WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ The S-Classes That I Raised ◈

Chapter 64: Senior?

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“It’s a skill, but you talk about it like it has a physical form?”

“It does.”

“…It does?”

It wasn’t like it shot out fire or ice. A forge appeared? I had never heard of a skill like that.

“More precisely, it says I can enter a pocket dimension containing the Golden Forge.”

“Wow…”

Seriously, what was that? It was completely different from the kinds of skills I knew.

‘It sounds closer to an item than a skill.’

Like the S-Class trap item House of Sweets, or the SS-Class defensive item Silent Darkroom. Both were special items that would not appear until much later.

Still, I had never heard of a skill that created something like a building. Skills were fundamentally intangible abilities. They could gather energy or elements and form simple shapes, but a forge? One with a furnace and an anvil and everything? How could that make sense?

“How do you enter?”

I asked as I stood.

“Just like this.”

Myeongu held out his hand to me. Would I enter if I simply wanted to? First, I put Peace in the enclosure and set Peep down on the sofa.

I had some doubts about how safe it was, but that was exactly why I thought I should go with him at least once. There was still time left on Final Grace, too.

“Can you bring anyone in?”

“If I want to.”

“Then it could work as a shelter, too. I wonder if you can stockpile emergency rations there.”

I took his offered hand. If the pocket dimension containing the forge was safe, it would make an excellent refuge in an emergency.

The feeling of passing through a dungeon gate washed over me, and the view before me changed.

We were indoors, sunlight filtering through enormous windows. The first thing that caught my eye was the wavering flame inside a huge furnace. Golden flames burned on their own, consuming neither wood nor even a single straw.

Contrary to its name, the walls were made of tangled trunks and roots. The deep scent of wood mingled with the smell of fire in the air. Hammers, huge tongs, and unfamiliar tools hung from the walls.

It was an old-fashioned forge. In the middle of it, a bouquet and a note had been placed on the large anvil.

For no apparent reason.

“…What is that bouquet for?”

“Who knows?”

Myeongu approached the anvil and picked up the note. Something was written on it, but it was neither Korean nor Chinese characters or the alphabet. I had never seen the script before.

“I think this is for me.”

“For you, Myeongu? Can you read it?”

“Um… It says, ‘Welcome, successor. May your future be blessed by flame and molten metal.’”

It really was an item, not a skill. Since it mentioned a successor, some unknown senior must have arranged all this.

“I seem to be the successor. Does that mean someone had Master of the Golden Forge before me?”

Myeongu tilted his head.

“I doubt it. Awakened have only existed for three years. It would be hard to call someone a successor, not just a junior, in that time. No equipment has been made with this skill before, either. At least in our world, you’re probably the first.”

As I spoke, I thought of the system administrators. Had one of them possessed Master of the Golden Forge in the past? Had they prepared various items for the next skill holder like this? Could they even do that?

‘Who are those people, anyway? The list of things I need to ask keeps growing.’

Then Myeongu turned the note over.

“There’s something written here, too… Ismuar?”

Whoosh!

“Get back!”

The furnace flames suddenly surged high. I hurried to step in front of Myeongu, but instead of retreating, he moved forward.

“You get back, Yujin! Your stat rank is lower right now!”

…No, Final Grace was still active. I couldn’t exactly say that, though.

“…I have that barrier skill item, remember? The one the Sesung Guildmaster gave me.”

I had planned to use it on Myeongu, but...

“You were going to use that on me anyway.”

…When had he become so quick on the uptake? Still, my stats were B-Class or above right now, and I didn’t particularly need a B-Class barrier...

“No, that’s not it. Well, it is, but it isn’t. More importantly, look at that!”

I changed the subject and pointed at the rising flames. They had already formed a shape similar to a human. It shifted several times between a round child and a lanky adult before settling somewhere in between.

Then it became completely human-like.

It was obviously not a real human, looking as though it had been molded from flame. Was that an item, too?

“Pleased to meet you, Master.”

…It talked?!

“It talks?!”

Myeongu jumped, just as startled. This was my first time seeing a talking nonhuman. Aside from the system people, that was. Not that I had ever actually seen them in person.

“I am Ismuar, a spirit born from the Creator’s final breath.”

