The S-Classes That I Raised

Chapter 664: Sub Team (2)

“From S–rank to SS–rank. That’s the predicted rank of the monsters that will appear.”

Myungwoo’s voice continued.

“This operation is also to adjust dungeon balance after the regression. Not just the Transcendents, but the Source as well isn’t affected by the flow of time in our world.”

The Transcendents remembered everything. Their time hadn’t been rewound.

“So strictly speaking, the original dungeon ranks should be what they were before the regression. But the Unfilial Children’s side has been suppressing them, lowering them to appropriate ranks.”

But the system wasn’t perfectly error–free, which was how Liette and Noah had entered a pre–regression dungeon and earned the Dio Valsesis’s Twin title.

“Since it’s being forcibly held down, if we leave it alone, out–of–grade dungeons may pop up.”

“How frugal of them.”

Seong Hyunjae didn’t bother hiding the sarcasm in his voice. I felt much the same.

“In that case, wouldn’t it be better to have the main team join in as well? Why split us up on purpose?”

“They said they were splitting into an offense team and a defense team, but…”

Myungwoo’s eyes turned to me.

“It’s probably because of you, Yujin. This is dangerous. And the Unfilial Children seem to still intend to protect you, at least for now.”

“…Feels like I’ve got a leash on and I’m being dragged around.”

They’d had us pick the main team first for that exact reason. And among that main team, the first ones called into the room were the people I cared about most. I was sure they’d paid attention to the order, too.

‘But if the monsters cap out at SS–rank, then the main team isn’t in that much danger.’

There was no way the Unfilial Children didn’t know that. And yet they’d still split us, which meant… they obviously wanted me to apply the keyword to the entire sub team.

“The defense will run from sunrise to sunset. As long as your affiliated Hunters are still alive, monsters can’t invade the innermost room of the fortress.”

“So I’m supposed to hole up in there?”

“You’re allowed to go outside and join the fight. But if the temporary system administrator, the King, dies, it’s an automatic loss.”

As Myungwoo spoke, a message window opened in front of me.

[Because of the defeat condition, you can’t use Grace. She won’t actually die.]

Since the current Seong Hyunjae didn’t know much about Grace, he’d sent it as a message so it wouldn’t get exposed.

“If you hold out until sunset, you get 1,000 points. From that, any Hunter injuries or deaths will be subtracted. Injuries to the King also cost points.”

I sneaked a glance at Seong Hyunjae. If I couldn’t use Grace, then I needed to sit quietly and be protected. But Seong Hyunjae was different. How strong was he right now? Even with his long shut–in life, he was probably at least on par with the current Seong Hyunjae.

…Which was why that guy had taken his body.

“The monsters you kill will be converted into points and sent to the King. With those points, the King can support the Hunters.”

A points and support window appeared. There were all kinds of potions, plus water and food. No weapons or gear, but there was a wide variety of consumable items at a wide range of prices. There was also support for repairing the fortress and building traps.

‘…Of course the good stuff is expensive.’

Do we sit tight and save up, or spend as we go.

After finishing his explanation of the rules, Myungwoo fell silent and just looked at me. My insides were starting to feel hot. A slow boil of emotions I couldn’t neatly put into words bubbled up. If I could, I wanted to just flip the whole damn table.

“Be careful. That’s all I can say right now.”

Myungwoo’s figure faded, and Seong Hyunjae left as well.

“…It’s easier on the mind when the Filial Duty Addicts are just the enemy and the line’s clean.”

As it was, everyone had their own wants, yanking other people’s arms and legs this way and that. Sure, the world was never really cleanly divided in black and white, but still.

I manipulated the system and returned to the fortress. In the dark pre–dawn sky, a moon mottled with green blotches was hanging. The initial fortress settings didn’t cost any points, so I started by turning on the lights. Generating electricity was a hassle, so torches flared to life along the walls here and there.

[2 hours 13 minutes until sunrise]

[Move your affiliated Hunters and prepare for the defense!]

I stared at the messages. I didn’t want to dance along exactly the way the Mermaid Queen wanted. But I liked the idea of something happening to my team even less.

‘Luckily, even if I do all of them, it’s still a bit under fifty.’

And there were even fewer if you only counted S–ranks. The sub team had a few A–ranks, and among the young monsters, aside from Peace and Blue, Comet, and the unicorns, most hadn’t fully grown yet. The unicorns were A–rank, not S–rank.

Just moving closer to fulfilling the condition made me uneasy, but I had to do everything I could right now. It wasn’t just the sub team’s lives on the line – pieces of our world were at stake too.

I finished agonizing over it and called in the sub team.

– Yip!

“Chief Han!”

A welcome voice and a slightly less welcome one came in together. Peace bounded over and spun in place in front of me. I reached out and scooped him up. The soft, warm weight full of affection for me loosened the knot in my chest.

“Have you been uncomfortable at all?”

“With almost everything I want right there on demand, why would I be uncomfortable?”

