WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ The S-Classes That I Raised ◈
Chapter 187: Mr. Seong's Birthday (5)
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“Sir, won’t you catch a cold like that? It’s gotten less hot lately, and the wind here is pretty chilly.”
Yerim spoke worriedly. September was just around the corner, so the heat had eased quite a bit. I kept spare clothes in my inventory because my clothes kept getting ruined, but changing outside was a little awkward. Maybe I should at least change my shirt.
“Do something, Guildmaster. Can’t you dry him with your fire control?”
At Yerim’s words, Yoohyun raised an eyebrow.
“It would be difficult to dry him instantly unless hyung had Fire Resistance. And you, Park Yerim, can’t you do anything but drain water?”
He handed Irin to me as he spoke, and this time Yerim pouted.
“...I tried it on a doll I washed, but it shattered into pieces.”
“You’re useless.”
“Han Yoohyun, you wouldn’t have even made it here without me!”
The two bickered, asked whether I was all right, then started bickering again. Watching them made the corners of my mouth rise for no reason. Something tickled inside my chest.
When I woke in the morning, I heard welcome voices and saw welcome faces. The two of them always competed to greet me first. We ate together, I saw them off, and unless something came up, we had lunch together too. Sometimes Yoohyun came alone, saying Park Yerim had supplementary classes. Other times Yerim came alone, saying Han Yoohyun was busy. Even when neither could come, they never forgot to call.
I spent the day taking care of the monster babies, visiting Myeongu with Noah, and listening to field-test reports from Seok Hayan’s team. Then evening came, and the house grew noisy again.
There were faces always looking at me, always smiling, always seeming happy. One day, then two, then the next day, and the day after that. It kept going.
I still had a great deal of baggage, my future was uncertain, and there were things I could never let go of. Even so, my heart slowly began to relax.
Was that why I started disliking my attitude toward Seong Hyeonje?
‘I was really used to bowing my head.’
If I had been alone again this time, I probably would not have felt much resistance. But everyone said they liked me. Seong Hyeonje really was impressive, but the people who liked me were no less so. I did not want to casually throw myself away on my own, especially when Yoohyun was right behind me, holding firm.
It was an impulsive act of defiance, so I had felt anxious then, and I still did now.
‘Still, he gave way.’
I had prepared myself, so it was a little unexpected. I had even said I had stolen Seong Hyeonje’s fragment rather than taken it by agreement, just to provoke him properly. Yet he accepted my resistance so easily.
When I suddenly turned my head, I saw the man looking out at the sea. He was soaked through, so he should have looked a little pitiful, yet he looked as though words like that had never had anything to do with him. Perhaps sensing my gaze, he looked my way and smiled silently.
That sight... How should I put it? For the first time, Seong Hyeonje looked like a person to me. Of course, he was still not someone I could call close. He was a person so different from me that we may as well have stood at opposite ends. Even so, he felt a little new to me now.
I grew a little curious too. What kind of person was he? I knew quite a bit about his skills, abilities, status as an S-Class Hunter, and position as Guildmaster. But I knew nothing about the rest. We had seen each other often for around two months and had even become somewhat close, yet I knew almost nothing about his ordinary side. He must have had parents too. He must have had a childhood. Hadn’t he experienced at least one difficult thing in his life? It did not suit him, though.
“Don’t smile. I might get attached.”
“Weren’t you already rather attached?”
“Not at all.”
“I am.”
What nonsense was he saying now? I could not say anything to that smiling face, so I turned away. Seriously, he was exhausting in so many ways.
We entered a convenience store that stood brightly lit on an otherwise dark and quiet street. It was small, but tables for eating lined one wall. The convenience store worker who had been arranging the shelves froze when they saw us. It was understandable that they would be startled. They slipped behind the counter, then kept sneaking glances while pretending not to look.
“Maybe because it’s late, but there’s not much left.”
Yerim said this as she picked up a hot bar. There were no boxed meals at all, and only a few triangle kimbap remained. While I swept the triangle kimbap into a basket, Yerim took out udon and cup noodles, disappointed that there was no cheese.