“…Spirits exist?”

“…I have no idea.”

I shook my head at Myeongu’s question. Spirits really existed? Salamanders and sylphs only appeared in games or novels. I had never heard of them existing in reality. Naturally, no Awakened possessed a skill like spirit summoning, either.

And now there was suddenly a spirit. What was that thing?

While we stood there in confusion, Ismuar, the self-proclaimed spirit, looked down at us with emotionless golden eyes. Was it a living creature?

‘Will Sprout work on it?’

I used the skill to check. But...

No status window appeared. Instead, information surfaced directly in my mind.

‘…A fire spirit. Extremely strong. Controls flames. Its growth is already complete. Its contractor is the person beside me. What is this?’

It wasn’t written in a rectangular window. I simply felt the information directly. It was vaguer than reading it as text, too. If it felt this strong, what rank was it? At least A-Class, probably. I couldn’t even guess at its skills beyond controlling fire freely. And physical force didn’t seem to work on it.

What was this? Was there some kind of system error?

Flustered, I opened my own status window. But once again, nothing appeared. I couldn’t even sense my own condition or have information surface in my mind. No rank, level, skills, or titles. I knew nothing.

It felt like I had been thrown into a sealed room where the lights had suddenly gone out.

“…Myeongu, can you open your status window?”

“Status window?”

Myeongu hesitated briefly, then his eyes widened.

“I can’t! Can Awakening be canceled?!”

“No, mine won’t open either. But I think skills still work. Our stats are probably unchanged, too. It seems like only the system windows are unavailable. Inventory... I can’t check what’s inside, but I can still take things out and put them back.”

I took out a bottle of mana stone powder, then put it back. Normally, I could see a list of its contents, but that wouldn’t appear now, either.

“It’s a relief if our skills are still there. Is something strange about this place?”

“Probably.”

Was it because this was a pocket dimension, outside the system’s influence? ...But wasn’t Awakening itself part of the system? If our abilities remained even without the windows, did that mean Awakening and the game-like system were separate things?

…My thoughts became complicated.

“Please tell me your name, Master.”

Ismuar, who had been silently floating in the air, spoke. Its mouth remained firmly shut. Only its voice emerged.

“You mean my name? Yu Myeongu.”

“Mr. Yu Myeongu, would you like to receive the basic education prepared by the Creator?”

“Basic education?”

“Yes. It is only foundational training, so there is no need if you already possess sufficient skill as a blacksmith. However, if you have only just begun walking the path of crafting, you can grow quickly.”

Whoever they were, this unknown person seemed remarkably kind and considerate toward their successor. Why didn’t I have a senior like that?

“Then of course I’ll take it.”

At Myeongu’s answer, Ismuar’s gaze turned to me.

“My flames are safe only for my contractor. If your resistance to heat is not high, you may be burned or reduced to ashes.”

Would the workshop be all right? It was made of wood.

“I’ll wait outside.”

“Okay. Oh, take this, too.”

Myeongu picked up the bouquet and handed it to me. It would probably burn if we left it here. A moment later, I returned alone to the living room.

- Cheep!

Peep sprang up from the sofa with a flutter and greeted me. Peace, beyond the glass wall, swished their tail. Judging by their reactions, time seemed to pass similarly here and in the pocket dimension.

‘…I want to go into a dungeon and interrogate them immediately.’

Even if I went now, they would probably just send me emojis saying they couldn’t talk. Still, there were only a few days left.

‘Before that, I need to get Yoohyun to stop sulking.’

He seemed deeply upset because I had decided to involve myself with the Awakening Center. How was I supposed to improve his mood? Should I bring him flowers or something?

“What kind of flowers are these, anyway?”

I looked down at the bouquet in my hand. It had five large blooms, a little over ten medium-sized ones, and smaller flowers. I had never seen any of them before.

I didn’t know much about flowers, but they probably weren’t from this world. The largest flowers were especially faintly luminous. One of the small golden flowers felt hard and cold like metal, though when I plucked a petal, it wasn’t actually metal. A moth-orchid-like flower occasionally moved on its own.

They were certainly not ordinary flowers, but no description window appeared like it would for dungeon byproducts.

