WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

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◈ The S-Classes That I Raised ◈

Chapter 115: Even When Told to Rest (1)

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“Mister.”

My chest trembled at the deep, resonant voice. Even Fear Resistance was of little use against mythical-grade power directed at me. I hurriedly deactivated the teacher skill, and it got a little better.

“I told you not to use that skill.”

The person standing before me was definitely Yerim, but she felt completely different from usual. An intimidating aura reminiscent of the Mermaid Queen wrapped around her like a veil, making it hard to treat her as casually as I normally did.

The Ruler of Water skill item lasts quite a while, though.

“I’m not using it right now. Hey, Yerim.”

“Yes.”

“It seems you can still use the skill, so instead of this, shouldn’t you spend more time getting used to it?”

A massive wave crashed over me.

Or at least, that was what it felt like. So she hadn’t been truly angry before. Even though the corners of Yerim’s eyes merely twitched slightly, my heart dropped.

“Ah, no…”

I stammered, unconsciously grabbing Yoohyun’s arm. Calm down. Everything ended well, so why was this happening?

“You knew using the teacher skill would put a heavy burden on you, didn’t you?”

“I did know, but. You’re supposed to accept some burden. Who enters a dungeon expecting not to get so much as a scratch? When we caught that toad, I even slept for days afterward.”

Compared to that, at least both my eyes were still open this time.

“It’s different.”

Yerim spoke firmly. Her piercing gaze was still heavy and frightening. It had been a while since I’d felt this chill run through my guts.

“It wasn’t a situation where you absolutely had to use it, like with the toad. There was no need to use it. We would’ve won even if you’d just left it alone.”

“But for you to understand and accept the Ruler of Water a little better…”

“Mister.”

…Who knew being called mister could sound so terrifying? I wanted to tell her to examine the Ruler skill more while she had the chance, but that would only make her angrier. Still, it was such a waste.

“Hey, calm her down a little.”

After fidgeting nervously, I asked my younger brother to mediate. What I got in return was a glare as cold as Yerim’s.

“This time, I’m on Hunter Park Yerim’s side.”

Uh, hmm. So you’re angry too. But couldn’t Yoohyun feel Yerim’s pressure? Or was Yerim controlling it well? Given Yoohyun’s rank, it was probably the latter. Our Yerim had already gotten so skilled at controlling her power.

It hurt that she was using that control to scold me, though.

“I know you did it because you were thinking of me. But you can’t do things like this. Nothing happened, thankfully, but I can still feel how incredible the Ruler of Water is. And you just accepted that sensation when you weren’t even the item’s user? When it got difficult, you should’ve turned the skill off, but instead, you even accepted the Sesung Guildmaster. Are you seriously crazy?”

“Just calm down…”

You’re really scary right now. I felt like I was standing at the edge of a cliff, looking down at a stormy sea. Waves were rising right in front of me, and some huge ship was sinking in the distance.

Thinking this couldn’t go on, I turned to Seong Hyeonje, clutching at even a rotten rope.

“Um…”

“I’m on the young lady’s side as well.”

Why are you joining in? Feeling unfairly wronged, I glared at him and asked why. His shameless answer came back.

“If you overexert yourself and break down, I’ll be the one losing out. I haven’t even collected the interest on what you owe me, and your promise to help me three times still stands. I have a great deal to collect.”

“Mister, you owe him money? How much?”

“What do you mean, help him three times?”

Yerim and Yoohyun questioned me one after the other. I knew that bastard wouldn’t be worried about me out of pure concern, but why would he bring that up now? He was clearly trying to screw me over.

“It’s not money. It’s nothing much.”

“If it’s nothing much, what is it?”

“There’s no way it’s nothing.”

Damn it, there wasn’t anyone on my side. Or rather, they were on my side, but they weren’t taking my side. The gate was already open, so should I just run for it? As I cautiously started backing away, water caught me around the legs. The air, the moisture in the air, cushioned me like a soft sofa as I fell backward.

Wow, look at Yerim’s skill with water. It was moving enough to make me proud, but why was she using it on me? …Was it good that she was practicing this way, at least?

“I think you need to clear your head, Mister. You haven’t even been Awakened for long, but you’ve gone through too many dangerous things. Maybe that’s why you don’t have any sense of crisis.”

“You haven’t been Awakened long either.”

“But my stats are S-Class. My mental strength is high too, you know? But you’re practically a civilian. A civilian!”

I had nearly five years of experience, so this was unfair. Yoohyun joined in with Yerim’s scolding.

“Hunter Park Yerim is right. How about getting plenty of rest for a while?”

