The S-Classes That I Raised

Chapter 644: My Story

He stayed completely calm, like even if I grabbed him by the collar and shook him, or ripped out his hair by the roots, it wouldn’t affect him in the slightest. To be fair, that was true. He was already the type of person who almost never wavered, and now it was even worse. Maybe I should’ve said I’d just buzz his head instead of going for the collar. Even Mr. Perfect over there would probably want to dodge that at least a little. Then I’d get official certification from the Sesung Guildmaster on the cut hair and toss it up on the auction site. Hair from that guy would go for a ridiculous price. Freshly plucked, premium Seong Hyunjae hair. Not pesticide–free, organic, wild–grown or anything like that, but forcibly transcended under the Crescent Moon label.

I was thinking about pretending to go for his collar and then suddenly grabbing his hair and shaking him when I started toward Seong Hyunjae. But before I could—

“Hyung, wait.”

Yuhyun stopped me, and Chief Song stepped in front of Seong Hyunjae.

“Don’t approach recklessly.”

“Chief Song?”

“He’s not the usual Sesung guildmaster.”

Maybe it was thanks to the shared senses, but Song Taewon sounded certain.

“At first, because Hunter Seong Hyunjae’s attitude toward Han Yujin was similar to half a year ago, I thought there was something wrong with his memory.”

He glanced back at Seong Hyunjae.

“But he was reading my movements much more precisely than he does now. At the same time, I could feel that he was slightly underestimating my stats.”

“You’re the same as ever too, Song Taewon.”

Seong Hyunjae’s lips curved into a smile. Song Taewon’s eyebrows drew together in a puzzled frown.

“…Are you Hunter Seong Hyunjae from before the regression?”

“Should I applaud? I couldn’t be more delighted that you recognized it that accurately.”

It sounded like he was mocking him, but it also felt honest. He was glad to see him… he had to be. From the current Seong Hyunjae’s point of view, Song Taewon would be like someone who’d died and come back. The way he looked at Song Taewon seemed almost tender.

“You’re healthier than the last time I saw you, no parts missing anywhere. You feel a bit softer too– Song Taewon, are you by any chance in a relationship?”

“No.”

“So you haven’t, since the regression. Your wedding was… quite fun.”

He said it like he missed it. …What? Wait.

“Chief Song, you got married?!”

What the hell, to who? Who was the partner? Someone I know, or one of the Special Office hunters? With his personality, I couldn’t see him marrying a non–awakened person or a low–rank hunter. Don’t tell me it was Hyunah? Chief Song let out a short sigh and looked at me.

“No, Han Yujin.”

“…Huh? I wasn’t thinking anything.”

“Of course it was a joke. Just like Hunter Moon Hyunah.”

O–of course I figured that! Song Taewon turned back to Seong Hyunjae, his expression going stiff again.

“State your purpose.”

“I wanted to say a final goodbye to the people I lost.”

Seong Hyunjae’s voice was gentle, in sharp contrast to Song Taewon’s. I at least had been able to send postcards, but Chief Song probably hadn’t had the chance to properly visit a grave even once. No wonder it made his insides burn–

“State your purpose.”

Chief Song asked again, coldly, as if to say he wasn’t buying that crap. Well, yeah… there’s no way Seong Hyunjae would show up like this just to say goodbye. It wasn’t even his original self, but something layered over him, which made it even more of a no–go. Even if the current Seong Hyunjae offered to give up his place, wouldn’t he just find it petty and disgusting and refuse? Though he might be willing to take it by force.

“Cold as ever. The Haeyeon guildmaster is looking well too. The last time I saw him, the situation was similar to now. About two weeks before Song Taewon died, I think. He warned me not to touch his drunk hyung anymore, like he was hiding him away.”

“…Yuhyun did? Himself?”

“There aren’t many people who can stand in front of the Sesung guildmaster. Back then, his hand holding up Han Yujin was so awkward and shaky.”

Seong Hyunjae looked between me and Yuhyun, his eyes smiling.

“It’s natural now.”

Without thinking, I glanced back at Yuhyun. There was a shadow over his face. Hearing about the time before the regression was bound to feel uncomfortable.

“After Chief Song died, you left Korea. Did you really never come back, not even once? …Did you really have to leave alone?”

He’d abandoned not just Chief Song’s grave, but the entire Sesung Guild. Even someone who only cared about himself wouldn’t have been completely indifferent to his guild. He couldn’t have had absolutely no lingering attachment.

