WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR
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◈ The S-Classes That I Raised ◈
Chapter 200: Breaker Guild (4)
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“Didn’t you say before that both Breaker and MKC had figurehead guildmasters?”
“I did. That’s a big part of why MKC is collapsing now that its Guildmaster has gone missing. Sudam at least managed to hold on because the deputy Guildmaster pulled things together. But MKC is practically on the verge of dissolution. With the Guildmaster gone, do you think young high-ranking Hunters will put up with non-Awakened old men throwing their weight around and telling them what to do?”
They definitely would not. Their guild was already about to lose status because its S-Class Hunter had vanished. If people who had never once entered a dungeon started meddling as though they were their superiors, few Hunters would stay.
“Better to run even if you have to pay the contract termination penalty. Besides, Haeyeon Guild has just formed two new S-Class teams, Sesung has a new S-Class team as well and is recruiting more people, and capable A-Class Hunters can make their own guilds. Who would stay in that situation?”
Hunter contracts, unlike those for regular employees, were often directly tied to the Guildmaster. That made them easier to terminate if the Guildmaster went missing like this. Moon Hyuna laughed as she said that MKC’s investors, in their desperation, had approached not only Yerim but Noah and Riette as well.
“It would’ve been fun if Riette had taken over as Guildmaster. Sorry to Manager Song, of course.”
“That would be a complete disaster.”
Given the location, the National Assembly Building might disappear along with the guild. A gigantic black dragon appearing in Yeouido, Director Song Taewon working overtime... No, Riette really would not do. With that temper, she would not last even a day.
“What do you think, Ms. Hyuna? About Breaker as it is now, I mean.”
At my question, Moon Hyuna sat on the edge of the table. She gestured for me to sit too. The table was a bit much, so I sat in a chair instead.
“What do I think? I’m waiting for my contract period to end. It’s a five-year contract.”
She had not intended to stay tied down forever, of course. Moon Hyuna continued, lightly swinging one foot.
“There’s less than half left now, and the terms aren’t that bad either. We didn’t know much about items in the beginning. We discovered strangely quickly that mana stones could be used as an energy source, but that was it. So we agreed to split only mana stones fifty-fifty, while items belonged entirely to the raid team.”
Come to think of it, the value of mana stones had become known soon after dungeons appeared. There was no information about who had discovered it, either. Had the unfilial bastards intervened? Without a convincing reward, the Hunter system and guilds would not have formed as quickly as they had.
“They threw a fit once the value of items went up, but what could they do? If they have a problem with it, they can clear dungeons themselves.”
“Just making an initial investment and sitting comfortably while collecting mana stones is already plenty. There must be safety-related clauses too.”
“Of course! If a dungeon break occurs, we’re supposed to send high-ranking guild members first. They can evacuate to the guild building, too. They even asked to use us as bodyguards when they went on vacation overseas. I turned them down, since the contract was domestic only.”
For dungeon byproducts that required further processing, they divided the shares in exchange for handling their management and disposal.
Perhaps because it was a contract made before much was known about dungeons, the terms themselves were certainly decent. They had interfered in small ways, such as the guild’s image or requests for cooperation, but management of affiliated Hunters was entirely at the discretion of the Guildmaster and the founding members.
“Then it doesn’t sound bad enough to call you a figurehead guildmaster.”
“For one thing, I don’t own much of the guild’s stake. My authority is limited to dungeon raids. Dungeon raids are the heart of a Hunter guild, but if I pack my things and leave on my own, I can’t even use the Breaker name.”
There were a little over two years left on the contract. But as far as I remembered, Breaker had never become independent. I had no way of knowing the details, but they must not have been able to end the contract amicably. Considering that they fell apart not long afterward, the contract terms probably worsened as well.
“Do you think they’ll let you end the contract easily? They might even try to renew it with item shares included.”
“It won’t be easy, but if it comes down to it, we can change our name. We’re established enough now that we can start over.”
Moon Hyuna said it lightly. She really could walk away and climb back up quickly, but before my regression...
‘...Was it because of the Awakening Center?’
There had been a time when large numbers of poorly Awakened low-ranking Hunters died, and public criticism toward high-ranking Hunters, especially Guildmasters, became intense. Haeyeon Guild suffered particularly badly, and I got deeply caught up in it too.
For guilds tied to large corporations like Breaker and MKC, their Guildmasters’ authority would inevitably have weakened after that. There must have been other reasons for Breaker’s renewed contract, but the Awakening Center could not have had a small impact.
‘That won’t happen this time, though.’
The Awakening Center was being diligently rebuilt, but its system was going to change from before. Its head had changed first of all, and they had decided not to produce Awakened recklessly. So Breaker might be able to end its contract safely and stand on its own.