Thankfully, I had not lost my wallet. Naturally, it was wet, and my phone was dead, so there was little chance my cards still worked. Feeling apologetic, I carefully pulled out two 50,000-won bills, making sure they would not tear, and spread them out on one side of the counter.
“Please consider the change payment for cleanup. Could I make one phone call?”
The worker kindly lent me their phone. I called Haeyeon Guild and was soon connected to Seok Simyeong. I explained our situation and asked about the people who had taken refuge in the forge.
“Yes, they have all already been rescued.”
Apparently, a rescue team had been sent not long after the ship sank. I had wondered how they managed it in the middle of the sea, but Riette had transformed into a dragon and carried them. Noah had wings too, so even without a rescue team, they would have been able to reach land easily.
I asked the worker for our location and told Seok Simyeong. Fortunately, we were not too far from Seoul.
“They said they’ll be here within an hour. They also said they’ll contact Sesung.”
It would be better for us to wait quietly at the convenience store than move around. While Yerim filled the cup noodles with hot water, I lined the triangle kimbap up on the table. I handed one to Mr. Seong as well. I wanted to tell him to go hungry since it was his own fault, but it was still his birthday.
‘...But has he ever had triangle kimbap before?’
I turned to look at Seong Hyeonje again, just in case. The triangle kimbap in his large hand looked terribly out of place. He probably had not. It must have been his first time. What if he did not know how to unwrap it?
My heart suddenly began to pound.
“It’s edible, so eat it.”
Quickly. Seong Hyeonje, who had been looking at me, lowered his gaze to the triangle kimbap. Come on, hurry up and unwrap it. Maybe I should have microwaved some popcorn.
Seong Hyeonje’s other hand moved toward the triangle kimbap. He held one end, slowly turned it, and revealed the instruction diagram on the bottom.
This could not be happening.
“How unfair, looking at the instructions!”
“Aren’t they there to be read?”
Well, yes! But did he really have to read them here? As I watched in betrayed disbelief, Seong Hyeonje pulled the red strip as instructed on the wrapper. Then he pulled the plastic to either side and unwrapped it perfectly. Seriously, what a disappointment. As I could not hide my regret, Yerim’s excited voice rang out.
“Han Yoohyun, you can’t even eat triangle kimbap properly!”
What? Why Yoohyun? I quickly turned my head and saw white rice exposed without any seaweed. Yoohyun was staring down at the triangle kimbap with a slightly flustered expression.
“It’s okay, I’ll do it for you.”
“How do you not know? Haven’t you eaten triangle kimbap before, Guildmaster?”
“Hyung told me to make sure I ate proper meals.”
Yoohyun answered Yerim, who looked fascinated.
“Still, before you Awakened, you were an ordinary high school student, right? People eat convenience store triangle kimbap as snacks and stuff. What about other things? Don’t tell me you’ve never had cup noodles either?”
“I haven’t.”
At Yoohyun’s words, Yerim opened her mouth wide. She laughed dramatically.
“Wow, sir! Really? Han Yoohyun has never even had ramen?”
“It’s not like he’s never had any. I sometimes cooked packet ramen for him at home. It isn’t healthy. Besides, you need to eat properly while you’re still growing.”
He was growing, after all. It was better to make sure he ate well whenever possible.
“...Still, weren’t you curious? So much is sold out that I can’t show our Guildmaster proper convenience store food.”
Yerim sounded disappointed as she pushed the udon toward me.
“Have some warm broth.”
“Thanks.”
“Han Yoohyun, do you want ramen too? I’ll even pour in the water for you. You know cup noodles need hot water and time, right?”
“No.”
“Do you know that bibim noodles exist? They have the difficult cooking method of draining the water before adding the seasoning. What about rabokki? Have you tried tteokbokki? Ah, don’t tell me you haven’t had hamburgers either?”
Hamburgers... Had he tried them? I did not remember ever buying one for him. Still, we occasionally ordered pizza or chicken.
“Mr. Seong, would you like some ramen too?”
