WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ The S-Classes That I Raised ◈

Chapter 48: Getting Stronger Sometimes (3)

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C-Class defensive Hunter Park Sanghoon’s eyes widened when he saw me.

“No, how did you...?!”

“Where’s the key to the Flame-Horned Lion’s pen?”

Park Sanghoon looked flustered, then let out a mocking snort.

“You got lucky and escaped with F-Class stats, and instead of running, you crawled all the way in here?”

Well, well.

“Looks like you used an item since you’re not wearing an inventory sealing bracelet, but no matter how good your equipment is, an F-Class can’t touch a C-Class. Then again, would a rookie who’s never even properly cleared a dungeon know that?”

He rose leisurely from his seat. His attitude said he was certain he could catch me easily even if I turned and ran.

“I asked where the key to the Flame-Horned Lion’s pen is.”

“You’re looking after it like it’s your own kid. It’s in my inventory. What are you going to do about it?”

He chuckled as if daring me to attack.

If it was in his inventory, the key must be made of dungeon metal. What a hassle.

An inventory was a space no one else could interfere with. Only its owner could take out the items inside.

“Why don’t you take out the key first, and then we can talk?”

“Why should I?”

His expression, which had gone beyond looking down on me and into openly mocking me, was irritating. He didn’t look like he would hand it over willingly, so he could take a beating first.

I pulled out a tentacle and swung it at his cheek.

Smack!

“Urk?!”

Park Sanghoon’s face snapped to the side. I hadn’t put poison in it, so he wasn’t poisoned, but a bright red welt remained. Park Sanghoon touched his cheek in confusion.

“W-What was that...?”

He hadn’t seen it? Then I’d hit him again.

Smack!

With a crisp sound, I gave his other cheek an equal slap. This time, I put more force into it, so not only his head but his whole body spun sideways.

He still looked like he had no idea what was happening, but he seemed to realize I was responsible.

“...A-An item?”

“No.”

“Th-Then...”

What else would it be? A skill. I flipped him off and used Thorn Trap.

“Gaaah!”

Clatter!

The chair toppled over, and Park Sanghoon fell with it, flopping like a hooked fish.

Blackie, I really liked your skill. The tentacles were truly useful too, as long as I could ignore how creepy they were. If it weren’t limited to seven days, I could put them to good use in daily life too. I could lie on the couch and bring over a faraway remote, or open the refrigerator without going into the kitchen.

...Poor Blackie.

After letting out a sigh, I approached Park Sanghoon, who was shaking. When I nudged him with my foot, he looked up at me with tear-filled eyes. Ugh. What an eyesore.

Clicking my tongue, I cancelled Thorn Trap. The moment the skill was cancelled, his convulsing body abruptly stopped. Park Sanghoon twisted his upper body, then sprang up like a zombie.

“Graaah!”

He charged at me, drooling as he screamed. Ugh, disgusting. I didn’t even want to touch him with my foot after seeing his face, so I lightly stepped aside.

Crash!

Park Sanghoon rammed directly into a metal locker. Its doors rattled, and papers scattered through the gaps.

His veiny hand gripped the locker. He lifted it easily and hurled it at me.

I jumped backward, avoiding the locker as it flew at me. Crash! It knocked desks and chairs aside before slamming into the floor, and documents spread across the ground like fallen leaves.

“Break it all. Smash everything.”

While I had stepped back a few paces, he took out a weapon and armor.

“Looks like you had a hidden skill, but you don’t even have combat experience...”

Fine, whatever. Thorn Trap.

“Gah!”

Park Sanghoon collapsed and flopped around again. The curse resistance on his armor must have been low.

“Hand over the key quietly, and I’ll let you live.”

Of course, I had no intention of really letting him live.

When I cancelled Thorn Trap again, Park Sanghoon groaned and raised his head. His filthy face was full of resentment.

“...Fuck, why were you even kidnapped?”

“You don’t need to know that. And that isn’t the only skill I have.”

I took off my glove and picked up a pen from the desk. When I coated my fingertips in sticky poison, the pen melted black. After shaking off the melted poison and pen, black holes appeared wherever the droplets landed. The sight of it burning away with a foul smell was quite chilling.

I put my glove back on and smiled at him.

“Will you hand over the key, or would you rather melt slowly from your toes up?”

Fear finally appeared on Park Sanghoon’s face.

“I-I’ll give it to you. If you sign a contract...”

“Gladly.”

It was almost certainly an illegal contract.