Shishio spoke with a shiny grin. The other Hunters agreed.

“And we could fight each other without anyone dying or getting hurt.”

“It was like Valhalla.”

So they’d treated the sub team well. Seeing everyone’s bright faces made my chest feel heavy all over again.

“From here on, you can get hurt. You can die.”

I looked around at the Hunters and continued.

“From sunrise to sunset, powerful monsters will attack this place.”

I explained the rules Myungwoo had told me. Shishio nodded with a serious face.

“So we’ll be taking on the monsters that were going to attack Earth, right here instead.”

“Doesn’t sound all that different from a dungeon raid.”

“Are these walls sturdy?”

Thud! One hot–tempered Hunter punched the wall. It dented deeply, but didn’t collapse.

“What if you break it before we even start!”

“We can repair for free before it begins, remember? If it would break from one of my punches, it wouldn’t last long anyway.”

“Make us solid watchtowers!”

“Let’s dig a moat.”

“Shrinking the gate opening’s better, right?”

“This fortress is too big for our numbers. We should build an inner wall and outer wall, and size the inner wall to match our manpower.”

“It’ll all get wrecked anyway.”

There didn’t seem to be much tension in the banterers.

“The monsters will go up to a maximum of SS–rank! Unlike the Chatterbox party, I can’t guarantee your lives this time.”

“We already signed the contracts, though?”

Someone spoke up. We had made them sign forms stating we couldn’t guarantee their safety.

“Nothing to worry about, Chief Han.”

Shishio started to put a hand on my shoulder, then sheepishly pulled it back when Peace growled at him.

“That’s just how dungeon raids are. You always have to keep death in mind.”

“…But no S–rank Hunter has died in a raid before. You’ve never really gone through anything truly dangerous.”

So of course their mindset was different.

“Honestly, I’d never even thought I might die. At least not before the Chatterbox party.”

One Hunter scratched the back of his head awkwardly.

“Guild Leader Seong’s reputation was no joke. After actually dying like that, it hit me that even an S–rank only gets one life.”

“I think I died to Guild Leader Haeyeon. Or maybe Peace? It was over in an instant.”

“I’ll admit I got a little rattled when Hunter Liette showed up back then.”

“If you’re an A–rank trailing an S–rank, you always carry a will on you.”

“Even if you don’t…”

The looks they sent me still carried little tension. But they absolutely had the weight of the ones who stood at the very front.

“We’re Hunters.”

“Even though a lot of high–rank Awakened live however they want, there are basics we have to stick to.”

“We at least have some pride in protecting people. I even got a knighthood, you know.”

“For me it’s more like a social contract. If you tuck your tail and run whenever it’s dangerous, you don’t deserve the treatment of a high–rank Hunter.”

“If you take all the benefits and bolt, you’re trash. We have our pride.”

There were definitely people here who had sneered at opponents far weaker than themselves. Plenty of them were arrogant, and I wouldn’t be surprised if a few had pulled the usual high–rank Hunter crap more than once.

But one thing was certain – every last one of them had protected the weak. By clearing dungeons and keeping people safe. Even if they did it for the rewards that came back to them, the result was the same. Even Shishio, who had come at me and Yuhyun, was probably the most reliable guardian anyone could ask for back in his own country.

“Yes, Hunters.”

I smiled faintly. Personally, I didn’t like high–rank Hunters. Not in my past life, and even now they were people I had to be wary of and careful around. If my skills were exposed, fights could break out over treating me like a trophy at any time. It had already happened more than once.

Even so, I wanted the people here to be safe. They’d come lured by Chatterbox’s items, but they were still Hunters who had stepped forward to protect many others. Regardless of rank, the simple fact that they didn’t hang back and shy away was enough to make them incredible.

Whatever the rank, a Hunter is still a Hunter.

“It won’t be easy. Even veteran S–rank Hunters have rarely, if ever, fought SS–rank monsters. But I believe every one of you will make it through. I truly respect and love all Hunters who take up weapons to protect the world. Please, survive to the very end.”

[Keywords are being applied to affiliated Hunters!]

A message window popped up, and the number of keyword targets shot up quickly. Just as the Mermaid Queen had said, no one suddenly showed any special affection toward me. My fists clenched. I had to keep as many alive as possible.

“Tell me anything you need! You said a moat, right?”

Barely had the words left my mouth when the Hunters started moving busily.

“Moats are just for show!”

“What? They’re the flower of fortress defenses!”

“Hey, if anyone here can’t jump a moat, step forward! Support–types excluded. If you’re S–rank, you can clear a decent river!”

Even so, without a flight skill, jumping a river wasn’t exactly easy. I doubted even Seong Hyunjae could clear the Han River in one leap.

“Forget the moat, it’s better to set up obstacles. Just a bit lower than head height. We’re not planning to turtle up inside from the start, right?”

“How many ranged do we have total?”

“Healers, gather over there, and support–types, let’s check our synergy!”

