The S-Classes That I Raised

Chapter 602: Where Am I? (2)

‘…Hunters and the oil crowd really don’t get along.’

Oil–rich countries swinging their oil money around, and a brand–new energy provider that can replace oil. There’s no way that relationship ever ends up friendly. To be precise, it’s the oil–money side that keeps wanting to swing the knife first. They’ve also poured a ton of lobbying money into claiming magic–stone energy isn’t proven safe, so the conversion rate to magic–stone energy in the U.S. is surprisingly low. A big reason is that America itself is one of the major oil producers. Korea, on the other hand, only produces a pitiful amount of oil, so we’ve been able to switch over relatively quickly.

I quickly used Promising Talent. A–rank, B–rank, B–rank, E–rank, unawakened. The moment I checked them, the signal hit.

“Ugh…”

A headache slammed into me from mana–shortage. I staggered, and a few of them panicked. I took advantage of that and shouted quickly.

“My mana very small! I want earring, mana buff please. Uuugh, my head… My passive skill, mana many eat! Mana shock!”

Roughly translated: my mana pool is tiny, and my always–on skill eats up so much mana that I can’t even live normally, so hand over my earring. Maybe they sort of understood, because they started talking in a language I couldn’t follow. One of the men who had brought me here opened a box sitting off to the side. The items they’d taken from me were inside. Thank God, safe and sound.

“Earring stat small. Barrier only B–class. I no use barrier.”

You guys have an A–rank anyway. And a B–rank barrier isn’t going to help me escape that much. I staggered and gave them the most desperate eyes I could muster, and they held the earring up to my ear. At least I’d recovered the earring. The Lynx set was obviously gear at a glance, so the odds of getting that back were near zero.

‘Only Myungwoo or I could even appraise Grace, back then.’

And it’s never been made public, so I could probably pass it off as a normal piece of jewelry. There’s no way there’s a Hunter here sensitive enough to feel Grace’s mana. So then…

“My…”

How do I say this. If I just call it a gemstone, they won’t hand it over easily. Important… keepsake? How do you say keepsake in English. No idea. Then maybe say it’s from a lover… Lover, what was that in English again. Girlfriend? Calling it a girlfriend present feels weak. Fiancée sounds more serious… What’s “engagement” in English again. Forget it.

“Wedding bracelet!”

They’d get the gist.

“Blue diamond bracelet, my wedding bracelet. Come back me please… very important.”

“…Wedding?”

“Yes! My… fiancée present!”

Yeah, I’m pretty sure people say fiancée. Anyway, I told them it was important and “just jewelry”, and looked at the men in the headscarves with pleading eyes. They seemed to be the clients here, so they probably had the real decision–making power.

“I heard Hunter Han Yujin is single.”

The unawakened guy spoke pretty fluent Korean. Damn it, if you had an interpreter you could’ve said so earlier instead of making me embarrass myself. The back of my neck burned, but I answered shamelessly.

“She’s my fiancée, but she doesn’t speak English very well. Also, my jacket, gloves, boots, and belt are all bound exclusively to me, so could you return them? I won’t wear them. No one but me can even use them, so they’re worthless to anyone else. If those men demand payment, I’ll repay it.”

If I could access my inventory, I could pay in magic stones right now. Interpreter Sanchez quietly studied me. He had the same general ethnic look as the awakened guys around us, but his name sounded like it came from somewhere else. Not that I’m an expert.

“If you cooperate, we’ll make things as comfortable for you as we can.”

“Then please let me make one phone call.”

“We’ll return the bracelet first.”

They set Grace on the table and untied my arms. My hands were still wrapped up, though. Still, they retied my wrists in front instead of behind my back, and they clasped Grace around my wrist. Much better. While they did that, the A–rank in the headscarf handed a small pouch to the men who had brought me here. Faint mana leaked from it – magic stones, most likely.

‘My senses have gotten sharper.’

As long as it stayed within what my body could handle. Next, they handed me a length of cloth to wrap around my body and a veil that covered everything except my eyes. There was a word for this… I’d heard it before.

“Hold on, this looks like it’d be hot.”

“The air is dry, so you’ll be fine. Try not to show your face, and keep your voice down. Many people are after Hunter Han Yujin.”

Sanchez said it like he couldn’t quite understand it himself. Apparently there were several S–rank Hunters overreacting for what should’ve just been greed over Monster Mounts breeding. They were probably the ones who remembered my regression. Until I had a proper grasp of the situation, it would be better to keep my head down.

I obediently put on whatever they draped over me. The cloth was loose enough that even with Gyeol tucked against my chest, he barely showed. When I calmly followed them outside, an open–top jeep was waiting. The A–rank, a B–rank, and the interpreter got into the same vehicle as me, and the remaining two took another car.

The surroundings were pretty barren. A boxy building stood on bare, roadless dirt. In this completely unfamiliar landscape, I quietly asked the interpreter sitting beside me.

“Where are we?”

“Africa.”

“…Excuse me?”