Sure enough, the contract Park Sanghoon took out of his inventory had no Association certification. The curse attached to it was not a time-limited skill seal or stat reduction, but permanent damage to one’s eyesight.

“I will give you the key on the condition that you guarantee my safety.”

“What guarantee? Don’t write something vague. Set the terms properly. For the next twenty-four hours, I won’t attack you. Run away as well as you can. In exchange, take the key to the Flame-Horned Lion’s pen out of your inventory, and never speak a word about me for the rest of your life.”

It would’ve been fine to write it roughly, but he might get suspicious, so I demanded detailed terms. Looking much more relieved, Park Sanghoon wrote down the conditions. He signed first, and I signed after him.

“Here’s the key.”

Trusting only the contract, he casually tossed the key to me. His speech had become rude again too. I put the key in my inventory first, then waved the contract.

“I’m really sorry to shatter your hopes, but.”

I gripped both ends of the parchment and slowly twisted it.

“One of my hobbies is tearing up contracts.”

There was a little resistance, but no contract in this world could possibly stand against L-Class Curse Resistance.

Riiip.

The parchment tore across the middle, and the curse contained in the contract scattered like bubbles. I then completely melted it away with poison.

I spoke coldly to Park Sanghoon, who stared blankly at the remains of the dissolved contract.

“Now it’s your turn.”

I would’ve liked to leave his body intact, but there was a girl who could read memories from corpses.

* * *

After dealing with Park Sanghoon, I returned to the room where Kim Woojae was.

The moment I opened the door, the unpleasant smell of urine stabbed my nose.

“Ugh, that stinks.”

This bastard had pissed himself. Tears, snot, and drool ran down his face, but his eyes still gleamed as he glared at me. He had some grit, at least.

“Looking at you, it seems you won’t talk until the end.”

There wasn’t much else I needed. It would be troublesome if I ran into the people coming to rescue me while questioning him about the exact mastermind, so should I end it here? There were still four people left, and there should be physical evidence somewhere in this building. The others would take care of the rest.

I removed the inventory sealing bracelet from Kim Woojae and put it back on my wrist.

I didn’t want blood to splatter, so I took off my glove and dripped poison onto Kim Woojae’s face.

“Ghk, gk!”

Perhaps because of Thorn Trap, he couldn’t even scream properly. Before long, even that stopped. His head melted away in the poison, followed by his upper body spreading out in a black, sticky mess.

Yerim’s White Corpse could only be used if at least two-thirds of the body remained. There wouldn’t be enough left to draw out Kim Woojae’s memories.

Not that I wanted to make a kid search through the memories of a bastard like him in the first place. I hoped she wouldn’t have to use that skill until she was an adult.

‘When they see this, they’ll think it was done by a Hunter with poison and curse skills.’

Would they suspect there had been internal conflict?

Seeing the ruined body left a bitter taste in my mouth.

‘I thought I wouldn’t have to kill anyone this time.’

I’d already killed two people. It was the kidnappers’ fault, but still. Why did they have to bother someone trying to live peacefully? Just leave me alone.

“...They’re making me feel troubled in more ways than one.”

I turned to look at Blackie’s corpse. If someone else found it, they would collect it and use it as materials. Dragon species corpses had many uses. It was C-Class too, so it was a decent grade. Still, I didn’t want to leave it that way.

I melted Blackie’s body, which had already hardened, with poison. As a poison dragon, it had greater resistance than the B-Class Kim Woojae, but it didn’t last long.

In the small poison swamp left behind, a red jewel-like stone remained.

A mana stone.

I stared at it for a moment, then picked it up and placed it in an empty mana stone powder vial.

* * *

After finishing everything, I hurried back to where Peace was.

I had only put curses on the remaining four and left them there. They hadn’t seen me, and they weren’t the leaders.

Of course, that didn’t mean they were innocent. Setting aside the kidnapping, if they were trusted by the guildmaster of a guild that raised monsters to place vicious curses on disobedient people, a crime or two would mean nothing to them.

Still, if I just restrained them, the people coming to rescue me would find them and handle things themselves.

“Peace, are you still asleep?”

I opened the pen with the key and went inside. It was so large that even if I stood up, my head wouldn’t reach the ceiling.

Escaping would look suspicious, and there was a high chance I’d be bombarded with questions. If I stayed trapped here with Peace, they would come rescue us.

I was a little worried that someone unexpected might show up before then, but surely no one A-Class or above would appear. If there had been an A-Class, they would’ve come out already.

‘Even if an A-Class did appear, it’s not as though I couldn’t beat them while they’re off guard.’