“Rest? There’s so much to do. Monsters aside, the Association keeps pressuring me, there are calls from overseas, and I promised to clear dungeons with Myeongu…”

I had to keep an eye on Yoohyun’s skills and spirit, prepare for that zombie bastard, secure the dungeon with the stamina potion ingredients that would appear soon, clear some S-Class dungeons because Newbie promised me a custom reward, raise Moon Hyuna, Kim Seonghan, and Noah, deal with the problem concerning Riette, find the other natural S-Classes, probe whether Song Taewon could become the Association President…

Oh, right. I had to deal with MKC’s Choi Seokwon too. I needed to bring Do Hamin over as well, and there was someone else, I think.

Anyway, there was a lot to do. …Why was there so much?

“I’ll handle the Association.”

“What if they raise the Awakening Center’s personnel limit claiming the agreement was broken?”

“If they have any sense, they won’t dare. If Hyung says he wants to rest, Hunter Yu Myeongu will cooperate as well, and neither Sesung nor Breaker Guild will refuse. This is a form of protection too.”

“Putting pressure on the Association is an enjoyable leisure activity, even when it has nothing to do with Han Yujin.”

If that was leisure, what the hell did he usually do? Still, I welcomed the offer to block them. There was still quite some time before the Awakening Center opened, so if I didn’t have to listen to the Association whining, I could take things slowly. My workload had gone down. I was happy.

“Take it slow, Mister. Is someone chasing you?”

Yerim’s voice softened slightly. It felt as though a cool hand were brushing my forehead.

“I’ll try.”

“Not try. Take care of yourself first, Mister. I’m not grateful for what you did earlier.”

“Okay. I’m sorry.”

I felt even sorrier because if something similar happened again, I would do something similar again. But I wanted Yerim to become stronger and safer, even if only a little. It was my own selfish desire.

Perhaps because the item’s effect was fading, the falling rain weakened. Then it stopped entirely, and the intimidating aura around Yerim vanished as well. She still seemed to be pouting because her anger had not fully subsided, but instead of frightening, she was adorable.

“How is controlling water? Do you think you drew out a lot?”

“I’m not sure. I think I should practice before the sensation disappears completely. I might hole up in a dungeon with lots of water for a few days.”

“Don’t overdo it.”

Yerim gave me an almost affectionate glare.

“You’re one to talk, Mister.”

Because I was an adult. I gave vague answers as Yerim and Yoohyun grilled me about what I owed Seong Hyeonje and what this promise to help him was, then left the dungeon. The lake was gone, leaving only a barren landscape with a huge pit.

And Song Taewon’s heavily shadowed face.

The special isolation facility had vanished without a trace, so he must be in a very difficult position. What a disaster. Still, thanks to that, Yoohyun’s rampage could probably be quietly buried.

“It appears you successfully cleared the dungeon.”

“Yes. That dungeon is unusual, so I’ll explain the clearing method separately.”

I answered while drying my hair with a towel. Once you knew the method, clearing it wasn’t difficult…

No, it definitely was. Wouldn’t Yoohyun or Seong Hyeonje show up at the end if other Hunters entered? How was anyone supposed to clear that?

As I looked uneasily at the gate, its blue light wavered faintly before disappearing.

“…I suppose there’s no need to explain after all.”

That was fortunate, but Song Taewon let out a long sigh at the strange occurrence.

“After forming only to burst apart, the dungeon has now suddenly vanished. It seems I’ll be dealing with this for some time.”

“That dungeon was a complete pain anyway, so it’s much better that it disappeared. Or just cover it up by saying water gushed up and seeped away due to a geological anomaly. There’s no trace left, after all.”

“I cannot do that.”

Song Taewon answered with a bitter smile. Then he looked at Yoohyun and Seong Hyeonje, who were accepting towels from people sent by their respective guilds and drying themselves off.

“Did anything unusual happen inside? I mean between people, not monsters.”

“No. There were no particular problems.”

I just got scolded a little. Song Taewon slightly bowed his head and said we had worked hard, then left to deal with the aftermath. He was busy. He would probably be even busier for a while.

Compared to Song Taewon, wasn’t I practically free?

‘It seems it would be better in several ways to put that man at the top rather than have him running around below.’

If the Association became like a semi-guild led by an S-Class Hunter, it would be easier to solve the manpower shortage as well. Right now, high-ranking Hunters were reluctant to join because an ordinary person sat at its head.

Watching Song Taewon’s retreating back, I called Yoohyun and Seong Hyeonje over.

“We need to deal with Choi Seokwon. At the very least, we need to lift the curse.”