He did not seem like someone who had ever eaten cup noodles either. He had at least finished the triangle kimbap. He had overturned the birthday meal that had been set out with his own hands, but it was still his birthday, and I felt the tiniest bit sorry for him. Ramen and triangle kimbap were a little sad for a birthday. ...Letting a birthday pass without much thought did not sit well with me, even if it was someone annoying. Though the birthday person had thoroughly ruined it himself.
“Wait a moment.”
I stopped Seong Hyeonje before he could answer and turned around. There had been cake on the shelf. I picked up a slice of tiramisu and asked the worker whether they had any candles. They did not have birthday candles, but they had ordinary candles. A candle was a candle.
I unwrapped the cake and set it on the table. Then I stuck the candle in the middle. Yoohyun lit it even though he did not look pleased about it. It looked ridiculous, but it was still a candle on a cake.
“Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday, annoying Mr. Seong, happy birthday to you.”
Why was nobody else singing? This was embarrassing. Yerim, stop looking at me like that. I was already embarrassed enough.
“Make a wish and blow out the candle.”
“A wish.”
“You don’t have one?”
“Well.”
“Just think of something you want right now, or whatever, and blow it out.”
Seong Hyeonje looked at me for a moment before blowing out the candle. Guys, clap with me. I am really embarrassed right now. Was that unnecessary?
Not long after, cars arrived one after another. Haeyeon Guild, Sesung, and even people from the Association. The moment I saw Song Taewon among them, guilt naturally washed over me. Of course, I had not caused the explosion, but if I had let things go as usual, nothing would have happened. Probably. ...Or would it? It seemed like he might have wanted to set it off as a test anyway.
“I feel like I say this too often, but if you ever need help, please let me know.”
Song Taewon gave a short shake of his head at my words.
“It is all right. Since there were no non-Awakened casualties, there is little for me to do. Once the incident report is submitted, the Association plans to issue an appropriate punishment.”
“It’s fortunate it happened at sea.”
“...It is fortunate.”
Fatigue instantly darkened Song Taewon’s usually impassive face. His gaze moved to Seong Hyeonje. Yes, it must be tiring just to see him. I understood.
“Director Song, you probably know more about the Sesung Guildmaster than I do, don’t you?”
I asked suddenly. They had been entangled for nearly three years, so he could not help but know him even if he did not want to. And later, he had even given him a skill. Why had he done that? I still did not know, and I was still curious.
“I do not know him well.”
“But you have watched him.”
“Even if I watched him for ten more years, I would not be confident in saying that I know him.”
Song Taewon’s gaze turned to me again. His gaze was as deeply subdued as always.
“Han Yujin, you are difficult in a different sense as well.”
“I am relatively ordinary. Compared to him, at least.”
What I wanted was simple and ordinary. There was nothing particularly special about me either. It had always been that way. It was only that the people I wanted to hold close were special. I was merely struggling to keep up with them somehow. Because I did not want to lose them.
“Han Yujin.”
Seong Hyeonje approached us. He held a phone in one hand. He showed me its screen, where my number was displayed. The space for a name was blank.
“What do you want?”
“...Are you asking me?”
“Who else would I ask?”
The place marked Item had been erased. Seong Hyeonje looked down at me quietly. Despite his casual tone, his gaze felt heavy. If I was not something he owned, or planned to own, he might treat me worse than before. One mistake might earn me merciless retaliation.
That was what it meant to stand side by side. Showing generosity and tolerance was something reserved for those beneath you.
I took the phone. If I entered the old label again, things would return to how they were.
I turned my head. Yoohyun was talking with Seok Simyeong. Beside him, Yerim had been lightly kicking the ground with her foot. She met my eyes and smiled brightly.
“Here.”
I tapped on the keyboard a few times and handed the phone back to Seong Hyeonje.
“We are business partners, I suppose. I look forward to working with you from now on, Mr. Seong Hyeonje.”
“I look forward to it as well.”
That was a frightening thing to say, expecting things from me. Seong Hyeonje looked down at his phone and adjusted the label slightly.
My partner.
“...Why did you add that again?”
I protested, but he did not even pretend to hear me and turned away. Song Taewon watched me sigh with a complicated expression. He looked like he wanted to say something, but he quietly turned away as well.
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