Why Africa all of a sudden? I thought it’d be somewhere like an Arab country or Iran. Africa… I didn’t know much about it. Geumdong’s home dungeon had been in Central Africa. Whether it was before or after dungeons appeared, the public safety wouldn’t be great, high–rank dungeons and Hunter outflow would be serious… and…

‘Huh?’

Up ahead, people were gathering. Adults and kids, each one holding some kind of weapon. I checked a few of them – E– to F–rank awakened. In the middle of the crowd of dozens, a dungeon gate glowed red.

“Wait, that dungeon’s about to break!”

“Yes, it looks that way.”

The interpreter answered calmly. No one around us seemed nervous at all. If anything, more people were grinning and excited. I couldn’t understand what they were saying, but excited voices rose here and there.

“To avoid getting caught in it and damaging the car, we’ll stop here for a bit before moving on.”

The interpreter spoke. I straightened up and looked at the people crowded around the gate.

“It’s probably a low–rank dungeon, F– or E–rank.”

“Even if it’s low–rank, it’s still dangerous.”

“Here, a low–rank Dungeon Break is a festival and a blessing.”

“…A festival?”

“Yes. Low–rank dungeon monsters often aren’t poisonous. You can eat them without any special processing.”

“…Ah.”

Now that he mentioned it, there were quite a few dungeon monsters that were edible. In that Japanese dungeon and in Solemnise, they’d eaten monster meat. But a Dungeon Break…

“Wooooaaah!”

The dungeon burst. People cheered and leveled their weapons.

– Kueeek!

Monsters that looked like boars with cow horns poured out. For F–rank monsters, they were pretty big, but they were slow. Three or four people swarmed each boar and swung their weapons. There were some dangerous moments, but they largely brought them down without major injuries.

Yeah, it was a hunt. Like hunting ordinary game rather than monsters. Dozens of Hunters piled in, and the monsters were cleared in no time. Once all the normal monsters were dead, the dungeon began to glow again beyond the stacked corpses.

“Aisa!”

“Aisa!”

Amid the shouting, one Hunter stepped forward. A D–rank Hunter. From the dungeon gate emerged the boss monster, a massive red bull, and the Hunter, Aisa, charged with a spear in hand. Several Hunters skillfully cast support skills on her.

– Kuwuugh!

Aisa’s spear pierced the bull’s neck in a single blow. Thud, the huge body collapsed, and the dungeon shifted to a blue glow. Aisa thrust her spear toward the sky with all her might, and another roar of cheers went up. With the hunt over, people chattered noisily as they began to process the game. Hands peeled hides and cut meat from the carcasses, and despite the overpowering stench of blood, the scene felt strangely peaceful.

“Just one low–rank dungeon like that near a village is enough to keep them from ever going hungry.”

The engine started up again. Even as I sat back down, I kept watching the people happily breaking down their food.

“It’s safer than going into a dungeon to hunt, so everyone eagerly waits for the Dungeon Breaks. Unlike in Korea, hunting monsters like that doesn’t really cause any damage here.”

In a developed city, roads, infrastructure, and buildings would be wrecked, so there’s no way you could allow it. The jeep jolted forward, kicking up dust. The cheerful voices gradually grew distant. But that scene stayed burned into my mind.

Even with the world changed, everyone is just living their lives in their own way. A Dungeon Break, even a low–rank one, is dangerous and something you’re supposed to stop as an emergency – yet under the same sky there are people who treat it as a festival.

I felt something I couldn’t quite put into words. Maybe I was getting the tiniest glimpse of that man’s feelings – the guy who kept on living even as he was steeped in the boredom of countless repeating worlds.

“Dungeons are basically giant lumps of resources. You can’t farm that land, but you can still hunt and forage.”

“…Right. You can bring out water and lumber, too.”

Thinking about it, I started wondering if it would have been more profitable to leave that old lake dungeon alone instead of clearing it. It had just spewed out water with no real monsters. It didn’t seem toxic either. For all I knew, it might’ve been pristine, class 1 drinking water. What a waste.

The car kept driving over what barely qualified as a road. Even knowing we were in Africa, I still had no idea where, exactly. There weren’t even any people around anymore – even if they let me go right now, I’d end up crawling back before long. No map, no sense of direction, a car but nowhere to go; I’d just drive till I ran out of gas and get stranded. And a lion or an elephant could jump out at any moment.

“I’ve always wondered – an elephant’s still stronger than low–rank monsters, right?”

“Sometimes F–rank monsters that escape get eaten by packs of predators. Elephants go without saying.”

Mid–rank monsters have such strong mana protection that normal attacks don’t do anything, of course. We chatted a bit, and I slipped in another question about exactly where we were, but he didn’t tell me. Even if I knew the country, it’d still be hard to run away.

“Arab? You’re from that side of the world, right? I don’t know why you’re in Africa, though.”

“There are Arabic–speaking Arabs living in North Africa.”

What? First I’d heard of it. I’d never cared much about world geography, and Africa was even more of a blank spot… Sanchez kindly explained that Egypt is in Africa, with the Mediterranean Sea to the north, and if you cross the Red Sea next to it, you reach Saudi Arabia. The Mediterranean… wasn’t France somewhere around there? If I got to France, it’d be easier to contact Noah. But I only had a car in my drawer, no boat. Should’ve stored a little boat, too.

