The S-Classes That I Raised

Chapter 655: The Third Team

“What’s going on!?”

At Hangyeol’s scream, the Hunter guarding outside the room kicked the door open and rushed in. Hangyeol quickly slammed a cushion down over something and shook his head.

“No, it’s just a bug. I thought I saw a cockroach!”

“I see. Should I move you to another room?”

“It’s okay. I think I just saw wrong.”

The Hunter looked around the room and nodded.

“If you need anything, please let us know anytime.”

“Yes, thank you.”

Hangyeol bowed politely. As soon as the Hunter stepped out, the child’s smiling face hardened in an instant. Frowning as fiercely as he could, Hangyeol lifted the cushion. Under it–

“Quite rough, aren’t you.”

Seong Hyunjae, who had been flattened, pushed himself up. He was only a little bigger than a cellphone, shrunken down as if he’d turned into a tiny cookie.

“What the heck, why are you here?”

Hangyeol practically growled. Seong Hyunjae brushed off and straightened his wrinkled clothes and looked up at the boy who was trying very hard to scowl but still only managed to look cute.

“Seonghan–”

“Hangyeol.”

Thwump! The cushion came down over Seong Hyunjae again.

“It’s Hangyeol, it’s Hangyeol.”

Swinging the cushion again like he was really swatting a bug, Hangyeol said firmly,

“If you call me that one more time, I’ll open the window and throw you to the pigeons.”

“Han Yujin will be sad.”

“Why does Dad like this kind of thing? I’m always on Dad’s side, but this one thing I just don’t get. I’ve got Uncle, and Uncle Noah, and Aunt Hyunah. There’s also Mister Song, Peace’s dad. So it’s not like we’re short on people; we could do without this one.”

“Even so, I’d say I’m fairly unique.”

“Hmm. Hmph!”

Like he was telling him not to be ridiculous, Hangyeol tilted his chin up. Then, trying his best to act arrogant, he said,

“State your business. If you keep talking nonsense, I’m throwing you out.”

“First, take out a sound–blocking item.”

“Sound–blocking?”

“It should be in your bag, Hangyeol.”

Pulling a sour face but obediently, Hangyeol took a yellow kids’ backpack out of his inventory. The sound–blocking item inside was something Seong Hyunjae had slipped in there long ago.

“…Did something happen to Dad?”

After activating the item, Hangyeol asked seriously. There was no way Seong Hyunjae had come all the way here for no reason. Even if he didn’t like the guy, his worry for Han Yujin weighed heavier.

“As you can see, something did happen to me.”

“That has nothing to do with me.”

“You have the ability to materialize illusions, and that applies to yourself as well. Changing into a boy like you are now is also part of that ability. It’s still immature, so it seems you can only materialize things that are strongly connected to you.”

“…I know that too, you know?”

“Thanks to that, I can at least take shape like this.”

Hangyeol’s round eyes blinked. He wasn’t really following. Seong Hyunjae touched a marble that had been rolling around on the table.

“Humanization of a ‘Seong Hyunjae Fragment.’ The power that constantly resides with you affected me as well, since I’m a matching fragment by your side, Hangyeol–”

Hangyeol took a step back. As the boy moved away from the marble, Seong Hyunjae’s voice cut off and his figure vanished. His round golden eyes scrunched up this way and that.

“So you can’t appear without me around?”

No answer came back. Resting his chin on his folded arms, glaring at the marble, Hangyeol stepped back up to the table. Before long, the tiny Seong Hyunjae appeared again.

“Your default form is small to begin with, and the power given to me is a kind of bonus, so I can’t get any bigger than this.”

“Then why did you come to me looking like that? Where’s Dad?”

“He’s probably having a wonderful time with me right about now. I think I’ll feel a bit left out.”

“…I have no idea what nonsense you’re talking about.”

Acting like he hadn’t heard, Seong Hyunjae let out a regretful sigh. Hangyeol picked the cushion back up.

“Should I go get some cockroach poison?”

“There’s another me inside my body– urk!”

“Stop coming out already! There’s way too many of you! I’m sick of it!”

Hearing that there was another Seong Hyunjae, Hangyeol let out a yell and swung the cushion. When Seong Hyunjae barely dodged it, he got even more annoyed.

“Aren’t you one of them as well, Hangyeol.”

“No! I’m Dad’s son! Just explain already!”

“I handed bodily control over to a remnant of myself from before the regression.”