They were pretty, though.

* * *

The Hunter Association asked me to visit regarding the Awakening Center. As expected, their response seemed positive.

After all, they had nothing to lose.

“The guildmasters of Sesung, Breaker Guild, and Hanshin Guild will also be attending. MKC has been excluded from this matter as well.”

Seok Simyeong spoke as he pressed the elevator button. Peace, in my arms, tilted their head after noticing we were not heading for the training room. Peace really seemed like a genius. It even recognized the floors.

“Along with Hunter Kim Seonghan, other guilds will be sending A-Class or higher Hunters for security.”

Yerim was clearing dungeons to level up. And Yoohyun was still displeased, so I had deliberately told him not to come. Apparently, he had been giving off an icy atmosphere.

We couldn’t have him ruin negotiations because he was in a bad mood. Seriously, he was too overprotective.

“Team Leader Seok.”

As Kim Seonghan joined us on the way down to the parking lot, a Haeyeon Guild employee called Seok Simyeong over with a troubled expression. At nearly the same time, Seok Simyeong’s phone vibrated.

After reading the message, Seok Simyeong furrowed his brow.

“No, why...”

Come to think of it, the atmosphere around us was strange. More than one or two people had come down the stairs and were peering around as if something entertaining were happening.

“What should we do?”

The Haeyeon Guild employee who had called Seok Simyeong spoke.

“There is nothing we can do, is there? Mr. Han Yujin.”

“Yes?”

“The Sesung Guildmaster has come to serve as your security.”

“…What?”

What was that supposed to mean? Why was the Sesung Guildmaster here?

“No, um, can an S-Class Hunter really just move around like this?”

Not that I had any right to say that, considering I always had Yoohyun and Yerim around. Still.

“Of course, it is extremely rare for an S-Class Hunter, especially a guildmaster, to visit the guild of another S-Class Hunter. Since Hunter guilds are essentially armed groups, they normally arrange to meet outside.”

Seok Simyeong began walking again, explaining with a sigh.

“This is the first time the Sesung Guildmaster has visited Haeyeon Guild. No, the second time if we include last time. Naturally, our Guildmaster has never visited Sesung Guild either.”

In other words, it meant entering someone else’s territory. If there was a difference in rank, it would be one thing, but if both were S-Class, it made sense to hesitate.

“The other S-Class guilds are the same, though Guildmaster Han did visit Sudam once.”

Seok Simyeong lowered his voice.

Sudam? That was also a guild led by an S-Class Hunter. Why had he gone there? Were they close?

“…He was detained as a result. It ended with a fine and one week of confinement.”

They were not close. What had you done, little brother? Seok Simyeong added that this was why it was even rarer for an S-Class guildmaster to visit another guild personally.

After we passed the checkpoint and entered the visitor parking lot, a car immediately caught my eye. It looked specially made and sleek, but the man standing before it was even more noticeable than the car.

…What was with the bouquet he was holding?

“It is difficult when you arrive unilaterally without contacting us first.”

After greeting him politely, Seok Simyeong spoke.

“Oh? It seems there is a problem with Haeyeon’s work system. I believe a request for permission to visit in order to guard Mr. Han Yujin was submitted this morning.”

“Yes. We were informed that an A-Class or higher Hunter would be visiting.”

Seok Simyeong swallowed a sigh. Seong Hyeonje smiled slightly, as if asking whether he was not A-Class or above.

He was, technically.

“I will personally ensure Mr. Han Yujin’s safety.”

Seong Hyeonje took a flower from the bouquet. It had abundant layers of pastel blue petals. He broke its long stem short with a snap, then tucked it into Seok Simyeong’s breast pocket.

“Don’t worry.”

The corner of Seok Simyeong’s mouth trembled. Ignoring that, Seong Hyeonje turned his gaze to me.

No, wait a moment.

“Shall we?”

Seong Hyeonje offered me the bouquet and bent lightly at the waist. He looked so absurdly picturesque that admirers among the spectators behind him audibly gasped, which only made my skin crawl more.

“My hands aren’t empty, you see.”

The corners of my mouth trembled as much as Seok Simyeong’s had. He was an S-Class customer, so I had to smile. Ha ha. I was really glad I had brought Peace with me.