“I can understand leaving me behind, but the Sesung guild members followed you despite everything. Soyeong seemed to like you in her own way too. And Vantes and Evelyn…”

“Are you saying the current Hunter Miller likes me?”

Seong Hyunjae sounded genuinely surprised. Uh, well.

“Of course. She even came all the way to Korea.”

If she came all the way to Korea and treated him like her boss, there had to be at least some goodwill. Anyway, Soyeong had said she liked his face, so Evelyn might feel the same. At the very least, she probably liked the salary and items coming from the guildmaster.

“And even so, you went off alone. You could’ve just holed up at home.”

Instead he ran away from home to go herd sheep in some random place and send those damn postcards. My chest twisted again. Erasing people’s memories and then bolting to Switzerland? Seriously? No matter how many times I thought about it, it pissed me off.

“I had to unwrap the gift I got from Song Taewon.”

Predation. There was no way he’d just leave that power untouched.

“It was power meant to devour me, so it could easily have spread beyond that. I couldn’t exactly dig up a grave I’d put so much effort into. Even if it was empty.”

“…So it was for everyone’s safety?”

“And also for the things I’d cultivated.”

For a moment, his golden eyes went cold. A sharp smile formed inside them.

“Let’s say I’d seen enough of watching them get trampled.”

He tapped a finger lightly against his temple.

“Even if the memories were erased, the feelings remained.”

The feelings toward the ones who trampled Seong Hyunjae, and what he’d built up.

“Crescent Moon, then.”

“She was never going to leave me alone if I tried to break away. Whether she cut the contract or had me swallowed by the shadow.”

“…The latter really doesn’t suit you, Mr. Seong.”

If Seong Hyunjae got his hands on Predation, it was basically suicide. Instead of answering, he tilted his head faintly. No matter what happened to him, he was not the type to voluntarily throw his life away. Just surviving this long proved that. But the moment Crescent Moon filled out into a full moon through him, he would stop being himself.

For someone who loved himself, what could be more horrifying than that?

“Wait, then.”

He had gone looking for traces of himself from before the regression. And then they got layered on. The wedding venue was the Alps, and the place he’d stayed before the regression had also been the Alps. Normally, there shouldn’t have been any trace of the pre–regression left.

“Did Crescent Moon actually show up? In Switzerland, I mean!”

“She used a dungeon break to intervene indirectly. Thanks to that, I’m standing here now.”

“What happened? Huh?”

He smoothed a hand over his collar as he answered.

“Han Yujin, wasn’t the price for victory my collar, not information?”

…So cheap! Fine, I’ll grab your damn collar out of sheer frustration!

“Yuhyun, let go.”

“But Hyung, the current Sesung guildmaster is dangerous.”

“It’s fine, he keeps his promises. Chief Song, don’t worry and move aside for a bit.”

I shook off Yuhyun’s hand and strode forward. Chief Song hesitated for a moment, then obediently stepped back. I walked straight up to Seong Hyunjae. He bent down slightly again. He was still relaxed, calmly baring his neck. Confident that even if he left himself completely open, I couldn’t actually hurt him.

Must be nice, being that smug. I didn’t hesitate and grabbed him by the collar. I yanked with all my strength, but since he’d already bent down to a set height, he didn’t budge an inch. He would never let me cross the line he’d decided on. It might look like I’d gone too far, but in reality it was all within what he allowed.

“Mr. Seong.”

I spoke quietly.

“Like you said, yeah. Maybe it wasn’t my story back then.”

Maybe I really was just an outsider watching from beyond the line, unable to do anything. I didn’t know the details, and in the end, my memories were erased. At best I was a supporting character who appeared briefly and then disappeared.

“But now it’s my story.”

Right now, no matter what anyone says.

“A story where the guy who’s so amazing he erased other people’s memories gets dragged down and shaken by the collar.”

His golden eyes laughed.

“Of course. It’s Han Yujin’s story.”

He sounded like he was praising a kid. I felt a curse rise up my throat.

“Shall I apologize for erasing your memories?”

“With just words?”

“What do you want?”

“Nothing much, something on the level of grabbing your collar.”

“If it’s only that, as much as you like, however you want.”

Yeah? I let go of his collar. And then I threw myself at his head. Even with battle foresight, no way he saw that coming!

“You damn bastard! I’m gonna rip all your hair out!”

