The S-Classes That I Raised

Chapter 453: Grand Opening

– Hrrng.

“Peace, be good.”

I gently soothed a very disgruntled Peace.

“This is just a plushie, and people who like Peace will take it home.”

I’d wondered, and sure enough, Peace didn’t like a plush modeled after himself. He ignored the Yerim doll, so he clearly recognized which was “his.” Smart boy.

“Do you dislike that they made it without a portrait–rights contract?”

“Mister, no matter how clever Peace is, he wouldn’t know that. Isn’t he just jealous? Like dogs.”

Yerim chided me.

“Is that it? There’s no comparison between our Peace and a plush.”

– Kyang.

“Peace is waaaay cuter. Soft fur, warm, smart, sweet. Why is our Peace perfect at everything? There’s not a single unlovable bit!”

– Grrrrrr.

“A plush is just a plush! Peace is the best!”

Peace flipped onto his back on my knees, tail swishing. I scrubbed his exposed belly a little rough, and he parted his mouth in a smiley way and purred a rumble. God, cute. His fluffy forepaws batted the air, fidgeting. Pretty toes, pretty pads, even the little claws popping out are adorable.

– Kyaa–ong.

After I praised him to high heaven for a while, he was satisfied and stopped trying to maul his own plush. Still, I’d better give up on putting a Peace plush at home. I’d planned to display every type; shame.

“They’ve been lining up since yesterday, did you know?”

Min Sohwan came in and said. Lining up?

“To buy the plush, of course?”

“What else would it be.”

“…Why line up. There are a lot.”

The plushies would be on sale continuously, and the photo card was a first–press limited, but I’d heard even the first press was large. You could buy online too.

“S–class Hunters are as popular as celebrities. But they rarely go on TV. Hunter Park Yerim’s easier to see since she went back to school, but the others aren’t.”

“Ah, they’re here to see Yuhyun.”

Worth lining up for. How often do you see the Haeyeon guildmaster in the flesh? Lately he at least commutes, but before moving, his residence was inside the guild — basically impossible to spot. Even now, since the office is next door, he often slips straight from the guild building, and his parking is private.

“He’s much better in person than on TV. Same with Yerim.”

“There’ll be plenty whose main target is Peace and the Director.”

“Right, Peace is line–worthy too. Right, Peace?”

Me? I’m rare, sure. Not much to look at, though.

“Since it gets crowded at commute time, we handed out number slips at 6 a.m. and dispersed them. Hunter Park Yerim, please keep your aura low so non–awakened don’t get startled. It’ll be tiring, but I’m counting on you.”

“Don’t worry, unni. I go to school — this is basic~”

Min Sohwan had checked everything meticulously. She’d barely entered the Hunter world and already handled things like a pro.

“We did a naming contest for the Facility. If they show the contest entry page, they get a 10 percent off coupon and a chance at the prize drawing.”

“A prize drawing too?”

“Once per plush purchased. Prizes include: extra–large Peace plush, a complete photo–card set, regular Peace plushies, Peace & Chirp pajamas, a Chirp–print umbrella, Peace–print wet wipes.”

What? There’s even an umbrella?

“First prize is a golden model of Peace’s paw pad.”

“Gold is supreme,” said Min Sohwan. Gold prices were still high. When dungeons appeared and currencies destabilized, it spiked. If a country truly collapses, a gold lump won’t save you, but it’s better than paper. Unlike other gems replaced by dungeon minerals, gold’s held value.

I kind of want one.

With opening time near, we headed to the shop floor. The store was big already, but we temporarily opened the next unit for a dedicated display space. An enormous Peace plush big enough for adults to ride, an unreleased Chirp plush, and…

“Ugh, what is that…”

A huge poster hung there. From the photos we took last time — Peace and Yuhyun, and me too. I couldn’t lift my head from the embarrassment.

“It’s too big… It’s like a celebrity ad…”

“It basically is. Don’t be so shy, Mister — you were on TV!”

“Own it!” Yerim said, then stood in front of the poster of me and phase–shifted Peace and took a selfie. I’ve seen this before… ah, Japan. Right — better than life–size cutouts on the sidewalk.

“We’ll restrict entry to this side. Photo time is 11 a.m.–12 p.m. and 3 p.m.–4 p.m., two sessions.”

Since he’s a monster, photos with Peace were forbidden.

“The only official event is photo time, so outside that, you can move freely. Still, please stay in the store as much as possible.”

Just for today! said the person from Haeyeon. Then Kim Hayun approached, unable to hide a pleased smile. On her head — ears and horns. So that was…

“A Peace headband.”

“Ah…”

“For staff only.”

Not for sale, huh. Next there’ll be a full mascot suit. Kim Hayun handed me and Yerim the Peace headband with ears and horns. Yerim grabbed hers, gushing it was cute. I feel thirty by lived age; this… But I couldn’t plead age in front of Team Leader Kim, so I put it on.

– Kyang! ?

With the red ears pricked and gold horns sprouting, Peace stared up at me — then bounced with glee.

“Do you like Dad having Peace–like ears?”

– Kyang!

He circled me, thrilled to see me look more like him. Maybe I should wear it sometimes. Wait a sec.

‘…If I mimic a monster cub’s look, would it help with keyword application or growth?’

Like dyeing the same fur color, adding ears, tail, wings. Horned Fox is easy; Pegasus — wings? Water Dragon… tough.

Meanwhile, the store opened. Seeing people pour in made the corners of my mouth lift reflexively. Embarrassed inside, but my body reacted to customers.

“…I feel like I should work, not sit here.”

