The S-Classes That I Raised

Chapter 503: Seed (1)

“Your little brother is still so prickly.”

“Yerim, do you see anyone else around?”

“Nope, nobody. Should I keep watch?”

Yerim answered without hesitation. Oh dear, I shouldn’t be teaching her this kind of thing. At the words that no one was watching, Yuhyun’s hand moved slightly. The jet-black sword tip pressed against Hwang Rim’s Adam’s apple, and blood faintly seeped out.

“That’s too harsh for an honest merchant.”

Hwang Rim whined while spreading both hands to show he had no intention to attack.

“Too harsh? Do you know how much Mister suffered in China?!”

“That’s even more unfair, little Water Dragon. Little Jin, say something. We had such a good time together.”

He winked with one eye as he said that. Good time, my ass. That bastard didn’t really do anything terrible to me though.

“Just say the word, Hyung.”

Yuhyun said quietly without taking his eyes off Hwang Rim.

“I’ll handle it as quietly as possible. Even if it gets a bit loud, we can just say a monster wandering around crawled in.”

“Save me, Little Jin.”

“Why are you acting weak when you’re the same S-rank? Be confident, merchant.”

“Well, our Little Jin’s little brother is formidable. I thought I was going to drown as soon as I got off the helicopter.”

I felt slightly pleased at his words that it was no joke. At least he has an eye for things, as befits a merchant.

“You talk well. Even if you drown, your tongue will keep floating.”

“A merchant’s virtue.”

“That doesn’t mean I’ll let you off. State your purpose and hand over everything you have. If you let us thoroughly empty your inventory, I’ll spare your life.”

“Can’t we just kill him?”

Yuhyun said with dissatisfaction.

“I don’t like him either, but we need to know what he’s scheming. There’s no way he came just to sell cigarettes.”

As if we’re highway robbers, Hwang Rim rummaged not through his inventory but his pants pocket. Then he pulled out something long. Of course, it didn’t come from his pocket—he was pretending to do magic while taking it from his inventory.

“Right now, I only have something like this.”

“What is that?”

“It’s a horn from a Dry Swamp One-Horned Black Ox. Ground up and eaten, it’s good for virility.”

“Are you even doing quack medicine now?”

“I can’t sell it because I don’t have any. It’s called an aphrodisiac, but it’s precisely a health supplement. Especially excellent for improving weak constitutions. Works well even for non-Awakened.”

At the mention of seeing various effects, Yuhyun’s eyebrows twitched faintly. Yuhyun, you should know that snake oil salesmen will praise even a shriveled dried bellflower root as a cure-all.

“So why the hell are you doing this?”

“I request a quiet meeting with the Dodam Breeding Facility Director. Just the two of us.”

“Bullshit, rejected.”

“Little Jin, I’m getting hurt too. I have a tender heart, you know.”

“So tender even a knife would bounce off it.”

My gaze naturally went to Hwang Rim’s chest. Being an S-rank, this bastard also had an annoyingly good body. So jealous. And honestly, this guy was handsome too. He felt strangely more polished now than in China. Was it because he was discharged? Though it’d be more accurate to say he set fire to the base and deserted.

“…Now that I think about it, what happened with the military? I heard vaguely that the moderate faction gained the upper hand.”

“There was a purge, and the side saying it’s not right to force Hunters into the military gained power. There weren’t many military-affiliated Hunters left to begin with anyway~ The first negotiation with the Murim Alliance went well too.”

That’s good news.

“Why would I mess with you now after all this, Little Jin? I’m just going to pass along one matter and some information.”

That bastard Hwang Rim spoke in an unnecessarily coy voice. It doesn’t suit you. But the word “information” did perk my ears up a bit. That guy must know something about Park Hayul’s side.

“Still, just the two of us is a bit much. Can’t one of Yuhyun or Yerim come along?”

“One’s too young and one’s too fierce. Then how about the government official?”

“Huh? Chief Song?”

“He’s definitely someone you can trust officially. That’s why he also gets called a weird S-rank though.”

What do you mean weird? Anyway, I could certainly trust Chief Song too. Would he still be in the dining hall? Hwang Rim turned around first, and Yuhyun put away his sword despite being displeased.

“Mister seems weak to sturdy bodies.”

“…Huh?”

As we walked down the corridor, Yerim whispered quietly.

“What are you suddenly talking about?”

