WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ The S-Classes That I Raised ◈
Chapter 55: Peep (4)
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“What do you think you’re doing?!”
Heat flared up inside me in an instant. Of course, Peace had not been hurt in the slightest. It landed very lightly.
That did not mean it was fine to throw him around. Look at him, he had frozen up in surprise.
“…Huh? Why...?”
My little brother looked flustered, too. He clearly had no idea why I had yelled. That only made me angrier.
Come to think of it, this guy had never shown much interest in Peace. Fine, I could understand him wanting to kill Peace for not growing back then. He must have thought Peace was an ordinary monster. But now, Peace would soon become his mount.
“Why would you pick up a kid and throw him?!”
- Peep!
“Huh? No, with C-Class stats, something like that wouldn’t even...”
“Would you throw anyone around as long as their stats are high? Do you think that excuses it?!”
- Peep?!
“No, it’s not like that...”
“Stop looking down and sit!”
- Peeep!
Yoohyun promptly sat down on the sofa. But Peace, why were you sitting down too?
The sight of the two sitting side by side on the sofa, staring up at me with round eyes, made the corners of my mouth twitch.
No. Hold it in for now. You adorable little brats.
“Hunter Kang Soyoung said that her mount would be her lifelong partner and that she would care for it like her own child even before bringing it home. Of course, she was very interested in Peace too. The Hunters from Breaker Guild and Hanshin Guild who came before her were the same. They asked all sorts of questions beforehand and told me to contact them anytime if I needed anything. Even the Sesung Guildmaster brought a gift for Peace. But what about you?”
The more I spoke, the angrier I got. Paying for the kid’s food was the bare minimum, and he had done nothing else.
“So that’s it? You’ve already hooked the fish, so you’re done? I said I’d raise him, so that’s all you need to do?”
- Peep?
“It’s not like that...”
“Then what is it? Don’t look away. Answer me properly, Han Yoohyun.”
- Peep.
Why did Peep keep chiming in?
“…It’s not that I don’t care. He’s a top-rank mount. Of course I like him. I’m looking forward to seeing him become an adult, too. But, how should I put it? Even with equipment I value, I maintain it thoroughly, but I don’t give it gifts or...”
“Equipment? You think he’s equipment?”
Yoohyun glanced away again.
“…I think I was looking at it wrong.”
“You thought of Peace as equipment?”
- Peep?
“I was wrong.”
Judging by how he said it, he did not understand at all. He acted just like he had when he was little at times like this. Was it because he was still only twenty?
“I’m not telling you to care for it like a child, the way Hunter Kang Soyoung does. But at the very least, you need to get it through your head that it is an independent partner. Not equipment you can handle however you want. Above all, you know taming is not perfect.”
“I know, but it’s something that will be resolved after we clear a dungeon or two... No, no. I was wrong. I’ll do better from now on.”
His answer was not very satisfying, but I could not force him to feel affection. Should I make them spend more time together from now on? Like he said, clearing a few dungeons together would probably create some camaraderie or something.
“Give him a hug.”
Yoohyun got to his feet and walked toward me.
No, no!
“Not me!”
“Then who?”
“Are you seriously asking? Peace. Peace.”
Yoohyun stopped just before embracing me and looked down at Peace with an expression of clear reluctance. Peace met his gaze, then turned to look at me.
- Whine.
“…I don’t think it’ll like it.”
“It likes being held.”
It kept begging to be held without considering how big it had gotten. It was tiring.
When Yoohyun reluctantly reached out, Peace raised all its fur. It even bared its teeth and growled.
“It’s okay, Peace. He won’t throw you.”
- Grrr.
The two embraced for about one second before quickly pulling apart.
What were they doing?
“Han Yoohyun. Hold Peace and sit on the sofa.”
“But.”
“I said sit.”
- Whine.
In the end, Yoohyun picked Peace up again and sat on the sofa. Both of them looked painfully awkward, but it was nice to see. They needed to become close friends before the dungeon difficulty rose.
When I sat beside Yoohyun, Peace immediately tried to climb onto my lap.
“No.”
I raised an arm to block him, and he flattened his ears and looked at me pitifully.
- Whiiiine.
Then, as though it had thought of something, it looked at Peep and gently wagged its tail.
- Grr, yip.
“Why, are you not going to attack Peep anymore?”
Just in case, I picked up Peep, who I had set down beside me, and showed it to Peace. Instead of baring its teeth, Peace gave Peep one quick lick. Then it tilted its head up at me.
- Yip.
