The S-Classes That I Raised

Chapter 689: Mayor Seong Hyunjae

There were no countries in this world.

A thousand years ago, they say there had been a massive kingdom that unified the entire continent. But after the last king cursed the last priest – you will be shattered for all eternity. You will never again be able to unite as one nation – countries disappeared.

Even if something grew big enough that you could have called it a nation, it still kept the title of “city.”

Become a country, and you end up splitting apart.

People never forgot the last priest’s curse. See Miranglune History for Children, Volume 1.

That did not mean no one ever tried to swallow up other cities and grow bigger. It was just that there were so many cities with similar levels of power that even if a warmonger appeared, the rest could unite and push them back without too much trouble. Thanks to that, war was relatively rare in this world.

‘Why now, of all times.’

Since this was the past, this had to be something that already happened. Did they deliberately send me to this point in time?

“Fortunately, now that the Guinders have been cleaned up, we can deploy all our forces to the border.”

“Even so, the gap is huge. Bellond City’s defense budget is said to be three times ours.”

“The biggest problem is that the neighboring cities are all staying silent. Even Songbrodeung City, which has always actively traded with us, has not given any reply.”

In other words, the opposing city is about three times stronger than we are, and not a single city is willing to help us out! A few council members stared straight at me.

“Councilor No. 1 will take the lead at the front with the party members, of course, yes?”

“Is he not the most outstanding military commander in this country?”

“Why not make him the overall commander as well–.”

What are these balloons even talking about. Clearing out gangsters and fighting a war are not the same thing. The Guinders were clear, undeniable villains, but the soldiers dragged into a war, whether on the enemy side or ours, were mostly just ordinary people.

There is no way I am making my kids do that kind of crap.

Even if the other side is just balloon dolls, there are lines you do not cross.

I cannot exactly go around yelling People must never be killed! when reality is this harsh, but that only applies when we are dealing with people who willingly pick up weapons and come to hurt us. The ideal would be an environment where you never have to worry about your own life or anyone else’s, but anyway.

“I will go visit Bellond City.”

Start with talking first. At my words, all eyes swiveled toward me.

“It is dangerous!”

“Standing at the very front of the battlefield is just as dangerous. But they are not going to treat a lone envoy too poorly. And even if things go wrong, that fact can be used to our advantage.”

I was a young councilor at the peak of my popularity. If I went as an official envoy and ended up killed, the citizens’ anger would go up in flames. It would also give us a perfect justification to demand cooperation from other cities.

The mayor and the councilors hesitated, but still nodded at my suggestion. They said this was a career game, but seriously, how far are they planning to take this.

“You are not going alone.”

Yuhyun spoke firmly.

“He is right, Mister, it is too dangerous if you go by yourself. I am young, so it should be fine if I go with you, right?”

Yerim backed him up. Yerim, you count as an adult in this world.

“Using at least a stealth skill should be allowed. There are no Awakened here, so no one will detect it.”

Noah opposed it as well. Liette, who had been attaching sparkly decorations to Noah’s fake wings, tilted her head.

“Noah’s right that there are no Awakened around. But why are you even worried? He is weak but not weak. He is way stronger than the humans here.”

“Liette is right. I have Grace, and I can go wearing the lynx gear. Even if an army of a million comes swarming in, I can slip out easy.”

My stats might be F, but I was still stronger than an ordinary person. With my high–grade items on top of that, there was no way I would lose to a non–Awakened. Even if artillery shells rained down like a storm, I could just turn on Grace, use a stealth skill, and get out.

In a world without Awakened, items and skills were totally broken. Unfairly so.

“Do not worry, just rest up and relax. If I can stop the war, I can probably get the mayor’s office too. Even if not, I will end up with the biggest influence in this city.”

Not that my popularity was anything to sneeze at even now. Yuhyun looked at me with eyes like an abandoned puppy. Ugh.

“…Hyung.”

“Even if you look at me like that, n–no.”

My little brother’s acting had really improved. Next to him, Yerim joined in, and Noah also lowered his eyes. I felt like a breadwinner being forced out to work while leaving behind kids who just wanted to stay together.

“…I will bring back something tasty.”

Good kids. There would not be any real danger. Even if Seong Hyunjae’s team tried to butt in, battles here were decided not by force but by dice rolls.

“You are overprotective~.”

Said Liette, who herself had once vowed to protect the kids for their own safety and then ran them ragged in training.