“Still, we should prepare in advance since we don’t know how they might try to hold you back. If possible, the best outcome would be for Breaker to take them over instead without leaving its current base.”
The established building, facilities, and other connections were far too valuable to abandon. At my words, Moon Hyuna hunched over and rested her chin on her hand. Maybe because I was looking up at her, but she still seemed large even curled up like that.
“The guild building and other facilities are not in the guild’s name. The investors provided them. Of course, I have the money to buy all of it. The problem is that they’ll never want to sell.”
“What about the regular employees?”
“I told you, I only manage the Hunters.”
That was a problem too. Was there no way to separate completely? I did not have much information, and I knew little about this area, so there was no chance that racking my brain would produce a good solution.
I really did not know.
“You can’t just secretly get rid of all of them or threaten them, right?”
“You’re surprisingly violent, Director Han.”
“On the surface, there were three large corporations connected to Breaker, right?”
“There are some politicians too. And high-ranking civil servants. They said they’d join the board after retirement.”
That damned board. How could we legally drive them all out? Was it even possible? It seemed like it would need at least a little illegality. As I worried over it, Moon Hyuna looked down at me with a smile.
“You really care about this. Even though it’s someone else’s business.”
“It’s not completely someone else’s business.”
“Still, reorganizing your rearing facility alone must be giving you enough of a headache.”
“I do have my own problems.”
But the rearing facility was unlikely to collapse or be threatened. There might be some trouble in operating independently, but the facilities were in my name, and other guilds had only been interfering for a short time. It was not yet too difficult for it to stand alone. Deep roots were difficult to pull out, but shallow ones were easy.
“I hope Breaker Guild, and Guildmaster Moon Hyuna, continue to do well for a long time without wavering.”
“Because you personally like me? Or for another reason?”
“Both.”
At first, I simply thought Haeyeon would take everything, just as it had before my regression. Moon Hyuna was an S-Class Hunter with excellent abilities, so I thought all we had to do was take her. But that was shortsighted, looking only at a Hunter’s individual abilities.
Of course, S-Class Hunters being important remained true. But everything built around them over three years held great value as well. No matter how capable someone was, no one could do everything alone.
‘Honestly, Moon Hyuna seems more capable as a Guildmaster.’
My little brother was outstanding, but he was still young, so he was a bit lacking when it came to looking after others. ...Mr. Seok Simyeong had been a great help. Yoohyun was very capable as an individual Hunter, though.
Moon Hyuna, on the other hand, probably took good care of those around her, judging by the fact that the Woods Guildmaster had come to see her. I would need to examine the guild atmosphere more closely, but setting all personal feelings aside and looking at it objectively, Moon Hyuna was better suited to being a Guildmaster.
...Our kid is still young. Seong Hyeonje had also said that building a guild did not suit Yoohyun’s disposition. People did have aptitudes for things like this. No one could be good at everything. Having a few shortcomings made someone more human and more endearing... Anyway, that was how it was.
“There aren’t any listening devices here, right?”
“Of course not. We mainly receive important guests here.”
“If we can’t stop the dungeons, the world will end.”
I explained, including the unfilial bastards’ warning. If Moon Hyuna was going to remain a Guildmaster, she needed to know the situation.
“It’s hardly new that the world will end if all the dungeons break.”
Without looking particularly surprised, Moon Hyuna tilted her head and murmured.
“So Director Han wants me to preserve as much of my power base as possible?”
“Yes. That would be much more advantageous. Of course, assuming you cooperate, Ms. Hyuna.”
“Why wouldn’t I cooperate? I have a lot of people I want to protect too. Most people probably do. Though I’m not sure about Seong Hyeonje.”
I was not sure either. Building a guild could have been for his own convenience. It would be convenient once it was established, after all. But a reason for wanting to protect the world... Hmm. Still, he had broken away from the Filial Piety Addicts.
“So your goal is to save the world, Director Han?”
“You make it sound grand. I’m only in a position to offer help. Let’s make domestic stabilization the short-term goal.”
At the latest, mounts would be distributed to the major domestic guilds within a year. Blue and Comet would soon finish growing, so there would be three S-Class mounts, plus the unicorns. If stamina potions were made, we could speed things up even more.
By then, Myeongu would be reliably producing S-Class equipment or better. The Awakening Center would differ from before my regression, and if I worked myself ragged, the number of people with special skills would increase too. Yoohyun, Yerim, Kim Seonghan, and Moon Hyuna had my skill, so their growth would accelerate as well. Yun Yun would obviously be a huge help too, but where were they?
Anyway, we would be able to reach the level from before my regression much faster.
“And also...”