- Peep!
“Our Peace is so well-behaved~”
The moment it heard that, Peace tried to climb onto me again. This time, I did not stop it, and it settled onto my lap before curling into a ball in satisfaction.
Did it think I had not let it come to me because it attacked Peep?
“Even if it acts well-behaved, never leave those two alone together. That chick probably won’t survive.”
“Of course I won’t.”
You could not leave a bird and a cat together.
“Will you have time a week from now? I want to check your skills, raise my level, and take Peace into a dungeon if possible.”
And talk to the system folks. Yoohyun took out his phone, checked his schedule, and nodded.
“I think so. I’ll get ready.”
That settled the dungeon trip for a week later. Now I needed to buy exclusive entry passes for an E-Class and a D-Class dungeon.
There were exactly four days left on Final Grace. It would be risky to enter a dungeon on the final day, so I effectively had three. If there were no competing bidders, an exclusive bid would be awarded after twenty-four hours. With luck, I could clear both within the time limit.
I wonder what titles I’ll get. Give me something useful this time.
* * *
[The OOO Building will be demolished tomorrow, and a monster rearing facility will be built in its place. Many people have expressed concern about rearing a large number of monsters in the middle of Seoul, but...]
A broadcast about monster rearing played on the TV. The building next to Haeyeon Guild would be fully emptied by the end of today, and demolition would begin tomorrow. There had been some trouble, but the compensation had been generous, so matters moved quickly.
‘They’re building a new two-story rearing facility and connecting it to the existing ten-story building.’
Lying sprawled across the sofa, I examined the building plans I had received earlier. Peace was perched on my back, while Peep sat on my head.
It would be a problem if the other kids started climbing on me too. Once Final Grace ended, even with the boosts from my equipment spread evenly, my overall physical toughness would top out around the middle of D-Class. My hidden stats would probably be only F-Class. Peace was manageable, but if there were any more...
Should I start taking the restorative tonics Kim Seonghan sent me?
‘The projected construction period for the rearing facility is two weeks. Can that really be done?’
They would mainly use Awakened laborers, provide equipment, and use dungeon byproducts, but would this not be shoddy construction? The TV program was also discussing the construction and pointing out various issues. Still, their position was that it was not impossible.
‘It looks like they’re skipping a basement and making the foundation strong, then putting training and rearing facilities on the first floor. The foundation work will take the most time.’
Peace was small, but some monsters were huge even as young ones. They also planned to create areas where monsters could stay after reaching adulthood, just in case. On the first floor, the adult-sized enclosures would be the most expensive part.
My residence would be on the second floor. It would have far less floor space than the first, but they said they would use dungeon byproducts for most of the materials, making sure it remained intact even if the first floor collapsed. Access would be through a miniportal, too. The unused rooftop space above the first floor would be landscaped like a park, as I had requested.
Anyway, they said they were pouring a ridiculous amount of money into it.
The building that would connect to the rearing facility, on the other hand, was ordinary. It would undergo some remodeling and repairs, but still. The rearing facility would have double walls around it and be structured so that entry was only possible through the building. They said remodeling this building would take longer than constructing the rearing facility.
‘Shouldn’t Goblin be back soon?’
I needed to receive the materials and meet Seok Hayan. And I did not know whether Myeongu would follow me.
‘He’ll probably feel more comfortable working as a guild-affiliated blacksmith.’
With his personality, he would probably want to stay at Haeyeon. Still, there was nothing I could do about that.
‘Recruit Do Hamin. As for the special-skill Awakening Center...’
I could say I got a relevant skill when I reached level twenty this time. To prove the skill, I would need to bring in two or so people and help them Awaken special initial skills.
I thought of that damnably handsome guy I had seen at the broadcasting station. What was his name again?
But what kind of environment would he need to Awaken an optimized initial skill? If it was related to his face, the conditions already seemed perfect. Wouldn’t he Awaken naturally if he kept filming movies and became popular?
‘Most Awakened with special skills keep doing related work until they Awaken.’
Or they faced a life-threatening situation and overcame the crisis through a related method. Would a monster fall in love with a human face and retreat? That guy really was awkward in every way. Should I look for someone else?
[Han Yujin, known as “Monster Dad,” who possesses the Magical Beast Rearing skill, and Peace, a Flame-Horned Lion cub...]
Ah, fuck. Another clip from the broadcast I had filmed before was playing. Why did they keep showing it? If they were going to keep airing it, they could at least stop calling me Monster Dad.
- Peep!