“So you’re trying to make Dad suffer again!”

“It was a chance to revive the contract with Diarma, lower the wariness of the Transcendents and the Prophet toward me, and pass the plundering research results on to Chief Song Taewon. I also get to take my time examining what’s piled up inside me. I can only go deep inward if I set someone else up on the outside.”

The hand swinging the cushion flinched to a stop. He didn’t really understand the details, but it sounded like they were getting a lot out of it.

“…Then why did you come to me.”

“There are things I need to do and things I need to check. The only issue is that you’re a little too young, Hangyeol.”

“I’m a big brother now.”

Straightening both shoulders, Hangyeol said,

“I wasn’t exactly that little to begin with.”

“So you got a younger sibling in the meantime?”

“A really cute one. And they said there’s even another one.”

At the proud words, Seong Hyunjae tilted his head slightly.

“Doesn’t sound like a simple monster.”

“Yeah. They’re similar to me. Byeol still can’t stay in human form for very long, I think. Maybe because, unlike me, they only have a monster magic stone inside them.”

In Hangyeol’s case, the magic stone of the Transcendent Diarma also contained a fragment of Seong Hyunjae. So his foundation was quite far from that of an ordinary monster. Han Seol likewise was based on a dragon close to a Transcendent and possessing intellect, and had absorbed Han Yuhyun’s blood. Han Byeol, on the other hand, was a beast born solely from monster magic stones.

“…As expected, Han Yujin is…”

At Seong Hyunjae’s murmur, Hangyeol frowned like, What now.

“Why? What now?”

“The difference between monsters and humans is language and culture. Both originate from the Source, but monsters are closer to beasts. There are individuals with intelligence on par with humans, but there has never been a monster that had language and created a civilization.”

High–rank monsters’ intelligence was by no means low. There were monsters that fought more cleverly than humans. However, a speaking monster had yet to be discovered. Interpretation items also couldn’t translate monster cries.

“That’s probably also the standard for distinguishing sapient beings. And even for Transcendents, it’s presumed extremely difficult to create a complete, independent sapient being by means other than natural reproduction. Even Diarma’s strongest monster, Lautitars, King of the Venom and Curse Dragonkin, wasn’t sapient.”

“Dad’s trait is that, though.”

Unconsciously, Hangyeol swallowed dryly and said,

“And Grace, the one Mister Myungwoo made, sometimes talks too, they say.”

“I heard Grace was also from a Transcendent’s magic stone. But the one you just mentioned, you said their name was Byeol?”

“…One of the magic stones Byeol used to make themself was one Mister Myungwoo gave them, so I guess that must’ve been a Transcendent!”

“Most Transcendents have lost their worlds and their races.”

The last of their kind. Most of them were.

“There are probably many who keep magic stones of races that never made it to Transcendent level. Even aside from that, it’s a power people can’t help but covet.”

A power that could be said to be closer to the Source than that of any Transcendent with the ability to create.

Seong Hyunjae recalled the night of the wedding. The Crescent Moon had dwelled in Han Yujin’s body. Had she really not noticed anything? Or had she perhaps discovered another possibility and withdrawn willingly.

“Don’t say things you’re not even sure about.”

Hangyeol’s eyes darkened coldly.

“The base magic stone is what matters. We don’t know if Byeol’s stones were from ordinary monsters or from people who ended up with stones.”

“A monster could become sapient as well if it grew for a long enough time. I think Peace will be able to talk before long.”

“Peace can even use a cell phone.”

“Even so, there’s no harm in being careful.”

“…That’s true. How do I get in touch with Dad.”

He wasn’t answering his phone either, and Hangyeol’s face crumpled.

“Han Yujin’s not the type to go around talking about it easily. In any case, do you have a necklace–type item?”

Seong Hyunjae put his hand on the marble as he spoke. Sparks of current jumped lightly and the marble cracked with a zzt–zzt sound.

“You can use skills?”

“To some extent.”

Condensed golden mana flowed out from inside the marble. Hangyeol took a necklace out of his inventory. It was an anti–lost–child necklace Han Yujin had asked Myungwoo to make.

“Will this do?”

“Hunter Yu Myungwoo’s craftsmanship, is it.”

A round metal pendant had a phone number and name engraved on it. Hangyeol was smart, but just in case, he’d been given it. Seong Hyunjae pushed his own mana, his fragment, into the pendant. Feeling a little uneasy, Hangyeol put the necklace around his neck.