“I need to prepare in case the dice pop up again, but what should I do. Maybe I should draw something.”

“Isn’t that a bit of a waste? If it rolls well it is jackpot. You even got something great today.”

For a little while I had turned into a chef and picked up a pile of rare ingredients. If I had stayed a councilor the whole time, political funds would have been pouring in too.

“Not a waste at all. Honestly, I do not even mind if my luck with the dice is bad.”

Sure, it stung that I rolled rock bottom over and over and ended up with a villa, a scooter, and a truck, but it was still fine. Getting Pongpong out of it had not been bad either. But.

“Even if something bad happens, you can deal with it somehow. You can, but when the Guinders showed up, I could not do anything.”

Villains have appeared to rob your truck! That much, fine, whatever. I could live with that.

“They were enemies I could have easily taken care of, but I had to just stand there blankly and watch my stuff get looted. Life cannot be all good things, you have to accept the bad stuff too, that is how it is – but this was not it.”

If it were something like I will grant you a trial, I would go oh yeah, bring it on, but You must get robbed by bandits is just infuriating.

Same when I lost to Seong Hyunjae and the cops showed up – I could not even try to make excuses or slip them a bribe, they just hauled me off as is.

“There is no reason to leave things up to luck anymore~. Better not to use it.”

When I switched careers into politics, I had nothing to lose, so I used it then, but now there was no need. Toss obstacles onto the path of my life if you must, but do not go changing the route itself.

“Councilor Han Yujin!”

“Please come back safely!”

“We love you, Councilor No. 1!”

The citizens who had come to see me off shouted. Some of them were even in tears.

“My dear citizens, thank you.”

I bowed deeply to the citizens and toward the broadcasting cameras.

“I will absolutely stop this war and return safely!”

Applause burst out. I turned and looked at the Family Love Party members and the other city councilors. They were all dressed in white, with veils, to wish me luck. The customs in this place were different, but it felt like they were sending off someone who would never come back.

“Yuhyun, while I am gone, you are the eldest. I am counting on you.”

“Okay, Hyung. Just be careful and do not worry about us.”

My little brother nodded, reluctant but accepting. Technically, Liette was the oldest, but still.

“Liette, you do not cause any trouble. Be good. Be good.”

If only she were someone you could trust. Yerim was twice as reliable as her.

“I will keep a close eye on things.”

I am begging you, Noah. Swept up in the mood, Yerim hugged me tight, her eyes full of worry. Camera shutters flashed like crazy.

“I will take good care of Pongpong.”

Mister will be back as early as tonight. After finishing my goodbyes, I climbed into the truck.

My first task after officially becoming Councilor No. 1 was to stop a war. The difficulty level of this life game was way too high.

The city gate in the outer wall opened and I started up the truck. I drove a long way down the wide, clear road until I saw some prefab buildings ahead. Neither side liked the idea of actually entering Bellond City – it would feel uncomfortable for us and for them – so we had agreed to meet in the middle.

Military trucks were lined up all over the wide plain. I did not see any tanks yet, but the individual soldiers’ armaments were perfect, ready to start a war right this second.

“Stop!”

Soldiers with guns shouted from beyond the barricade. I turned off the engine and stepped out of the truck, raising both hands to show I was unarmed.

“I am Han Yujin, Councilor No. 1 of Miranglune City.”

Among the soldiers, a balloon doll who seemed to outrank the others came over and compared my face to a magazine cover. So that magazine was being distributed in other cities too, huh.

“You are genuine. Please, follow me.”

They cleared away the barricade that had been blocking the way and led me inside. But I refused to enter any of the prefab buildings.

“I came all the way here alone and unarmed. I would rather avoid a situation where I might end up trapped inside somewhere.”

“After coming this far, you say that?”

“It is a matter of how it feels. I already have goosebumps up my arms, and if you box me in on all sides, my tongue is not going to work properly.”

Would you not feel the same, I said, giving him a small smile. My face was apparently considered stunning even by this world’s standards. People are weak to a pretty face – not just the opposite sex, but the same sex too. Might as well make full use of what I have.

“…I suppose that could happen. We respect envoys. We will also accept a peaceful surrender.”

He gestured, and they brought over a table and some chairs. I thought about sitting but decided to wait. I had roughly looked into their etiquette here, but I did not know the fine details, so it was better to avoid unnecessary moves.

