was depressing, having to wait for the help of the rookie and those unfilial bastards. I was grinding my teeth in frustration when—

“Hello.”

A cheerful voice greeted me.

[Daddy.]

Another, unfamiliar voice followed.