Peep cried at the TV. Did it recognize me?
- Peep peep!
“Hey, where are you going? That’s not the real thing.”
Was Peep a little... dumb? Well, it was F-Class. I could not compare it to C-Class Peace.
While Peep flapped hard in front of the TV, unable to get onto it, I heard the door open. Myeongu must be back.
“You’re back.”
“…What’s that?”
“I picked him up. He’s a monster, but his stats are F-Class, so he isn’t dangerous.”
- Peep peep!
“He’s cute.”
“Right?”
Yoohyun had only sighed after seeing this cute little guy. Then again, he had never shown much interest in animals, even as a child.
Giving up on the me in the TV, Peep returned and flapped helplessly again when it could not climb onto the sofa. I sat up, picked Peep up, and habitually checked Yu Myeongu’s blade-sharpening progress.
[Sharpen the blades of 10,000 edged weapons (Progress: 8,266/10,000)]
There really was not much left. He would finish within four days.
“You’ve sharpened over eight thousand blades by now, right?”
Myeongu’s eyes widened.
“How did you know?”
“You sharpened a thousand on the first day, then four or five hundred each day after that, so it should be around there. You also told me now and then how many you’d sharpened that day.”
“I can’t believe you had calculated all that...”
Myeongu looked touched. I seriously could not say anything to this guy. He could just accept it and move on, but he kept getting emotional, making me feel like a con man. I was not that selfless a person.
“I’ll come to the workshop with you on the last day. I’m curious what skill you’ll get, and since I got you started on this, I should be there at the end.”
“Yujin...”
He was touched again. His shining eyes made me uncomfortable, so I quietly turned my head.
“Whatever I get, I’ll never forget what you’ve done for me.”
“I’d appreciate that.”
“I’ll repay you for the rest of my life.”
No, that was burdensome. I just wanted him to make side dishes sometimes. Snacks would be good, too. Or bread. Anyway, anything edible.
...Damn it, should I just ask him to live with me? Only four days remained. I felt like I was about to cry.
“…Myeongu.”
“Yeah?”
“…No, it’s nothing.”
Sob, sob, sob. Was I going to start acting like some clingy 2 a.m. boyfriend? Rather than act pathetic later, maybe it would be better to embarrass myself now. Yeah, so what if it was embarrassing? Eating well was important.
Holding Peep tightly against my chest, I opened my mouth.
“Later, even after you move out... could you make me side dishes sometimes? I don’t care what kind. Anything is fine.”
I was not picky, so please.
Myeongu froze stiffly at my words. Was that too shameless after all?
“Uh... Y-You think I should leave soon, right? Sorry. I’ve imposed on you for too long...”
“No, no. I’d be happy if we kept living together!”
Fuck it, whatever. In four days, my dining table would go from heaven to hell. I could not take it anymore.
“I can’t eat anything but your cooking!”
“…What?”
“So please keep supplying me with side dishes...”
Myeongu stood there blankly, then the corners of his mouth twitched. Do not laugh. It was funny, sure, but do not laugh.
“That’s easy! Okay, don’t worry. I can make you as much as you want. Is there anything you want to eat?”
“…I like everything.”
“Okay. If there’s anything you want to eat, just tell me!”
Myeongu headed toward the kitchen looking very pleased. Still, what would he do when he got busy later after answering so confidently? Of course, he did not have to keep the promise he had just made, but knowing his personality, he would try.
Ugh, it was embarrassing and my conscience hurt, but I was happy.
* * *
Both the E-Class and D-Class dungeon exclusive entry passes could be won around noon the next day. Peace and I had already gone down to the training room that morning, so I did not need an excuse this time. Myeongu had not returned home yet, so I put Peace in the living room enclosure and Peep in a basket in the bedroom, then locked the bedroom door. I texted Myeongu that I was asleep and not to wake me.
Praying that I would not get caught again today, I slipped out using a method similar to yesterday’s.
This E-Class dungeon was an underground cave environment. I personally disliked this type, but after searching only for nearby dungeons with exclusive entry passes available for purchase, I had no other choice.
“Ugh, it’s damp.”
The moment I passed through the gate, wet air mixed with the smell of mold struck my nose. In the dimness, I saw a swarm of glowing insects fluttering around.
And then.
[′▽‵۶ Hello!! ٩·‿·]
“…Ah, yes. Hello.”
What kind of greeting was that.
Footnotes:
“2 a.m. boyfriend” evokes a clingy late-night partner whose contact is driven by loneliness or need.
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