Pretending to be disappointed, Seong Hyeonje opened the car door. It was a two-seater, so the passenger seat was mine.

“Ah, I...”

As I was about to say that I could take a Haeyeon vehicle, Seok Simyeong quickly shook his head at me. His eyes wavered with countless complicated thoughts.

“…Thank you.”

Right. Without Yoohyun here, saying I wanted the protection of Kim Seonghan, an A-Class, might feel insulting to Seong Hyeonje.

The Guildmaster himself had come personally and opened the car door himself. What was an F-Class like me supposed to do? Well, at least my safety would be guaranteed.

Once I got in, the Sesung Guildmaster placed the bouquet in my lap and even closed the door for me. Peace tapped the flowers with a front paw.

“You seem... to have plenty of free time.”

I couldn’t hold it in any longer once Seong Hyeonje got in and started the car. He suddenly reached a hand toward me.

What, what?

“Mr. Han Yujin, your stats are F-Class. You should wear a seat belt.”

“Right. I forgot.”

High-grade Hunters didn’t need seat belts. The car would break before they did. I stroked Peace to calm them as they gave Seong Hyeonje a low growl. Soon, the car set off.

When I glanced at the side mirror, a Haeyeon vehicle was following right behind us. One pulled up beside us, while another took position behind.

Even if I was someone worth protecting, this situation still felt unfamiliar.

“I appreciate you coming personally, but it won’t help the negotiations.”

“Call it pure curiosity, as well as compensation for not being much help during the kidnapping incident.”

“It was MKC’s responsibility, after all.”

“Thanks to that, I learned they are rotten enough that they will need to be cut away soon.”

Would MKC collapse faster than before? It had originally been the first major guild to fall, anyway.

“As you have likely heard, I will use the skill that identifies Awakening aptitudes to prevent the Awakening Center’s side effects. Raising mounts keeps me busy enough already. The guilds and Association can negotiate amongst themselves without me.”

“I had hoped you would go overseas as well.”

“At the moment, I cannot even leave Seoul.”

If Yoohyun heard that, he would burn Sesung to the ground. I had no intention of going abroad, either.

Silence fell briefly, and the light changed. The stopped car surged forward. Haeyeon Guild was not far from the Association. We would arrive in just a few minutes.

‘Should I use Sprout once?’

I was curious about the status window of the Hunter ranked number one in the world. Riette had noticed immediately, but Seong Hyeonje was driving now, so would it be all right?

I had been glancing at him repeatedly, but he didn’t seem to mind. If the status window appeared, I would pretend to read signs outside and check it.

Not all of it. Just part of it, quickly. Without moving my eyes too much.

I was about to activate the skill when...

“Ah.”

My neck was caught. More precisely, a cool palm touched the nape of my neck.

- Rrrowl!

Peace bared their teeth viciously, while Seong Hyeonje turned a corner with one hand on the wheel as if nothing had happened. The bouquet fell to the floor with a thud.

I inhaled sharply. His thumb lightly pressed and stroked the back of my neck. The Fear Resistance message appeared before my eyes.

“…Peace, it’s okay.”

- Grrr.

Damn, had he noticed? But how could he, before I had even used the skill?

“I thought you came as a bodyguard. Surely you’re not planning to follow in MKC’s footsteps?”

His pale eyes narrowed in a smile. The hand on my neck moved slowly downward. I instinctively pulled away from the seatback, and he stroked my back as if soothing me before withdrawing his hand.

“Neither of us did anything, did we, Mr. Han Yujin?”

“…That’s right.”

Had he somehow sensed that I was about to do something? He was ridiculously perceptive.

I really should refrain from using Sprout on S-Class Hunters unless I was trying to pick a fight. Especially with Seong Hyeonje. I would never use it on that man again. I wouldn’t, if only because it was disgusting.

Not long after, we arrived at the Hunter Association. I quickly got out and joined Seok Simyeong’s group without looking back.

On the way home, I would take a Haeyeon car.

Definitely.

* * *

Ice clinked against the end of my straw as I stirred it. I took a slurp of my drink and watched pedestrians passing outside the window.

