The S-Classes That I Raised

Chapter 307: It Was Your Home (4)

His golden eyes, thick with clarity yet shrouded in an oppressive stillness, locked directly onto me. The moment our gazes met, a shiver ran down my spine. And at the same time, a small laugh slipped out.

It was a look of hostility I had never once seen before. And it thrilled me. The fact that, to that man, my presence was now threatening enough to provoke such blatant murderous intent.

Probably no one had ever received a gaze like that from Seong Hyunjae before. The undefeated top ranker who had seemed almost bored during even ranking battles. Not even he would have expected to show this kind of genuine animosity toward someone with F-rank stats—not S-rank, not a natural S-rank—F-rank.

Life’s really something, huh. What a ride.

“Chief Song, want a potion?”

“I’m fine.”

Song Taewon replied as he pulled his arm and shoulder from the wall. Dust and debris poured down in clumps. Even with two S-rank Hunters standing before him, Seong Hyunjae’s gaze remained solely fixed on me. Despite the pressure radiating off him, he didn’t strike first. Maybe clashing with Song Taewon had brought back a shred of reason.

“…Get out of here.”

“There you go again. I get that you’re not loving this situation, but just bear with it a little longer.”

His lips moved slightly beneath that hardened expression. He clenched his jaw tight. At this rate, he’ll be joining me for a dental appointment.

“Yuhyun, I can use the power of the S-rank Hunters around me for a brief moment. So I just need an opening.”

Creating that opening wasn’t going to be easy, but even without a full explanation, Yuhyun nodded right away.

“What about the exit?”

“Not this way.”

I used the Teacher skill on Yuhyun, too. The front-facing glass window, still unbroken, came into view. Forcing Seong Hyunjae outside wouldn’t be good. Apologies to the Sesung Guild building, but a closed indoor space was better. That meant we had to pull him deeper inside.

“Chief Song, toward the center of the house! Make a path!”

I shouted while activating the skill. Electricity crackled around me. Holding up the dagger that was Changeling, I boldly used the same skill again. It had to be agitating—to see someone already threatening your sense of identity using the exact same skill.

“Han… Yujin.”

With a strained groan, Seong Hyunjae’s golden eyes briefly wavered. The moment I saw it, I turned away.

Boom!

Song Taewon’s fist smashed into the wall, creating an open path. The blow pierced the wall and the one beyond, faster than opening a door. As soon as I saw the way through, I used a teleportation skill.

Crack-BOOM!

Lightning and thunder exploded where I’d just been. Flames flickering, a black sword blocked the spreading attack that rolled down the hallway. Clang! Chains and blades collided, golden and dark red auras swirling together. But the clash was brief—Yuhyun was the first to pull back. Understanding that I wanted to draw Seong Hyunjae further inside, he applied just enough pressure before following after me.

BANG!

Another path opened. This house is ridiculously huge! I stepped over the shattered remains of a bed, boots crunching on debris. Jumping on a bed with my shoes on made me feel kind of guilty. We passed straight through one room, broke through another wall, and finally reached a wide-open space. Song Taewon dropped down, and Yuhyun caught up in a flash, using the acceleration skill from his regalia to scoop me up.

As leaves scattered and Yuhyun leapt into the air—

BOOOOOM—!!

A hole just big enough for a person burst open, and then the whole wall blew out. Fragments swirled like dead leaves, and cracks spread violently across the second floor—and even down to the first and up to the third. As dust clouds billowed, I saw a figure blur within.

Bang!

I fired a quick shot. Of course it didn’t hit. Chains clinked and swatted the magic bullet aside. He was already wearing the black-and-red coat—Siléchia’s Wings—though I didn’t even see him pull it on. Standing at the edge of the broken wall, Seong Hyunjae looked up at me.

He still hadn’t lost his grip on reason. Honestly, it would’ve been easier if he’d just gone feral. Inside the massive tank behind him, fish swam peacefully, unaware of anything.

“Can’t you just give in to your instincts for a moment?”

“…Something like that, for me…”

His voice was low, hard to understand. Seong Hyunjae slowly closed and opened his eyes. He looked exhausted. He didn’t need to cling so stubbornly—he could just let go for a moment, find some peace. But I guess it was because he was the kind of person who would never let go of himself that he’d endured this long.