“Hyunah unnie said so too. That Mister occasionally stares openly, and a hundred percent of the time it’s at arms, so she doesn’t feel bad about it.”

“What, me, when…!”

No, that, I mean—!

“Everyone’s S-rank, so how could they not notice? Even if you look secretly, they’d know.”

“That, no, I…”

“Hyung likes my body too.”

My brother said proudly, and I became even more embarrassed.

“I’m just, jealous…! It’s impossible for me even if I die and wake up again, so it’s like vicarious satisfaction…”

“No, Hyung can too…”

Yuhyun hesitated. He seemed torn between whether to tell a white lie or honestly console me.

“You can improve, at least a little.”

“Right, you were different.”

They must be talking about the me they saw in the Nightmare dungeon. He was better than me, but still not enough to satisfy my eyes. I wish I was about twenty… no, even ten centimeters taller. I glanced at Yuhyun and Yerim on either side of me.

Yuhyun seemed likely to hit 190cm within a year at the latest. Yerim had also grown since I first met her, to the point where I thought she might surpass me before long. Meanwhile, I was… yeah, as expected, no good. Looking at that bastard Hwang Rim’s back as he walked ahead made me even sadder.

‘Still, unexpectedly many Transcendents had ordinary builds.’

Diarma’s human form didn’t make me think of a good body either, and the King of Harmless and Chatterbox, even if those weren’t their true forms, were quite skinny. The Newcomer too, and the Mermaid Queen had an imposing appearance. Oh, that centaur thing too. And the Elder also had broad shoulders when in adult form.

Roughly half and half, maybe. While lost in idle thoughts, we reached the dining hall. Since lunch time had passed, there were few people. Chief Song seemed to be thinking of moving locations soon too, as he was leaving the dining hall when he stopped upon seeing us.

“Hunter Song Taewon.”

At Hwang Rim approaching cheerfully, Song Taewon’s expression hardened faintly. Though he clearly showed he wasn’t pleased, Hwang Rim nonchalantly patted Song Taewon’s shoulder lightly with his hand.

“Could you spare some time? I’d like to have a nice time alone with our Little Jin, but apparently an observer is absolutely necessary.”

At Hwang Rim’s words, Song Taewon looked at me with a reproachful gaze. No, well, you see.

“He said he has something important to discuss.”

“Still, I’m glad you came to find me.”

Chief Song spoke with a slight sigh mixed in.

“I hope you won’t go off alone anymore in the future.”

“Of course, don’t worry.”

The three of us—four including Gyeol—left the building and went all the way to the annex. Upon entering a quiet, spacious reception room, Song Taewon stopped firmly in one spot. It was a position where he could easily survey every corner of the room.

“How much do you know about Park Hayul’s side?”

I asked abruptly as soon as I sat on the sofa. Hwang Rim also sat on the sofa across from me.

“How did you two become acquainted?”

“Originally, Park Hayul was aiming for Han Yujin when they approached him. Not me, but the military.”

“What? Me?”

“He was strangely obsessed with the Breeding Facility Director. Around that time, he was also making contact with MKC.”

And Park Hayul’s agency was also connected to China, he said. Though it had decreased after dungeons and Awakened appeared, there was a time when the Korean entertainment industry actively jumped into the Chinese market.

“He confidently bragged that he’d become close friends with Director Han Yujin.”

That kid Park Hayul… he did keep the secret, but his lips weren’t completely sealed. So thinking there might be something, he poked around while going to China for business anyway. Then he awakened.

“His stats were on the high side, but his skill was useless. Just a bit strong, couldn’t fight properly.”

“Was it that older sister person who rescued him then?”

“Precisely, the military invited a Hunter said to have a special skill because of the Goblin King. That Hunter’s side took Park Hayul as an assistant. Along with rumors that it was because his face was pretty~”

Park Hayul followed that Hunter to America that way, then returned to China in a form cooperating with the military after gaining a new skill. And then he kidnapped me.

“Who was the Hunter who was invited?”

“That’s a secret.”

Hwang Rim raised a finger and brought it to his lips.

“Contractual issues.”

“You’re going to shut your mouth about other things citing contracts too. Should I use a curse-breaking item on you?”

“Then my credibility would hit rock bottom.”

“Wasn’t your credibility already in the negatives from birth?”

At my words, Hwang Rim acted aggrieved. Then he bent his upper body slightly toward me. …I don’t think he was this handsome before.

“Han Yujin.”

“…What?”

“Spill everything to me.”