After a short wait, armed soldiers formed a ring around us. So, he is finally coming out. I opened my eyes wide, ready to see what kind of balloon doll would appear and–

“…Bo–”

Why are you here! I swallowed the words that almost jumped out.

Seong Hyunjae, in military uniform, walked out from between the soldiers. Excuse me, is that not Chairman Seong? Could this be this world’s version of Seong Hyunjae? But he did not look like a balloon doll.

“Good to meet you, Councilor Han Yujin.”

Seong Hyunjae’s lips curved into a smile. The back of my head tingled, but I somehow managed to open my mouth.

“Nice t–to meet you. So, you are…”

“I am Seong Hyunjae, mayor of Bellond City.”

…Right, of course you are. I thought you were just in the restaurant business, but maybe you have a twin. With the exact same name. Your parents must be unique people.

What the hell is this. There were too many eyes on us for me to flip the table over. If I had known this, I would have said I would go inside the building.

“Mayor Seong Hyunjae. It is a pleasure.”

I forced a smile. At some point he had even expanded into another city and taken over as mayor. This was too much. Why was he the only one working two jobs.

“I have heard a great deal about you. You did not wear a ribbon today.”

Seong Hyunjae spoke as a soldier handed him a fashion magazine.

“The war is… right at our doorstep. It is not that I am being discourteous.”

I worked my brain as hard as I could. But I could not imagine what kind of tricks you would have to pull to run your business and still manage to be mayor of the neighboring city. Even if Hyunah’s bar had fished up a ton of valuable information, still. Did he just hit jackpot after jackpot with the dice? Even then this was overkill.

“…First of all, I would like to propose a ceasefire. I do not believe there is any need for us to go to war. If there is something you want from our city, we will accommodate you as much as possible.”

“I do not wish for unnecessary bloodshed either. And between you and me, Councilor Han, there is no need for us to shed blood at all.”

A die appeared.

Oh, for–

My molars clenched. I really did not like having things decided this way. Getting a result that had nothing to do with all the effort I had put in felt terrible. If the roll was bad, it was the worst, and even if it was good, it still left a bad taste.

‘It would be fun if this were just a board game.’

Because then it would not matter if I lost everything.

Seong Hyunjae picked up the die. It rolled across the ground with a clatter.

[2!]

The corner of my mouth twitched. A low number. But I had lost even when I rolled a 1 before, so it was too soon to celebrate. I threw my die as well.

[5!]

I won.

I swallowed hard and looked at Seong Hyunjae.

“Will you withdraw?”

Seong Hyunjae dipped his head to me slightly.

“I will withdraw. I will hand over my position as commander.”

“…Excuse me?”

“My reputation will suffer a bit.”

His golden eyes curved further as he smiled. Wait a second. While I was still thrown off, a uniformed balloon doll approached Seong Hyunjae. He took something that looked like a medal from his chest and handed it over.

“I leave it to you.”

“Please count on me!”

“B–but, Mayor Seong Hyunjae!”

Wasn’t this supposed to stop the war? At my call, Seong Hyunjae looked back at me.

“It is ‘me’ who lost, Councilor Han Yujin. Me, not Bellond City.”

…Right. Just because the mayor withdrew from the battlefield did not mean the war was over.

Sometimes losing the head meant morale collapsed and people surrendered, but of course there were plenty of cases where that did not happen.

“Councilor Han Yujin.”

The balloon doll who had received command looked at me with a cold gaze.

“We will accept nothing short of unconditional surrender.”

Oh, that so.

Well, it was not like I ever really believed this would all end neatly with a nice talk. I had only wondered for a moment because it turned out Seong Hyunjae was the mayor. I had no intention of relying on some stupid die.

“Understood. You will at least let me return safely, yes?”

“Of course. If you wish, we will also accept your personal surrender. I can promise you will be well treated.”

If I surrendered, would I get hired as a housekeeper at the mayor’s place or something.

I shook my head and pressed my remote.

“My truck is coming in, please clear the way.”

The soldiers opened a path. The truck rolled up to a stop behind me.

“Automatic driving with a remote, fascinating. Miranglune City’s technology is more advanced than I expected.”

“It is more advanced. Much more than you think.”

I worked the remote again. With a clank, the front of the truck opened up. Inside was a complicated machine that could never be mistaken for an ordinary engine.

“Actually, this truck runs on nuclear energy.”

Gas was expensive. You have to save if you want to live well.