The Hunter Association had accepted my conditions and agreed to cooperate actively. First, however, they demanded definite proof.

“You can drink that with ice?”

Yerim, who had returned with some kind of frappe, looked at the cup before me. The drink I was having was none other than a mana potion.

“It probably doesn’t matter.”

“It looks orange-flavored. Aren’t you getting sick of it by now?”

“I am.”

Of course I was. It had only ever been tolerable, not delicious, and drinking it like water was getting difficult.

I swallowed a sigh and looked around.

To find people with B-Class or higher special initial skills, we had rented out an entire ground-floor cafe on a busy street. Besides Yerim, there was one A-Class Hunter and three B-Class Hunters. One of the B-Class Hunters said they had worked part-time at a cafe before and was making various drinks.

They were fairly good at it. Maybe that was their aptitude.

“…Should I try mixing mana potion into coffee?”

“That sounds disgustingly bad. Pour it into actual orange juice instead. Make it strong.”

“I’m sick of orange flavor... and apples.”

“Then how about ordering some homemade mana potions?”

“That’s a good idea.”

They would be expensive, but if I kept chugging these for another two or three days, I would get sick of them to the point of throwing up.

“Should I go all-in on mana gear? My total mana is low, so I have to drink this too often.”

But that would feel too restrictive, too. It was summer, on top of that. Grumbling, I looked outside again. Pedestrians passed along the street.

Any special skill would have been enough as proof, but it seemed wasteful to use just any skill. So our current target was someone with a B-Class or higher special skill. Of course, we couldn’t overlook people with A-Class or higher stats, either.

But we had not found a single one yet.

“Another C-Class. Pleasant Eloquence.”

“Oh, you mean that person, right? They’re an EVS middle school instructor and pretty famous. Their lectures really are easy to follow. I heard they got tons of offers from private academies, too.”

So they had found their aptitude.

“There are surprisingly quite a few C-Class people. Weren’t there even more D-Class people?”

“Yeah. Nearly half had E-Class or higher.”

Yerim tilted their head at my answer.

“If a skill is E-Class or above, they can get a Hunter license. But you said only about one percent of Awakened are Hunters.”

“Well... until now, most Awakened had combat-related skills, right?”

I couldn’t be sure based only on what I had observed this morning, but most people’s aptitudes were not for combat. Until now, I had passed by anyone below C-Class without a second thought, so I had never bothered calculating the ratio. But when I thought about it, this was only natural.

Maybe a century ago, but how many modern people had an aptitude for fighting? Korea was not currently in a civil war, and it had been relatively peaceful for more than fifty years. Aside from the military, there were few opportunities to properly hold a weapon. Unless someone was an athlete in archery, kendo, shooting, or something similar, it remained a hobby.

And those were not common hobbies.

“If more than half of people possess talents better than average, what percentage do you think have combat-related talents? I doubt it’s very high.”

“Just looking at occupations, they’re a tiny minority.”

Yerim nodded.

“Since people were forced into combat-related Awakening, it makes sense that most would be FF. And F-Class stats? Modern people being out of shape is famous.”

If F-Class had been subdivided into F-plus, F-minus, and F-zero tiers, there would have been countless F-minuses, too.

“It’s obvious now, but there are really so many people in the world whose value remains buried because they don’t know it themselves.”

Even the C-Class initial skill holder who had passed us earlier would probably have received only an F to E-Class combat support skill if they had gone through the Awakening Center normally.

“That office worker over there seems to have a C-Class singing-related skill. When we went to the broadcasting station last time, I saw a few singers known for their vocal ability. One of them had the same initial skill.”

“Really?”

Yerim looked at the man I pointed to with excitement.

“Shouldn’t we go tell him? Tell him to debut!”

“It’s hard to become a celebrity just because you sing well. He might not like being in front of people.”

I didn’t like it much, either.

“Still, it’s better than living without knowing.”

After taking a long sip of their frappe, Yerim suddenly looked at me with concern.

“But if there are this many E-Class or higher people, won’t things get hard for you, mister? It sounds like you’ll have to help fifty out of every hundred people.”

“Of course I can’t do it all.”

How could I take that all on by myself? Raising monsters and raising people, even three or four of me wouldn’t be enough.

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