WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

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◈ The S-Classes That I Raised ◈

Chapter 83: Fear Resistance

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The rearing facility to the right past the lobby held a row of neatly built enclosures. They were large enough to resemble rooms rather than cages, complete with air purifiers, heating and cooling, and CCTV. The relatively smaller enclosures could hold monsters with stats up to B-Class at the standard level 10, while the largest could handle A-Class.

The unicorns had already been moved here as well.

Peace and Blue’s names were on the plaques attached to their enclosures. When I was away, they would stay here under the care of assigned Hunters.

I placed the nest Sesung had brought into an unoccupied enclosure and set Comet down inside.

- Sss, hiss!

The hatchling wrapped its long tail around my wrist and hissed at Blue, who was lingering outside. It could not attack due to the difference in size and stats, but it seemed quite resentful.

“Yeah, yeah. Blue can’t come in here, so sleep here.”

I left Blue and Peep at the rearing facility as well. My belongings were still at the dormitory, and I planned to bring them home once I had moved everything. I did not have much, but if I tried moving with the kids, especially Blue, nothing would survive intact.

Kang Soyoung had gone shopping, saying she would decorate Comet’s enclosure. Take a lesson from her, Han Yoohyun. Hurry up and show up with a top-of-the-line pet bed for Peace’s enclosure or something.

“You need an access key to use the mini portal leading to the second floor.”

Seong Hyeonje spoke as he took a business card-sized piece of thinly shaved S-Class mana stone from his inventory. A code had been embedded in it.

Why did that man have an access key?

“There are six access keys in all. The four guilds besides MKC each have one. The remaining two belong to you, Han Yujin. They were sent to Haeyeon Guild, so you can collect them there.”

“Do I get no privacy at all?”

Why were they handing out keys to someone else’s house so freely?

“There is another door inside, so don’t worry.”

“A regular door would be about as sturdy as paper to an S-Class.”

“Not quite. More like a wooden board? It was specially made, after all.”

Either way, it would break with a tap. Still, problems could arise inside the house, so I supposed it could not be helped.

“I heard the exterior walls can withstand an A-Class combat Hunter for roughly thirty minutes.”

“That’s sturdy.”

“They used the hide of a Grade 3 Armored Dragon for the exterior. Since there was no technique capable of processing it, several A-Class Hunters had to work on it.”

I was so honored. There were not even any dungeons in Korea that produced Grade 3 Armored Dragons yet, so had they imported it?

The key to the interior door had also been sent to Haeyeon, so I did not go inside. They must have done a good job.

Seong Hyeonje then needlessly explained the training room, control room, reception room, and other facilities. I began to feel sorry for Song Taewon, who kept getting cut off, and tried giving Seong Hyeonje a few hints, but they did not work at all.

‘Song Taewon probably didn’t come here just to give me a tour. He must have something else to discuss.’

I couldn’t exactly tell him to shut up and get lost. Or could I? If I left things as they were, he would finish the tour and say, “We should be going now,” then forcibly drag Song Taewon away with him. That had probably been his aim in following us here.

Of course, Song Taewon was not the sort to give up so easily. I could already see the two of them having a spectacular clash of wills.

I should handle this somehow.

“Sesung Guildmaster, I know you’re busy, and I feel bad for taking up so much of your time. I’ll hear the rest from Manager Song.”

At my unspoken suggestion that he should return home, Seong Hyeonje looked at me. The corners of his eyes curved in a narrow smile.

“Time spent on you is never wasted, so don’t worry.”

Fuck. Talking around the issue didn’t work after all.

“I feel uncomfortable, so please leave now.”

I threw the ball straight at him. He immediately made a hurt expression.

Crazy. He really was crazy.

“You’re colder than you look.”

“…We don’t have the kind of relationship where you should be calling me cold.”

“I thought I had put considerable effort into you. Aside from checking your skill, I have never treated you badly. Frankly, wouldn’t it be rarer for someone to accept that sort of skill without any defenses?”

I spent a moment wondering what nonsense he was talking about.

‘Has Seong Hyeonje actually treated me rather well…?’

Thinking back, aside from rejecting my skill, he had not really harmed me. He had been friendly throughout my visit to Sesung, and I had received a toy for Peace and a pair of earrings. Even in the dungeon, he had listened to me fairly well. The problem was that he picked fights with everyone else. He had even come to visit me in the hospital with gifts. And today, Song Taewon’s car had been destroyed, but I had gotten here comfortably thanks to him.

It really did seem like he had put effort into me, just as he said.

‘…I feel like I’m being conned.’

Considering he was the mighty leader of a giant guild, he had been remarkably lenient. Even now, after being openly told to get lost, he showed no sign of anger.

That was certainly true. What he said about the skill was not wrong either, and I had experienced everything he mentioned firsthand. So why did I still feel like I was being deceived?

As I hesitated, Yerim suddenly grabbed my arm.

“Mister, don’t fall for it!”