I briefly explained why this dungeon had formed to Seong Hyeonje. As long as Choi Seokwon’s contract with the Filial Piety Addicts continued, we could not simply leave Choi Seokwon alone.

“It’ll be difficult to openly touch Choi Seokwon outside a dungeon. Especially right after the young master caused an incident.”

“What do you mean Yoohyun caused an incident? Do you have proof? All I see is waterlogged mud.”

I said that, but Choi Seokwon’s side would obviously strengthen their guard after this. Quietly cutting Choi Seokwon’s throat would be difficult.

“Then I’ll request a visit and at least lift the curse…”

“Hyung is on vacation.”

Yoohyun cut me off.

“We’ll keep watch, so don’t worry about things like that for a while.”

How could I not worry? But Yerim came over too, looking sharply at me and asking what was going on this time, so I nodded for now. I should at least pretend to rest quietly for a few days.

* * *

Vrrrr.

A round, flat robot vacuum wandered around the living room with a humming sound. Peep sat atop it, chirping as if urging it onward. I hadn’t been able to use it when Blue was around because she would swat at it like it was a fly.

‘So cute.’

I uploaded a video of Peep riding the vacuum to social media. The number of followers I had gained lately was no joke. There were also countless comments and messages piled up, but I didn’t check them. I just kept uploading regularly.

When I slumped onto the sofa, Peace leapt onto my lap as if it had been waiting. As I scratched and stroked the back of its neck, it rolled onto its back with a satisfied purr. Its tail swayed lazily, looking pleased.

The television was airing a report about yesterday’s lake dungeon. Someone from the Association went on and on with a serious expression, saying a bunch of unnecessarily long things. I changed channels, but there was nothing interesting on.

‘I’ve already watched all the fun stuff.’

That was one drawback of regression. I had been far removed from cultural entertainment around this time, but when I looked through things, I had watched nearly all the famous ones. Once my life as a Hunter had stabilized to some degree, I had spent plenty of time with television. I had even bought and watched them on VOD.

What should I do now? Read a book, maybe. Yerim had entered a dungeon to train her skill, and Yoohyun was busy because of yesterday. Maybe I should’ve tagged along while Myeongu went shopping. I had no idea what he was buying for two days in a row.

“This won’t do. Let’s at least go for a walk.”

I picked up Peace and called Peep. As Peep climbed down from the robot vacuum, it slipped with a Beep! I picked it up and placed it on Peace’s back.

When I stepped outside, the Hunter standing guard looked at me. They hadn’t guarded this far before. The surveillance had increased.

“I’m going for a walk on the rooftop.”

After informing them of my destination, I headed up to the rooftop garden. It was still morning, so the summer sunlight was gentle. It would get scorching soon enough.

Kyaaa!

Before I had taken more than a few steps, Blue flew toward me with her wings spread wide. Peace bared its teeth slightly at Blue, who had been about to pounce on me. Blue startled and landed obediently in front of me.

Kyaw.

“Yeah, have you been well? Nothing uncomfortable about living here?”

I looked up and saw Blue’s house, built quite nicely in one corner of the garden. Would she be lonely living outside alone? I wanted to find Blue a suitable Hunter too. As for my safety, if Blue were paired with a domestic Hunter, Peace and Blue could take turns being away. Noah was around too.

Should I bring it up casually with Moon Hyuna? She would definitely welcome it. If she later worked with Yerim, it would be good to have a flying mount.

Thinking of it, I called Moon Hyuna. The instant the call connected, an unfamiliar voice came through.

[Mr. Han Yujin, what is the nature of your call?]

“Yes…? Um, isn’t this the Breaker Guildmaster’s phone?”

[For the time being, calls are connected to the security office. Calls to Mr. Han Yujin are also routed through the security office. You are on vacation.]

…Were they insane? What the hell had they done to my number? Were they banning phone work too?

“Uh, please connect me to the Breaker Guildmaster. I’m just calling to ask her to come hang out if she has time because I’m bored.”

After they said they understood, the ringing resumed. This time Moon Hyuna answered properly. Worried that the call might be tapped, I only briefly asked whether she wanted to come by. After she readily agreed, I hung up and felt a tightness in the back of my neck.

‘Yoohyun, Yerim, or both?’

There might even be other collaborators. The kids trusted me far too little.

* * *

Not long afterward, Moon Hyuna arrived. She gave Peace and Blue a look that mixed greed with adoration, then abruptly spoke.

“Do you know your little brother’s reputation hasn’t been great lately?”

…What was that supposed to mean now?

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