It was frustrating, sad, and kind of admirable.

“I get it, you hate the idea so much you’d rather die. But it’s still better than dying. Even if you think dying is better, you don’t get to do that in front of me.”

There’s plenty of water. As long as he doesn’t use it against us. He’s not great at electrolysis yet—if I nerf his skill stats, he won’t be able to use it properly anyway.

“If you must die, do it old and lazy. Don’t go out like this. If you really die, I’ll take care of your memorial rites myself. I’ll toast the crusts off the bread and fry shrimp tails for your table. Anything else you want to eat?”

“Why would you prepare Seong Hyunjae’s memorial?”

“Yuhyun, traditionally, the one who tends the ritual gets the inheritance too.”

“I have plenty of money.”

“Yeah? Then my… never mind.”

How could I possibly close my eyes leaving him behind? Gotta live long.

“Let’s catch him here.”

The moment the words left my mouth, Yuhyun activated his skill. The final door melted down. Mana, blazing with heat, surged outward. Stepping into this space now would be a stupid move. Normally, Seong Hyunjae wouldn’t be foolish enough to do it.

“Chief Song!”

The second I shouted the ‘S’ in “Song,” Song Taewon moved like he’d been waiting for the signal. No explanation needed. He had read my intent through experience. Pouring power into his whole body, he stepped forward. The ground caved in beneath his foot, cracked and crushed. His arm stretched forward with perfect form, without a hint of hesitation. His fist struck the first floor wall.

KUGUGUGUNG!

The wall crumbled like a biscuit. As if a bomb had gone off, the surrounding walls collapsed entirely. Exterior, interior, the solid frame—it all failed to withstand the shock and came crashing down. The whole building shook, ceiling tiles falling like pebbles.

With the first floor’s walls and ceiling destroyed, Seong Hyunjae was naturally forced to drop down. As he stepped onto the falling concrete chunks, Yuhyun’s area-wide skill struck him. 20% reduction in target attribute-based skills.

At the same time, flames rained down.

Kwarururur—

Dark blue fire swept through the circular hall like a massive dragon. The walls and floor melted, emitting terrifying heat. It wasn’t an offensive move. The flames encircled the area to trap Seong Hyunjae, creating a wall of fire around the skill’s zone.

Inside, Song Taewon charged at Seong Hyunjae. The arcs of lightning spreading outward lost some of their force. Taking the voltage head-on, Song Taewon threw his sword between the writhing chains.

CRASH! The moment sword and chains tangled, another blade crashed down like a whip, aiming to split Seong Hyunjae’s head. He twisted his body to dodge, and the Ruler’s blade just grazed his hair, scraping the floor. Immediately, Song Taewon slid low, foot lashing under the spread chains.

A flurry of nearly unavoidable attacks. But Seong Hyunjae avoided the ankle kick by falling backward. As he collapsed, a dark blade slashed violently across his hair. He caught himself on the ground, rolled, and swiftly hurled a dagger. It intercepted the wire flying in to bind him.

CRACKLE!

The wire burned in a violent current. Chains wrapping around their master and the jet-black blade intertwined. Yuhyun yanked hard on the Ruler’s Sword with one hand, while conjuring a spear of flame with the other and hurled it. Seong Hyunjae barely batted the spear away with his arm, but his coat sleeve was scorched—his fire resistance wasn’t perfect.

Before he could react to the heat burning up his hand, a steel bar thrown by Song Taewon flew at him. He dodged the bar, but Song Taewon closed in right behind it. BANG! He blocked the crushing punch with crossed arms, then twisted smoothly to deflect the follow-up kick.

In seconds, over a dozen attacks had exchanged. Song Taewon wasn’t fighting alone. Chains from the Searcher coiled around Yuhyun’s blade, allowing him to strike intermittently. The chains could be dispersed and retrieved—but if he did that, the Ruler’s Sword would be free again.

Eventually, wounds started to appear on Seong Hyunjae’s body, one after another.

‘Still holding out after all that, huh.’

It was nothing short of impressive.

BOOM! Again the ground and walls shook. Every clash seemed to send tremors through the place like an earthquake. The entire building, not just Seong Hyunjae’s mansion, was taking damage. Even the tank I stood on wobbled. Cracks had long since spiderwebbed across the ceiling to which the tank was mounted.