…What is he saying, suddenly? That bastard Hwang Rim wore an affable smile.

“I’m very worried about you. You’ve had a lot of hard times, right? I’m an S-rank and have wide connections, so I can help.”

No really, why, suddenly? I felt a bit unsettled inside. Hwang Rim got up and walked around the table to sit next to me. He raised his arm and draped it around my shoulders. Gyeol, pushed aside, flapped his wings with dissatisfaction and descended onto my lap.

“I know roughly. About the beings outside.”

“…You do?”

“Must be a headache. There’s even a guy spreading invitations around who’s supposedly close to you, right? Did he approach you with good intentions?”

“That’s…”

“Han Yujin.”

Song Taewon had already approached right next to the sofa. Heavily sunken black eyes looked down at me, at Hwang Rim.

“Right now, Han Yujin’s condition is a bit strange.”

“What?”

“Recall Hwang Rim’s skill.”

His skill… though I’d heard about other people’s skills from Yuhyun, wait a moment. I hurriedly turned off my Fear Resistance skill. Simultaneously, goosebumps rose along my spine. Fuck, crazy!

“Get away from me right now!”

Horrified at myself sitting affectionately close to Hwang Rim, I tried to push him away. That bastard Hwang Rim didn’t budge and instead half-embraced me. Immediately after, Song Taewon’s body tensed with strength.

“Park Hayul’s skill! Damn it, you came here and made contact!”

“Don’t be so disgusted, Little Jin. Just a moment ago you were docile as a lamb.”

“Please release Han Yujin.”

“Government official is quick on the uptake too.”

Hwang Rim’s arms held my upper body firmly. Gyeol frantically pulled and scratched at Hwang Rim’s arm. Of course, not a single scratch mark appeared.

“Hunter Hwang Rim.”

“I’m not even trying to harm him, yet you’re glaring so frighteningly. I must have really gotten on your bad side.”

“Naturally, I’m wary of you. Haven’t you already once kidnapped a Korean with stats equivalent to a non-Awakened?”

Song Taewon’s expression was frozen far more coldly than usual. An S-rank Hunter kidnapping and harming an F-rank. To Chief Song, it would feel like a serious crime he absolutely couldn’t tolerate.

“If you won’t release Han Yujin, I’ll use force.”

“Little Jin, what should we do? You seem to have little value as a hostage. Would your little brother have been better?”

“If it was Yuhyun, your head would already be rolling over there!”

Fuck, what are these arms, logs?! The more I struggled in vain, the colder the air around Song Taewon became. I sent him a look saying it’s fine to just beat this bastard up since I have Grace on!

“Lunar Eclipse, wasn’t it?”

Hwang Rim looked up at Song Taewon and raised the corners of his mouth.

“A shadow created to swallow the moon.”

My movements stopped. Song Taewon also stiffened rigidly. How does he know that?

“Hwang Rim, you!”

“I told you I know too.”

Even so, even the Transcendents didn’t know much about Song Taewon. At most, only Crescent Moon and Young Chaos who’d met him directly might have caught on. The King of Harmless was already dead. So how?

“Don’t tell me you contacted Crescent Moon!”

“Not that side. Though I’ve heard about it.”

Damn it, what the hell is this bastard? Song Taewon, who’d been frozen, gritted his teeth. It wasn’t easy to guess what was going through his mind.

“Please, release Han Yujin.”

“So stiff. You must be curious, about yourself.”

“I don’t care either way.”

Song Taewon stepped one foot forward. At his signs of no longer holding back, Hwang Rim clicked his tongue. Then he took something out of his inventory. At the same time—

“…!”

“Chief Song!”

Song Taewon’s legs buckled powerlessly. He collapsed just like that and thud, fell to his knees.

“What are you doing?!”

“I just incapacitated him temporarily, so don’t make such a fuss. It’s fine.”

“What do you mean fine!”

Since I’d even turned off Fear Resistance, my heart pounded wildly. My whole body felt chilled and my mouth went dry. Gyeol kept looking back and forth between me and Song Taewon, not knowing what to do. But not yet—I mustn’t receive Gyeol’s help yet.

‘What is it?’

I had to find out what was going on. I swallowed dryly several times while trying to stay calm.

“Really, Chief Song won’t be harmed, right?”

“Of course. Then shall we two have a cozy chat now?”

I nodded while looking at Chief Song, who was barely managing not to collapse completely. Right, let’s hear it.