After we’d driven for a while, I saw helicopters waiting.

“I’ll cover your eyes for a moment.”

They covered even the last exposed part of me, my eyes. Did they think I could figure out our position by looking down from the helicopter? I wouldn’t know even if I saw it.

‘I wonder if that punk Hamin can find me.’

Once upon a time, maybe, but these days I keep losing my belongings. I’ve changed my phone number, my Hunter license isn’t even a year old yet, and I can’t remember the last time I actually carried my ID card. Even if someone did locate me, it’d take a long time to get to Africa.

The helicopter blades went quiet and someone lifted me up. After we got off the chopper and walked a bit, the air turned pleasantly cool. The blindfold came off, and the room came into view.

‘Mansion? Hotel?’

Either way, it was a foreign–style but clean and nicely furnished sitting room. Sanchez took off the stifling veil and cloth and gestured for me to sit. Gyeol wriggled out of the fabric, shuddering like he’d been suffocating, then settled on my shoulder.

“Would you like something to drink?”

“Yes. Juice, please.”

I didn’t need it, it was for Gyeol. My hands were tied, so I couldn’t drink it myself anyway. Sanchez left the room, and Gyeol whispered into my ear.

– That’s a relief, Dad. He looks like he’s rich.

“A relief? Do you like rich people, Gyeol?”

– If we’re going to be stuck as captives anyway, better with a rich guy. The food will taste good, and the bed will be soft. He’ll take good care of you!

He wasn’t wrong. I wondered what the food was like around here. I was starting to crave Korean food. It was kimchi–making season, too, so my mind naturally went to crisp fresh kimchi and slices of boiled pork. If nothing had happened, I’d probably have bought some pre–salted cabbage and made a small batch of kimchi myself this year. And that bastard Chatterbox just had to throw his party during kimchi season. Yerim would’ve definitely loved boiled pork.

‘No, a little bit wouldn’t be enough. If I’m doing it, I should make a lot and send some over to the building. If Myungwoo and I made it together, it’d taste amazing. Would Noah want to take some kimchi too? I should pack some for that punk Hamin as well, and Minui probably does kimchi–making at home with his family… Gyeonghoon said he doesn’t make his own kimchi. I absolutely have to set aside plenty for Chief Song. Does Seong Hyunjae eat kimchi?’

Before any of that, I’m in Africa right now. Send me home. And it’s not even a month until my little brother’s birthday. I need to be back by around the 20th if I want to prep the party. Year–end is the busiest time! I’ve got more people than ever to send New Year’s cards to this year, and once the new year hits, Lunar New Year isn’t far behind.

“I want to go home.”

– I wanna go home too.

“Then let Dad just a little bit─”

– Uncle’s coming soon. I can wait.

R–right. Like Gyeol said, Yuhyun would find me soon enough. Sanchez came back carrying a glass of juice. He set the cup on the table and untied my hands.

“If you use your inventory, we’ll tie you up again. And we’ll take that Fairy Dragon away.”

“Yeah, yeah. Gyeol, want some juice?”

I tilted the cup toward Gyeol. There was no way I could break out alone without getting the Lynx set back. I at least needed the jacket to use my stealth skill. With odds this high that an S–rank Hunter was around, my safest bet would be to either get a stealth buff or transform into Delroux.

“Can I use a phone or a tablet PC? I just want to look something up. I’m curious how the party ended.”

“I’ll turn on the TV for you instead.”

A huge TV slid out from one wall. Sanchez tuned it to a Korean Hunter news channel. A burning building filled the screen. What the… It didn’t look like Korea.

[At 7 a.m. Korea time today, Haeyeon Guild Leader Hunter Han Yuhyun attacked an anti–Hunter organization that had terrorized the New York Hunter Association in the United States.]

…Yuhyun? The logo of an American network appeared, and on the screen, Yuhyun was shown grinding someone’s neck into the floor with his foot. Embers scattered around my little brother as his cold gaze swept the area. The sword in his hand was the one he’d brought back from Japan─ Wait, Ruler’s Sword. I was supposed to return that!

“You said this morning – how many hours ago is that? Did I pass out for a long time?”

No way. A bad feeling crawled up my spine.

“Since Chatterbox’s party, I mean. From the last event of the party, after I beat the Sesung Guild Leader – how much time has passed since then?”

“The party…”

“Chatterbox?” Sanchez muttered, then answered.

“Hunter Han Yujin was found just yesterday. The party was… about five days ago.”

What? Five days? I shot to my feet without thinking. Yuhyun!

[On the fifth day since Breeding Facility Director Han Yujin went missing, the Korean Hunter Association is cooperating with the U.S. government and the American Hunter Association to─]

“Phone, please, just let me make one call!”

Then what day is it today?! The 10th? The 9th? I couldn’t even pull the date to mind. I stomped my foot in panic, and suddenly a breaking–news ticker flashed across the bottom of the screen.

[Sesung Guild Leader Seong Hyunjae, wedding scheduled for January 1.]

…Huh? I rubbed my eyes without thinking. Excuse me? What? Gyeol and I both dropped our jaws.