“Do we have enough potions? Feels like we’re short.”

“I didn’t think we’d be fighting for hours on end…”

“Chief Han, do you have any prototype stamina potions?”

“Let’s pool our potions and distribute them. We’ll do loan contracts for the gear and lend it out to whoever needs it!”

Thankfully, we’d been planning to face a group of Prophets, so we weren’t totally unprepared. But now we were up against way more enemies than expected for a much longer time. It was only natural we’d end up lacking.

I rummaged through my inventory as well. Unfortunately, I barely had any decent high–grade equipment. The Lynx set was soulbound to me, and the rest were things suited for F–ranks – in other words, essence–boosters that weren’t helpful to high–rank Hunters.

“Here, prototype stamina potions!”

Shishio proudly laid out the potions. Then he shot me a wink.

“I brought everything I got during the Monster Mounts meet–ups and afterward.”

“You did great!”

Since the stamina potion ingredient dungeon was in Japan, Shishio had been one of the first to receive prototypes. Domestic guilds were prioritized, of course, but after that it was limited to overseas. There weren’t that many, but there were enough for each Hunter to get a couple.

While the Hunters checked their gear, I mounted Peace and looked down at the fortress from the air, repairing and remodeling it. Other Hunters with flight skills circled with me, offering tips and opinions.

“Can we dig out or raise a cliff along the back of the fortress so deep even an S–rank can’t climb it?”

“I’ll give it a try. Oh, it works! I can’t surround the entire fortress, but I can do a section in the back!”

“Better to dig it out than raise a cliff.”

“Put watchtowers on the back too, for the flying–types!”

Time kept ticking down. On the surface, things looked good. But the unease still sat there. If I’d known it would be like this, I would’ve somehow made it to the States and…

[A visit request has arrived!]

An out–of–the–blue message popped up. A visit request? Don’t tell me it was the Mermaid Queen again. Suspicious, but I accepted. The message window crackled and wavered slightly. Then space opened in a small tear.

“Dad!”

“…Gyeol?”

Gyeol spread his wings wide and dropped straight down. How the hell was he here!

“How did you get here, why did you come! It’s dangerous!”

“Don’t worry, Dad. I can’t stay long. Mister Myungwoo said he tricked it by pretending I was you for a bit so it would let me in. He said it’ll only hold for about ten minutes. Are you okay? You’re not hurt anywhere?”

Gyeol rattled off his words at machine–gun speed. Then:

“And Gyeol robbed Chatterbox’s vault!”

All kinds of gear and items came pouring out in a rush. The other Hunters and I all dropped our jaws. In front of the pile of items stacked higher than his head, Gyeol shrugged.

“You need this stuff, right?”

“Y–yeah!”

Gear that was at least S–rank, probably SS–rank or higher. Of course we needed it, and it was going to help a lot.

“Gyeol, thank you so much! Great job! But how did you even know and come here like this—”

“Your scent’s gotten very distinctive.”

– Grrrr!

A familiar voice sounded from my shoulder. Peace immediately bared his teeth. What the hell.

“Whoa? Look at that!”

“Wh–what is that?”

“…Is there something wrong with my eyes?”

The Hunters started rubbing their eyes in confusion. In front of them, Seong Hyunjae rose confidently into the air. With the same pink fairy wings as Gyeol. …He really had lost it.

“I—”

“Aren’t you even embarrassed?!”

I hurriedly grabbed Seong Hyunjae out of the air. What even was this, seriously, my head actually hurt from how absurd it was. Gyeol let out a deep sigh.

“That guy’s the one who told me, for starters.”

“S–so, everyone! It seems the brainwashed Guild Leader Seong managed to send a sane piece of himself outside and, uh, that’s more or less what this is! It’s not the real full thing, just a fragment, so he’s… like this…”

“Close enough. Oof!”

I shook the Seong Hyunjae in my hand without thinking. What the hell was he doing. I was grateful for the help, but I was also completely speechless.

“Anyway, everyone! Let’s start with the loan contracts! We’re short on time, so move quick!”

These were items you’d have trouble buying even with cash. Shaken out of their daze from seeing weird Seong Hyunjae, the Hunters eagerly pulled out contracts. While they did, I quietly asked Seong Hyunjae:

“What exactly is going on. And what about the Seong Hyunjae on the other side from me right now?”

“There are too many ears listening here.”

Seong Hyunjae glanced up at the sky. …He was wary of the Transcendents. And we were short on time.

“Gyeol, you said you’re heading back, right? Is Seong Hyunjae going with you?”

“Yeah. Even if he doesn’t like it, I have to take him. Right now I’m his guardian.”

“He’s my master.”

I should just cover his mouth.

“Then I have a favor to ask.”

I leaned in and whispered quietly to Seong Hyunjae and Gyeol. Soon after, the two of them left, and the gear distribution wrapped up.

[5 minutes until sunrise]

The sun slowly began to rise.