My voice trailed off as I unconsciously placed a hand against my chest.
There was not much time left until the magical beast containing an L-Class mana stone was complete. At the very least, it would be SS-Class. It might even be SSS-Class or above. It was probably highly likely to be a cursed poison dragon species. If so, it would be doubled, then doubled again.
For just seven days, I would be L-Class. I had been told that F-Class stats could not safely escape this world. But during those seven days when I used Final Grace, could I not go look for them myself?
‘...I hope it looks like that damned Lizard’s Owner.’
Then I would not feel as guilty. Dragonkin would be fine too. Surely it would not come out as a child. Seong Hyeonje’s fragment cannot interfere, right?
“Until now, I think things will go well.”
There were the suspicious unfilial bastards and the jellyfish, but they could not interfere much. The jellyfish could not do much by itself without a medium.
For now, I would firmly protect Korea, and overseas too... Did I really have to worry about foreign countries as well? There had to be Guildmasters abroad who were sensible, capable, and easy to communicate with. I hoped simply establishing cooperative relationships would be enough. Please.
Every country should protect itself.
“If there’s a time limit, then maybe walking away and starting over isn’t such a good idea. I’ll have to think about it.”
Moon Hyuna got down from the table and patted my shoulder.
“Let’s eat lunch first! The seaweed soup at our sauna is incredible.”
“You said men aren’t allowed in.”
“It’s separated, so it’s fine. There’s an entrance that leads directly to the sauna, so men aren’t allowed in.”
She pulled me along as she spoke.
“I’ll decline anyway. It could look bad, so it’s better not to do anything that might be criticized.”
And Myeongu’s cooking was incredible too. I was not going to be tempted by some popular restaurant.
“You’re quite picky, Director. I’m really in the mood for seaweed soup right now.”
As we turned down the hallway, wondering what to do, we ran into someone who looked like a Hunter. It was a familiar face.
“Choi Gaeun is an A-Class team leader at Breaker. Gaeun, this is Director Han Yujin of the Mount Rearing Facility.”
Moon Hyuna introduced us with a grin. Choi Gaeun was an A-Class Hunter, and if my memory was correct, one of the early Awakened who had Awakened alongside Moon Hyuna. Choi Gaeun slightly bowed her head toward me. I returned the greeting.
“Would you like to have lunch with us too? How about seaweed soup?”
“Even if it is closer to an outside facility, is that all right?”
Choi Gaeun looked at me as she spoke. Exactly.
“Oh, this is a secret, but Director Han is actually a woman.”
“Excuse me?”
“Excuse me?”
Choi Gaeun and I both stared at Moon Hyuna in disbelief. What nonsense was that all of a sudden? Moon Hyuna spoke shamelessly, amusement in her expression.
“That’s why he came all the way to our guild. To get advice about it.”
“Ah...”
Choi Gaeun looked at me with a confused expression. No, was there anything to think about? Choi Gaeun was not really confused, was she?
“I see.”
“I’m not!”
Do not accept that! Moon Hyuna began laughing heartily, and I hurriedly blurted out an explanation. But why did I even have to explain myself?
“I’m a man! You can tell just by looking!”
“Judging from your body type and bone structure, that does seem to be the case, but we cannot be certain.”
“What?”
“You may have used a skill or an item. Some skills can partially alter physical features. So I judged there was a possibility.”
Choi Gaeun spoke seriously. It sounded plausible enough that I found myself nodding.
“There might be items or skills like that, but... I have been male since I was born.”
“I see. My apologies.”
“It’s fine. Guildmaster Moon Hyuna was only joking.”
Please stop laughing. Moon Hyuna casually draped an arm over my shoulder.
“What does our Director want to eat? I’ll buy you something good!”
“Anything ordinary is fine. Just not sauna food.”
“You’re not sulking, are you?”
“I’m not.”
The restaurant Moon Hyuna took me to, soothing me and claiming it was the best nearby, was certainly delicious. After lunch, she also gave me a thorough tour of Breaker Guild. One team was raiding a dungeon, and there were not many people around because it was lunchtime, but the atmosphere was clearly good.
In particular, I could feel their deep affection and trust toward their Guildmaster.
After finishing the tour of Breaker Guild, I headed to the Hunter Association regarding the Japanese dungeon. I had planned to return to the rearing facility and go with Noah or another A-Class Hunter, but Moon Hyuna said she would go instead, so we went straight to the Association.
Several Hunters stood at the first-floor reception desk, and I saw Song Taewon nearby. He quietly met my gaze. He looked fine on the surface.
“Hello, Manager Song.”
He returned my light greeting with a bow. He really did look fine. Why had Seong Hyeonje said that?
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