“Hyung!”

Look at that attitude, look at it! He really thinks he’s the only person that matters in the world! I grabbed his faded hair with both hands and hung on. Damn S–class, even his hair roots were tough. Not just Yuhyun but even Chief Song looked flustered. Even Seong Hyunjae did. From some distance away I heard Myungwoo’s “Yujin…” drifting over.

“Wait–”

“Wait, my ass! I’m hanging on all night until it comes out!”

Wow, this hair is seriously tough! Why isn’t even a single strand coming loose?

“Hey! It’s not my story? It’s not? ‘Might not have been’? I take it back! It was my story then, it’s my story now, and it’s still going on!”

If everything from before the regression had just been erased, I wouldn’t be here doing this! In the end, I’m here now because back then happened.

“Hyung! You might get hurt! I’ll cut it for you, okay?”

“Han Yujin, your fingers could get sliced by the hair. You should use a weapon instead!”

“Yujin, want me to make scissors that work even on S–class hair? So you can cut it easily?”

“Hold on, hold on! I just need to pull one strand!”

I planted my feet against his shoulders and chest and yanked his hair with all my strength. He grabbed my waist, but maybe because he’d promised, he didn’t forcibly pull me off.

“If it’s someone else’s story, then why the hell am I going through all this! From start to finish it’s my story! It’s your story, but it’s my story at the same time! You think you’re the only one living in this world? Huh? It’s mine, and I’m not letting anyone take it anymore! No, give it back!”

“Calm down, Han Yujin. I don’t think you’re going to manage to pull any out.”

“Who told you to awaken as S–class! If you were F–class I would’ve ripped it all out and been done already!”

“Hyung! Your fingers are bleeding!”

I’d wound the hair around my fingers and tugged, so I’d ended up with a few small cuts. Annoyingly tough! Then again, I guess if it wasn’t, in the middle of a dungeon raid a monster might grab his hair and rip it out in clumps.

“I’m letting this slide because everyone would worry about me otherwise!”

I finally let go of his hair and climbed down. I did feel a bit better. Yuhyun immediately grabbed my hand to inspect it.

“Even the cuts on your palms got worse!”

“No, see, it doesn’t count because I didn’t manage to pull any out! I still have one try left!”

“Be prepared.”

Seong Hyunjae answered as he roughly smoothed down his ruined hair. Even ripped up like that, it still suited that damn face. Then the hand that had been holding my waist closed lightly around it and released.

“You’re a little smaller, and you’ve lost some muscle.”

“…Well, he worked as a hunter longer than I have.”

Why are you comparing us?

“You look thinner overall, and your waist is softer–”

“Keep your thoughts off my body, please!”

I mean, it’s not like there’s nothing there! I’ve been running around nonstop for over half a year since the regression too! You think muscle just pops up overnight? S–classes, seriously!

“To be honest, Hyung, you really are skinnier now than right before the regression.”

As he healed my hand, Yuhyun spoke worriedly.

“Back then you were average, and you were never that weak physically.”

“Surrounded by high–rank hunters, you only looked small in comparison. From what I remember you were above average.”

Even Chief Song chimed in. Before Myungwoo could join in too, I hurried to defend myself.

“N–no, but my core strength is probably better now…? I just haven’t been doing regular exercise, but do you know how much of a workout it is taking care of the kids?”

“Yujin.”

In the end, Myungwoo opened his mouth too.

“They say regular daily habits are important for your health. In the past week, have you eaten three meals a day at set times?”

“That’s, the time difference! The time difference! We’re in France! And even the water’s different from Korea and everything!”

I babbled excuses while shooting a glare at Seong Hyunjae. Why did he have to say unnecessary crap!

“I still haven’t heard the reason.”

Chief Song spoke to him. Seong Hyunjae gestured for him to come closer. Then he whispered something quietly into his ear. I looked at Yuhyun; he gave a small shake of his head. Even an S–class couldn’t overhear that whisper, apparently.

Chief Song’s expression suddenly hardened. He listened in silence, then let out a sigh.

“I understand, for now.”

“What did he say?”

Seong Hyunjae looked at me and laughed soundlessly.

“If you accept my message, I’ll tell you.”

“I’m good.”

So he doesn’t tell you anything unless you’re on his team. Petty.

[The practice game has ended.]

The message popped up belatedly. So what exactly were we supposed to do now? Were we supposed to call our team members over and have a big brawl or something?