I reached out from inside and locked the door, then put the key in my inventory. Should I pretend to be asleep too?

When I lay down hugging Peace, who was sleeping with soft rumbles, drowsiness really came over me. I had gone to bed late last night. Maybe I’d close my eyes for just a little while. My stats were above B-Class now, so I would notice someone approaching quickly.

I stroked the warm, soft fur and closed my eyes.

“Don’t die before I do.”

You were an S-Class dungeon boss monster, after all. You should live at least a hundred years longer than someone with F-Class stats.

* * *

Park Yerim bit the tip of her fingernail. It was a habit she had developed after losing her parents and coming to live with her uncle. But after Awakening, she had thought she would no longer have to bite her nails and be helpless on her own.

She was anxious and uneasy.

Suppressing the urge to run out immediately, she instead opened her status window and looked at the skill she had never used before.

[White Corpse (S)]

She raised her hand, her fingers twitching just short of the skill’s name.

It was a skill she was reluctant to use. She hoped she would never need it. But at this moment, it felt more welcome than any other skill.

Then the phone of Kim Jiyeon, who was with her, rang briefly. At the same time, Park Yerim’s shoulders tightened slightly.

“We’ve arrived.”

At Kim Jiyeon’s words, Park Yerim shook off her faint tension and strode forward without hesitation.

Haeyeon Guildmaster Han Yoohyun stood where she arrived. His face as he looked at her was cold beyond measure. Her sensitive sense of smell caught the scent of blood.

“The person is in that room.”

Han Yoohyun spoke. Park Yerim met him with a chilly look.

“Once I find out what happened, we need to talk.”

Han Yoohyun raised the tip of an eyebrow slightly at her words.

“Or you can make excuses.”

“Excuses?”

“Yes, excuses. You said there would be no problem with Mister’s safety, so what is this?”

With those sharp words, Park Yerim entered the room. The door closed with a bang!

Han Yujin wanted Han Yoohyun and Park Yerim to get along, but that was extremely difficult.

The higher one’s stat rank, the more keenly one could sense the abilities of other Awakened above a certain rank. Not enough to identify detailed stats and skills, of course.

It was a kind of scent.

The scent of an Awakened person’s aptitude, especially a high-rank attack-type aptitude, was particularly strong. Strong enough that one couldn’t ignore it even if they wanted to.

Park Yerim possessed cold, while Han Yoohyun possessed heat. They couldn’t feel warmly toward someone whose elemental affinity was so opposed to theirs that it could become a weakness.

It might have been fine if their ranks were different, but the two were both S-Class, with only a difference in level. Naturally, they didn’t merely dislike each other. They were wary of one another.

And now, with both of them as tense as could be, simply facing each other built up stress. It felt as if the cord of their patience had been pulled taut to its limit.

Not long after, Park Yerim came outside. White, firefly-like lights carrying a chill wrapped around her body, and her face was deeply creased.

“Ugh, that feels disgusting.”

“Keep it from my brother.”

Han Yoohyun instructed her. If his brother found out Park Yerim had used White Corpse, he would certainly disapprove. Even if Park Yerim had stepped forward of her own will, there was no need to tell him on purpose.

Park Yerim nodded and told him what she had read. There were three places where Han Yujin was likely being held. Han Yoohyun immediately contacted Seok Simyeong and ordered a search.

“Why was Mister kidnapped? You said Haeyeon Guild had airtight security.”

After waiting for Han Yoohyun’s call to end, Park Yerim crossed her arms and fired the question at him. Han Yoohyun looked at her.

It was a complaint he could have ignored. She was only a fifteen-year-old girl who didn’t need to know so many things about the world. But she was also an S-Class Hunter and a member of Haeyeon Guild. As Haeyeon’s guildmaster and a senior S-Class Hunter, Han Yoohyun had a duty to inform her.

Besides, there was nothing they could do but wait for the search to end. Han Yoohyun spoke quietly.

“Under normal circumstances, this is an incident that should never happen.”

“What? What do you mean?”

“It would be better for Hunter Park Yerim to learn this now as well.”

Originally, it was something she was meant to learn when the time came to form her own team. Han Yoohyun continued calmly.

“Hunters of A-Class and below who directly serve an S-Class Hunter have almost no chance of betraying them.”

“None? Aren’t you trusting people too easily for a guildmaster?”

Park Yerim looked doubtful. This was a world where people abandoned even their families for money.

“More accurately, it applies only to those who have cleared an S-Class dungeon together. After facing an S-Class dungeon boss monster they could never defeat with their own abilities, seeing an S-Class Hunter fight that monster on equal terms from close by, and recognizing that an S-Class dungeon break could happen at any time, a strong sense of subordination forms.”

