The S-Classes That I Raised

Chapter 349: In Discussion (1)

The car trunk opened and a box filled with luggage was thrown out. A Hunter, grumbling in frustration, muttered while packing only the essential items.

“Fuck, why are we getting dragged into this too!”

Another Hunter’s face was also twisted with annoyance.

“We went through hell to settle down in Korea.”

Korea had fewer incidents of high-ranking Hunter tyranny compared to other countries because the Awakener Management Office and the Hunter Association functioned properly. As a result, some mid to low-level foreign Hunters had moved to Korea. Often through unregistered and illegal routes.

Experienced Hunters could enter any country relatively easily, but some still chose illegal paths due to tariffs on dungeon by-products. Not only Hunter equipment but also key by-products incurred high taxes when taken abroad. Contrary to ordinary goods, importing or equal-level exchanges were tax-free, while exporting was taxed.

Thus, there existed many groups who secretly entered Korea, which was relatively safe and easy to operate in, to target illegal dungeons and smuggle the by-products with higher value to overseas markets.

“They said all the illegal dungeons will be detected with that dungeon scanner thing anyway. Business is over.”

“Methods to interfere with that will come out soon enough. You think only a few people use illegal dungeons? Just go underground for a while and come back out.”

The priority was to preserve the routes they had worked hard to establish. As one of the cars packed with important luggage pulled out of the parking lot, just as it reached the road—

Bang!

A spear of dark blue flames pierced the front bumper and exploded. The front bumper disappeared without a trace, and the car spun wildly before being pushed backward. The Hunters inside burst out, nearly smashing the doors in their hurry.

“Set the car on fire and ru—”

The words never finished. A man dropped down from the air, and with the tip of his foot, twisted a Hunter’s head lightly. A snapping sound echoed as the Hunter collapsed instantly. Before the remaining Hunters could even grasp the situation, the next strike came.

No, it was barely enough to be called an attack. He didn’t even draw his sword, just tapped lightly. But the remaining two Hunters tumbled across the ground like leaves caught in a storm.

“…They’re not dead, right?”

A staff member of the Hunter Association watching from afar asked anxiously.

“You think he wouldn’t be able to control his strength?”

A Haeyeon guild member raised an eyebrow at the nonsense.

“Our Guild Leader himself stepped in. You’re being too picky.”

“I mean, honestly…”

The association staff swallowed back the words, ‘It’s more exhausting for us, but mentally more comfortable.’

For an association employee, the hardest person to deal with was the Haeyeon Guild Leader. While the Sesung Guild Leader looked down on others naturally, the Haeyeon Guild Leader was simply emotionless. His eyes were like black marbles—just meeting his gaze made it not just difficult but terrifying to speak first.

Having subdued the Hunters, Han Yuhyun immediately headed toward the guild building. Seeing the first car get intercepted, the remaining Hunters quickly got out of their car and ran into the building. They were trying to escape through the back door.

Instead of chasing them, Han Yuhyun drew the Ruler’s Sword and approached the three-story building. As he stepped forward with one foot, he swung his sword wide.

Crash!

The concrete wall cracked like tofu. The shock spread through the entire building, and soon it collapsed with a roar. A cloud of dust shot upward.

It didn’t look like anyone escaped. Han Yuhyun indifferently stored his sword back in his inventory. For him, this didn’t even qualify as a walk in the park.

“This is the last one!”

A staff member of the association shouted while checking the Hunters sprawled on the road. The small and mid-sized guilds involved with Han Yujin’s kidnapping had been dealt with in an instant. Unlike this guild, which at least had time to prepare for escape, some guilds had been wiped out without even knowing what was happening.

Han Yuhyun’s lips twitched faintly. He had taken a step back as his brother advised, but he couldn’t just sit still, so he volunteered to clean up. Yet, instead of feeling better, he only felt more depressed. Just then, a message came.

[They lost him.]

It was from Park Yerim. Han Yuhyun’s brow furrowed. His teeth clenched automatically.

After replying to ask where to go next, he raised flames to burn away the dust and pulled a contract from his inventory. It was a protection contract with a penalty: if Han Yujin suffered a fatal injury, a wound would appear on the back of Han Yuhyun’s right hand.

Han Yujin had been horrified at the mention of a wound, but eventually gave in to his younger brother’s persuasion that it would be the easiest way to know.

The contract was intact, and Han Yuhyun’s hand was clean. Iryn scurried up to the hand holding the contract and looked up at his master.

‘…I trust my brother.’

Being kidnapped by humans was oddly more reassuring than sneaking into a dungeon. That was because Han Yujin had an irreplaceable and permanent value. Besides, his brother might have low stats, but he was far from an easy target.