Yerim seemed to feel the same.

“Feels like a group just came in. We should take orders, run food.”

“We don’t have to anymore.”

But it was my shop too. All around, I heard “Peace is so cute!” Staff were busy checking event pages, explaining, and taking payments. Looked a bit short–handed.

“Peace, stay right here.”

You’ve got many fans; don’t go out. I set Peace on a fluffy pet bed and headed toward the sales counter. The glances that had been stealing peeks at me converged in a rush. So embarrassing.

“Hello~ What are you looking for?”

“I’ll buy one of every Peace plush — can we take pictures with you?”

“Big spender! Sorry, photos are only during photo time. The store is crowded; thanks for understanding~ Instead, I’ll find you the cutest plush. How about this one? Looks just like Peace.”

Especially these rounded cheeks — just like baby Peace.

“The prize–drawing line is here! Please queue behind the giant Chirp plush! If you want photo time, don’t forget to grab a ticket!”

Even though we’d said no photos yet several times, a few in the gallery turned phones toward Peace. Yerim, signing for her fans, conjured a big water droplet and — whoosh — spread it like a barrier before the cameras. The water wall flashed white as it froze, blocking their view.

“No photography!”

People clapped. “Unni, we love you!” I heard. A bunch of kids who looked like elementary schoolers swarmed Yerim, eyes sparkling, and much older folks got autographs too.

“Peaaace!”

There were, of course, many cheering for Peace. It was his plush launch, after all. From behind the line that kept people back, I even heard teary voices saying how cute he was. Every time Peace rolled, shifted, wagged his tail, or pricked his ears, it was, Look at that, oh no, too cute — on repeat.

“Please proceed to the exit in order!”

Since they wouldn’t budge from watching Peace, I moved in to guide them out. Seeing me, Peace sprang up with a “kyang.” A cheer erupted. I know he’s cute, but if you keep blocking here, others can’t come in.

I gestured for space, and the murmuring suddenly died down. The people around Peace turned, gasped, and stepped aside.

“Why are you standing. Sit.”

It was Yuhyun, late because of work. When he smiled at me, soft whispers leaked everywhere. The vibe was completely different from when they looked at Yerim or Peace.

“It’s my shop too. You’re earlier than I thought.”

“Yeah. Finished fast.”

“Isn’t it just a few photos?” he said, steering me inside. He pulled out a chair at a table for me, whispering for me not to stand too long.

“Hunter Hoyeon’s processing is done, so we can operate tomorrow.”

“Really? What about the others?”

“A few more days, but no issues. Hoyeon’s family got entry approval with him.”

If it were just Mr. Hoyeon, it would’ve been faster, but he wanted to bring his family at the same time, so it was a bit delayed.

“It’s best if the fact we took an A–grade healer from a foreign military doesn’t get out, so we’ll disguise him as Korean.”

Regardless of circumstances, he’d been a Hunter in the Chinese military. Even if it’s a fig leaf, better to hide it. We’d treat my leg first, keep him out of sight for a while, then announce him as a newly awakened Korean A–grade healer — with all personal info masked for “security.”

“I hope the treatment goes well… You can’t freely use potion or healing skills.”

Sitting beside me, Yuhyun sounded worried. And the place was still quiet. Not silent, but compared to before, it could have been a classroom during a lesson.

“Don’t worry. It’s a leg, not a heart.”

Worst case, you cut. My life’s not at stake.

Thankfully, after a bit, that bucket–of–cold–water quiet loosened into bustle again. Around when the extra–large Peace plush winner got to take a special photo with Peace and about half the plush stock was gone—

“Unni! I love you!”

“I’ve been a fan since the national team!”

Suddenly the outside got noisy. Through the murmuring crowd, a striking head of red hair appeared. Moon Hyunah. She strode in and set a congratulatory plant down with a thunk.

“Hi, hyung.”

“Welcome, Ms. Hyunah!”

“Hi, Hyunah–unni!”

“Yeah, Yerim. Cute headband. Isn’t the Young Master wearing one?”

I’d tried to stick one on him, but I got shut down — image management for the guildmaster.

“Shouldn’t you hold a formal opening for the Facility too, not just the shop? I heard it got named.”

“Bit late when we’ve been open for ages.”

“I heard the news.”

Moon Hyunah leaned closer and spoke low.

“Haeyeon’s healer. That your ‘good news’?”

“Sharp as ever. Yes, precisely. Barring mishaps, MKC’s healer is off Haeyeon’s hands.”

At my words, the corners of Moon Hyunah’s mouth curled up.

“That’s enough.”

“Even without your help?”

“No problem. Sounds like you pulled another one off, hyung. Right?”

“Mm, yeah. Something like that.”

Her face was too close. I reflexively leaned back; she smiled brilliantly — enough to make me stare blankly for a beat. She tapped my shoulder and straightened.

“Your ears are red.”

“No, that’s—”

“Kidding.”

What?

“Do you like me, hyung?”

“Of course I like you. I mean — Ms. Hyunah is very, uh, attractive. That’s all. Honestly.”

Truly. Moon Hyunah laughed heartily, and Yuhyun and Yerim chimed in: “Hyung, what about me?” “Mister, what about me?” You two, obviously too.

And then someone who never loses in the “born great” department showed up. I wondered why he was late.

“Congratulations on the opening, Director Han.”

“The VIP room is perfectly prepared,” Seong Hyunjae murmured.

With a far flashier photo time than planned and the Peace plush launch event wrapped up safe and sound the next day, I quietly headed to the Sesung Hospital.