I stood atop the smooth tank surface, looking down. Just barging in now wouldn’t increase my chances of a successful strike. Numbers alone don’t guarantee victory—if we’re not coordinated, we’ll just get in each other’s way.

Honestly, without the Teacher skill, we might’ve been worse off fighting separately. And even that skill isn’t a cure-all.

Which meant, right now—

“Yuhyun!”

I shouted and aimed the gun at the tank. The fire around me instantly died down.

BANG!

With the shot, the tank burst open. A flood of water rained down on Seong Hyunjae and Song Taewon below. Before it could spread across the floor, I quickly activated my skills.

Shadowless Day, Cold Sigh, and a variation of Pale Rain.

CRACK—

I froze the water. Compressed the massive volume into solid ice, harder than anything. Seong Hyunjae’s legs and part of his body were bound by icy vines. Song Taewon, who refused to let go of him, was caught as well.

CRACK!

Golden chains twisted and scattered as they tried to shatter the ice that held their master. But Yuhyun blocked their path. The Ruler’s Sword, transformed into a chained blade, flexed like a dragon’s tail, batting away every golden ring without missing a single one.

Flashes of light and metallic clangs rang out violently.

Even if I’d layered skills to trap him, it wouldn’t hold for long. Lightning was already gnawing through the ice. My whole body ached from the chain of skills I’d used, but for the final move—I teleported.

“Now—grab him!”

Song Taewon yanked on the wire still wrapped around Seong Hyunjae’s arm. Amid the frenzy of crackling electricity, those sharp golden eyes closed in, cold and gleaming.

CRACK!

The ice shattered. As the melted water met the surging current, it exploded violently. My vision went blindingly white. And in that searing light—before he could fully free himself—I leapt into Seong Hyunjae’s arms. Unless he used teleportation, he couldn’t dodge this!

Gripping the dagger handle tightly, I drove it in. The blade pierced his chest—right over his heart. The sensation of tearing through someone’s flesh traveled vividly from my fingertips. His white shirt soaked crimson. For a heart wound, the bleeding stopped surprisingly quickly.

Seong Hyunjae looked at me. His slightly dilated pupils returned to normal—and he smiled.

The magic stone embedded in my arm heated up intensely.

“…Shit.”

A strange, tingling—almost spine-chilling—mana pulsed from beyond Changeling’s dagger.

“Get back!”

Song Taewon shouted as he melted the surrounding ice. And then—

KWA-RURURUNG—!!

As if releasing all the rage he had suppressed until now, a monstrous thunderclap exploded outward. Even with Grace’s protection, I couldn’t keep my eyes open. For a moment, it felt like my ears had gone deaf—no sound reached me.

A brief eternity passed.

“…Whoa.”

Above, the sky stretched wide where the roof used to be. I turned my head—and saw what had once been the mansion replaced with rubble covering the garden. I swallowed dryly without thinking.

“Yuhyun? Chief Song… h-huh, Seong Hyunjae!”

Why is this guy collapsed?! The man beneath me slowly opened his eyes. Changeling, now back in her dragon form, returned to my shoulder.

Since the Teacher skill link was still intact, the other two were safe. To lessen the strain on me, I ended the skill and moved off of Seong Hyunjae. Even after I backed away, he didn’t get up—just lay there completely limp. No way he’s too weak to push off a single person.

“Are you okay? How many fingers?”

“Three.”

“Wrong.”

“You’ve got a cut on your cheek. And your forehead.”

I reflexively touched my forehead. If his vision was fine enough to catch that, then everything else must be working decently too. I exhaled in relief.

“Hyung!”

Yuhyun ran up, followed by Chief Song, who emerged from the debris. So it wasn’t just the mansion that blew away, huh. The building connected to it probably took some damage too. This place was going to need full reconstruction. I wondered if everyone had gotten out safely.

“What a mess.”

Someone appeared from beyond the wreckage of the fallen mansion. It was Evelyn. Despite her words, she looked calm—must’ve done a good job getting everyone to safety. I gave her a sheepish nod, then turned back to Seong Hyunjae, who still wasn’t showing any sign of moving.

Should we call a healer?