So he firmly believed Han Yujin would return safely—but recovering him in just a day or two would be impossible.

From today, his brother wouldn’t be home. No, any place without Han Yujin couldn’t be called a home to Han Yuhyun. The only place where he could stay and rest comfortably was by Han Yujin’s side—nowhere else.

An irreplaceable, one-of-a-kind refuge.

He knew in his head that he hadn’t completely lost him, but his insides twisted. Suppressing the surge of emotion, Han Yuhyun turned to head for the location Park Yerim had informed him of.

“Our Guild Leader will be here soon.”

Park Yerim said, taking her eyes off her phone.

Seong Hyunjae was sitting in an empty room with nothing but a table and chair. It was inside an unfinished building at the breeding facility.

After being contacted by Seong Hyunjae, Chief Song Taewon had asked him not to enter Seoul and instead wait at the breeding facility—a place where even if a conflict broke out between S-Rank Hunters, there would be no civilian casualties.

Although Kang Soyeong had ridden Comet over to pick her up, Park Yerim refused to go along with Han Yuhyun. Saying, “Comet’s already stressed out enough,” she’d run off as if fleeing, insisting the dragon needed rest.

“Before that, I’d like to know—how did you end up losing him?”

Han Yujin would have refused, but it wasn’t as if there was no way to forcefully and thoroughly guard him. If S-Rank Hunters took turns staying glued to his side, that would work. But it couldn’t go on forever, and since Han Yujin had already been caught in a mind-type skill, it was necessary to identify the perpetrator.

So they had intentionally left a small gap. If they did nothing, the kidnapping would go off without a hitch, so they kept strict surveillance. Instead, to draw the perpetrator out, they allowed the information that the target was often home alone to leak and were slowly setting up a trap under the guise of loosening security—but before that could be completed, Han Yujin escaped.

“We did consider the possibility that Mister would manage to break out.”

If the mind-type skill was stronger than expected and Han Yujin tried to escape on his own, there was really no way to stop him. Even if an S-Rank Hunter was right by his side, it would be the same.

In fact, that might have been even more dangerous. If Han Yujin used himself as a hostage to threaten Han Yuhyun, Park Yerim, or Noah, it would likely result not only in letting him go, but actively cooperating with him.

That’s why they had prepared for that scenario by monitoring the airport. Sure enough, not long after Han Yujin’s escape, suspicious activity was detected at Gimpo Airport.

Immediately, Song Taewon took charge of Gimpo Airport, Moon Hyunah handled Incheon Airport, and the routes leading to the airports were covered by Park Yerim and Noah, who had flight skills. After the swift arrest at Gimpo, Han Yuhyun was tasked with cleaning up the connected groups, and Seong Hyunjae headed to the breeding facility, the most likely place Han Yujin would choose.

“Because I wanted Han Yujin to come out of it with all his limbs intact.”

At Seong Hyunjae’s reply, Park Yerim’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“Mister really went that far?”

“In that state, trying to restrain him forcefully would have been more dangerous. Rather than letting him do something reckless to protect the caster, it seemed better to trust Han Yujin and let him go for now. The more threatened he felt by us, the stronger the mind-type skill was likely to grow.”

It was a skill designed to make the target willingly follow the caster. There was no benefit in giving more credibility to the culprit who had tried to drive a wedge between Han Yujin and the surrounding S-Rank Hunters.

Park Yerim nodded as if she understood.

“It would’ve been the same even if we went. That’s why Mister told us not to come.”

A short silence followed, then Park Yerim spoke again.

“Even putting that mind-type skill aside, the Sesung Guild Leader wouldn’t have been able to lay a hand on Mister.”

At her words, Seong Hyunjae, who had been half-closing his eyes expressionlessly, shifted his gaze to her.

“You’re quite generous with your evaluation of me.”

“Well, if he really thought it was okay to hurt Mister, the first thing the Sesung Guild Leader would do is deal with us. Right?”

She continued, clearly unimpressed.

“He doesn’t think well of us, you know.”

“He probably finds me and Han Yuhyun the most annoying. Am I wrong?”

“I wonder why you’d think that. I care for the young lady and the young master alike.”

“Don’t lie. You and Chief Song are the only ones you actually care about.”

Park Yerim scoffed.

“You only pay attention to us because it’d be a hassle for you if something happened to us, right?”

Faced with her bold and unflinching gaze, Seong Hyunjae slowly raised the corners of his mouth.

“It’s not like I’ve never thought, wouldn’t it be fine if the young lady and young master disappeared?”

Even if Han Yujin completely fell apart, it would probably be enjoyable to gather up the pieces and help him stand again. In fact, that might be more in line with Seong Hyunjae’s nature.