“Lend me your phone.”

“…What are you going to do?”

“Make a call.”

“Don’t look at anything else.”

Seong Hyunjae’s hand tapped at the screen, opening the contact list. Dad, Uncle, Aunt, Peace, and other names appeared. When he tapped one of them and tried to change the name, Hangyeol tried to shove him aside.

“No!”

“I thought we were close now.”

“We’re not.”

“I like you, Hangyeol.”

“I don’t like you.”

After cutting him off bluntly, Hangyeol sneaked a glance at his reaction. He still felt a tiny twinge of guilt since the other had said he liked him first.

“…Make the call, hurry.”

Seong Hyunjae called the Sesung Guild and asked them to connect him somewhere. And after a little while–

“Hello, Jini’s son!”

Hwang Rim arrived at the hotel. He stepped into the room, greeted the horrified–looking Hangyeol, and looked around.

“I heard the Sesung Guild Leader called for me. Cute little prince, where’s Dad No. 2?”

“I only have one dad!”

“Prince, even if it’s not true you should insist it is. Then Sesung legally becomes yours. Jini would like that too.”

“E–even so, it’s not.”

Hangyeol grumbled.

“And it’s not like I’d get it right away.”

“True, the Sesung Guild Leader will probably live a lo–ong time. Or the world will completely collapse before then and it won’t matter. I should start preparing for the apocalypse too, but the dog I was raising ran away from home, and because of my contract I can’t even play spectator.”

“You mean your contract with the Puppeteer.”

Muttering to himself, Hwang Rim turned back to look at Hangyeol in surprise. At some point, the tiny Seong Hyunjae had settled on his shoulder.

“Oh my. You two really are identical. Your presences are so mixed together it’s hard to tell you apart.”

“It’s not really my body. And for the record, I’m the one temporarily fostering the dog.”

“Be careful. He’s a bit feisty since he hasn’t been neutered yet. He especially likes to nip at Jini.”

Dog? Hangyeol tilted his head. Seong Hyunjae lightly tapped his lips in Hwang Rim’s direction.

“Yes, yes, I’ll try to be more proper. Even like this, I’m of the philosophy that children should be protected.”

“I can’t let Hangyeol go around alone, so I’m asking you to be his guardian for a bit.”

“There are lots of other people, though. Isn’t that Mister dangerous?”

“He belongs to the neutral side. At least he’s neither an Unfilial Child nor a Filial Duty Addict.”

Hwang Rim’s contractor was a Transcendent belonging to neither side, the Puppeteer. So compared to other Hunters, who might have had someone secretly reaching out to them, he was actually safer.

“And it seems like information is properly cut off as well.”

“The System Administrator blocked neutral Transcendents who act on their own. Thanks to that, I got marked as an exception too. If it were up to Jini, I’m sure he would’ve chosen me.”

“Then, Hangyeol, pack your things.”

“How presumptuous. I never said I’d accept the job~”

“You’re not planning to pass up a chance like this either, are you. I’ll see that you’re compensated for your trouble.”

Confusion rolled around in Hangyeol’s eyes. Was it really okay to just follow along with Seong Hyunjae and go with Hwang Rim like this. But he didn’t want to just sit around alone. So, slinging on his bag, Hangyeol took the lead out of the room.

“…Wow.”

It was a disaster. The not–so–big house looked like it had undergone a remodeling project in the meantime, with holes blasted through everywhere. Yuhyun’s room and the bathroom had cheerfully lost their doors and walls and were now connected right into the living room.

It was practically a studio now.

A gigantic dragon head filled the kitchen, baring its fangs at me in a wide grin.

“I’m sorry, Yujin!”

Noah bowed his head to me. No, of course this wasn’t Noah’s fault.

–I was curious what it looked like outside!

Liette cried out happily and Yerim pretended to look elsewhere. So you were curious too, Yerim. It is the age for curiosity.

“Hyung.”

Yuhyun, standing guard in front of my room like a gatekeeper, grinned.

“Your room’s safe. I didn’t let anyone in.”

“R–right. Thanks.”

“Han Yuhyun was seriously scary. Even Liette ended up giving up.”

“…So what happened to Liette’s body?”

–The wall just would not break, so I tried complete dragonification and the house stretched to fit my body!

Ah. Yeah.

Is our team really going to be okay like this.

Don’t tell me the only hope for our team is Shishio.