“Uh, uh... I don’t really understand. So S-Class Hunters are so strong that people can’t betray them and just follow them? Really?”

Though doubtful, Park Yerim honestly asked out of curiosity.

“It is similar to a survival instinct. They follow an S-Class Hunter to survive, so betrayal feels equivalent to death to a subordinate Hunter.”

Of course, it did not happen one hundred percent of the time.

It did not work well on Hunters with sufficient experience. The same was true for those with high Mental Power stats or Fear Resistance. It also had almost no effect on Hunters of C-Class and below, who could not clearly sense the abilities of S-Class monsters and Hunters. Even subordinate A-Class and B-Class Hunters could break free under the influence of another S-Class Hunter.

Even so, with a little care in management, it was possible to make up the main guild membership solely of people one could trust.

“This is also a major reason why Haeyeon Guild established itself and grew so quickly.”

No matter how exceptional an S-Class Hunter was, Han Yoohyun had been far too young to enter society. If there had not been a way to make trustworthy retainers, it would have been nearly impossible to grow the guild so quickly.

“For that reason, the Hunters assigned as my brother’s bodyguards were direct subordinates of the guildmaster and at least B-Class.”

“But Mister was kidnapped.”

A chilly light appeared in Han Yoohyun’s eyes at Park Yerim’s words.

“MKC Guildmaster Choi Seokwon. It means Choi Seokwon has lost control within the guild.”

“Lost control?”

“MKC Guild receives support from non-Awakened power brokers. Unlike Haeyeon, which centers on Hunters, its internal power structure is divided in two.”

That made it easier for it to rot from within than a Hunter-centered guild.

“I expected it to start wavering now that the Hunter and dungeon systems have settled and society has become relatively stable. They are trying to seriously reap the returns on their investment.”

But it had happened sooner than he expected. Park Yerim looked at Han Yoohyun a little differently after hearing his explanation.

“You really are a guildmaster, then. Honestly, I wasn’t completely convinced. You’re only five years older than me.”

He was still unpleasant and irritating, but she felt she could trust him as a guildmaster. Han Yoohyun answered coldly.

“I still cannot trust Hunter Park Yerim with my brother’s safety.”

“Why? I’ll take really good care of Mister!”

“First, you lack ability. Second, you lack experience...”

“Th-That’s true, but still.”

It was only natural, since she had awakened not long ago. Even so, Park Yerim stuck out her lips in dissatisfaction.

“Just wait, Guildmaster. I’ll catch up to you within a year!”

Han Yoohyun completely ignored her confident declaration, and Park Yerim’s lips stuck out even further.

“Anyway, normally no one can betray someone the way they betrayed Mister, right? Still, tying people down like that would feel kind of unpleasant.”

“S-Class Hunters and Hunters of A-Class and below are different enough to be considered different species. Get used to it quickly.”

“But Mister treats me normally even though he’s F-Class. He treats you that way too.”

“My brother is... unusual.”

Han Yoohyun spoke as he recalled the past. Han Yujin had poured affection and attentive care on him, even when their parents had kept their distance.

It had been the same right after Han Yoohyun awakened. Until their relationship had gone wrong, his older brother had continued to worry about his younger brother, an S-Class Awakened, and wished that he would not do dangerous things.

“My brother is unusually strange, so don’t entertain pointless expectations.”

“What expectations?”

“Not only low-rank Awakened but non-Awakened people instinctively avoid S-Class Awakened.”

Park Yerim’s eyes widened at his words.

“What does that mean?”

“Simply put, think of prey facing a predator. As Hunter Park Yerim’s level and stats rise, that reaction will become stronger.”

“Th-Then that can’t happen!”

Park Yerim spoke in alarm. Ordinary people would be afraid of her?

“You can control your mana and conceal your presence. Start practicing now.”

“If I hide it, will it be okay?”

“Yes. But use it only when necessary. If you conceal your aura habitually, it could interfere with the smooth flow of mana.”

Since it meant forcibly suppressing one’s strength, it was not beneficial. That was why many high-rank Hunters obtained accommodations and lived within the guild.

Even non-Awakened people became much less afraid once they grew accustomed to them. That also made facilities within or near large guilds convenient to use.

“Hunter Park Yerim is a mage type, so you will be able to control it easily.”

“Yes.”

Park Yerim nodded. Not long after, they received a call. The two hurriedly set out for the place where Han Yujin had been kidnapped.

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