He wouldn’t miss Han Yuhyun or Park Yerim if they were gone. Especially Han Yuhyun, who to Seong Hyunjae was nothing more than a by-product attached to Han Yujin. Rare and peculiar, yes—but what truly mattered was Han Yujin, who had raised him that way. He was only considerate because Han Yujin cherished them so much.

At his words, Park Yerim didn’t back down and raised the corners of her eyes.

“If you plan on picking a fight, I welcome it. Given our difference in experience, let’s say you give me a handicap of one move. Let’s meet by the sea. I’ve always wanted to see Haeundae.”

“Han Yujin would scold me for not acting my age, so I’ll pass. Instead, I’ll make sure the hotel’s cleared for your comfort.”

“I do have money—uh, at least enough to cover a hotel.”

Her finances weren’t in great shape, in many ways. Park Yerim pouted.

“Other S-Rank Hunters throw money around like nothing!”

“You’re not far off either, young lady.”

“Well, of course. Just wait and see. Once I’m an adult, the position of Sesung Guild Leader is mine. Maybe even before that.”

At her confident declaration, Seong Hyunjae’s eyes gleamed slightly with interest.

“Over the Haeyeon Guild Leader, you’d pick me?”

“Han Yuhyun would be satisfied just keeping Mister by his side. He’s not greedy. But I’m not like that. Right now, people say the Sesung Guild Leader is the best Hunter, but in a few years, it’ll be Park Yerim.”

At her bold declaration that the environment was right and there was no reason she couldn’t do it, Seong Hyunjae’s smile deepened a little.

“I’m looking forward to it, a little.”

“You’re not going to trample a budding sprout just because you heard that, are you?”

“Of course not.”

With the sound of a chair sliding back, Seong Hyunjae stood up.

As he walked quickly around the table in long strides, Park Yerim flinched without thinking. But she didn’t step back, instead lifting her chin to look up at the man who was much taller than her.

Seong Hyunjae lowered his head slightly and continued.

“On the contrary, if you ever need help, don’t hesitate to contact me, Hunter Park Yerim.”

“…You make me want to either rip you off or kick you. I can’t decide. Or maybe I’ll just go snitch to Mister—”

“That would be troublesome. I’m already on his bad side just for the young master.”

“Really?”

“Even if it had no effect, it seems to bother him. If I knew it’d be like this, I wouldn’t have shown any interest at all.”

Seong Hyunjae pretended to pout. When Park Yerim first entered the room, he had been surrounded by a cold, heavy air that was almost devoid of humanity, but his mood seemed to have lightened.

“If you said you weren’t interested, Mister would probably complain again, asking how you could ignore his little brother.”

“You know him well.”

“Well, it’s obvious. Mister’s Han Yuhyun pattern. Han Yuhyun’s the same.”

Shaking her head as if the two of them were ridiculous, Park Yerim scoffed. Seong Hyunjae agreed with her assessment.

Just then, the door opened and Han Yuhyun entered. He looked between the two standing in front of him.

“…Hunter Park Yerim. If the Sesung Guild Leader threatened you—”

“It was the other way around.”

I was the one challenged, Seong Hyunjae said as he stepped back. Han Yuhyun studied Park Yerim suspiciously and spoke.

“What happened to my brother.”

“He’s probably above the sea by now.”

Seong Hyunjae explained what had happened.

“We’ll need Chief Song Taewon to arrive before we can discuss things in detail, but for now, don’t do anything rash.”

“You’re telling me to just sit and watch?”

“We need to make an official announcement about Han Yujin’s kidnapping and file a protest. Unless you want to see the first war sparked by a Hunter.”

“A war could really happen?”

Park Yerim tilted her head and asked.

“There’s an international treaty that bans the use of Hunters in state-level conflicts. If an S-Rank Hunter were deployed in war, the damage would be catastrophic.”

Above all, it was the mobility and stealth that posed a problem. Without protection from another S-Rank Hunter, an S-Rank Hunter could quietly infiltrate and wipe out the leadership of an enemy nation. That’s why all countries had quickly agreed to the treaty.

“Hunters are only allowed to intervene in matters related to other Hunters. If that rule isn’t upheld, the world would descend into chaos. Of course, there are a few messy countries, but the so-called major powers generally follow the rules well.”

“Then Mister’s a Hunter, so wouldn’t that be okay?”

“It’s still just suspicion at this point.”

Even with evidence, if the act was dismissed as the work of rogue elements and declared unrelated to the Chinese government, direct involvement would be difficult.

“But I heard the Sesung Guild Leader caused a lot of trouble overseas.”

“I was always the victim. It was self-defense. Ah, here he is.”

Beyond the open door, Song Taewon appeared. A deep shadow cast over his hardened face as he looked at the three S-Rank Hunters.