Fall for what? I felt suspicious enough to die.

“Now that I think about it, you’re right. You have looked after me quite a bit.”

I could admit that much. I continued with a smile.

“So please show your kindness again this time. If you quietly leave without causing any trouble, I may be a little touched.”

If he wanted to be nice, he should see it through to the end.

Seong Hyeonje’s eyes turned cold for an instant at my repeated dismissal. I was raising his kid, for goodness’ sake. Please calm down.

“It can’t be helped. The one who falls in love first loses.”

What was he even saying?

Seong Hyeonje gave Song Taewon a single look, then obediently turned away. He clearly had some ulterior motive, so it felt even more unsettling that he listened so easily.

Still, I had sent him off for now.

“Yerim, shouldn’t you go catch up on the classes you missed?”

“How can I leave you here, Mister?”

“This is my home now. There are already Hunters guarding it.”

At that, Yerim glared at the silently standing Song Taewon.

“They’re only A-Class. I’ll leave if that man leaves too.”

Even if she was S-Class, Yerim was not a match for him yet. Among Hunters who fought people rather than monsters, he was probably one of the most experienced in Korea. He could easily subdue someone around Yerim’s level.

“Why are you so tense? No matter what, he’s a public official. Nothing will happen. It’s not as though he can just arrest people without procedure.”

“Sometimes I can.”

Song Taewon answered casually.

…So he could arrest people. I had not known that. Yerim’s grip on my arm tightened. It hurt.

“Since B-Class Hunters and above are capable of mass destruction, I can detain them immediately at my discretion. Depending on their skills, this also applies to C-Class Hunters and below.”

“…Mister, you’re B-Class now too.”

Yerim whispered with a frown.

My stats were F-Class and I had zero attack skills, though.

“Honestly, if someone gets arrested, it’ll probably be you before me, Yerim. Ow, ow, ow.”

Don’t pinch me. With the terrible examples set by the adults around her, I was worried I would soon be visiting her in detention.

“Of course, that is not why I came today, so you have nothing to worry about if you have not committed any illegal acts.”

…I had committed things like murder, threats, and assault. They would not find out, though.

When I told Yerim again to go to class, she gave me a deeply distrustful look.

“You’re not suddenly going to show up on the nine o’clock news, right?”

“Then bring me some prison meals.”

Something suddenly occurred to me as Yerim sulked. I took a pen and memo pad made from dungeon byproducts from my inventory. After writing down two phone numbers, I handed it to Yerim.

“If I go missing or something, contact these people and ask them to find me.”

“Whose numbers are these?”

“You’ll find out if you call. Don’t contact them for no reason.”

They were Do Hamin’s and Yun Yun’s numbers.

I had changed phones, but I still had an ID card issued long ago. If I hired Do Hamin, they would be able to find my location immediately. Yun Yun, who could not travel far with a companion back when their stats were B-Class, now had S-Class stats and a long-distance portal skill. Escaping would be easy and safe.

As long as I was alive, there was no need to worry.

After coaxing Yerim into leaving, Song Taewon and I were finally alone. There was no need to inspect any more facilities, so we headed toward the reception room we had passed earlier.

“You didn’t really come to arrest me, did you?”

I asked frivolously as we walked.

“No. Although I met your younger brother recently.”

“…Pardon?”

“There were several deaths in the incident involving Han Yujin’s kidnapping. I was somewhat surprised, since it was the first time Haeyeon’s Guildmaster had cooperated with an investigation so readily.”

“Th-the first time means there were similar incidents before, right?”

“It could be called a quarterly event.”

Quarterly… four times a year…

Yoohyun?!

With complicated feelings, I opened the door to the reception room. It was a lavishly furnished room with an entire wall made of glass. It also had a large kitchenette. No one was here right now, but I would need to hire staff soon.

“I haven’t heard much about that. Were there ever any particularly serious cases?”

“You may not know because such matters rarely become public. When it involves an S-Class Hunter, cases that are not serious are rare. Still, things have improved greatly lately. Dungeon breaks hardly happen anymore.”

Song Taewon continued with a faint smile.

“In regions where dungeon breaks occurred, we could not restrict the use of attack skills. In the past, if you were unlucky, you had to be prepared to lose an arm. As you know, Haeyeon’s Guildmaster does not have an ordinary temperament.”

“……”

“I apologize.”

When I hesitated, unsure what to say, Song Taewon apologized.

“Ah, no. I should be the one apologizing. My brother must have caused quite a lot of trouble.”

Damn it, Yoohyun. What have you been doing? These were not other guilds or ordinary Hunters. Why was a public official talking about being prepared to lose an arm?

“Please don’t worry too much. It is common for high-grade Hunters to become on edge while handling a break rather than clearing a dungeon. Especially if two or more S-Class Hunters entered the same break zone, there was little we could do besides establish a line of defense, keep healers on standby, and wait for them to calm down. It was already an unstable time, so none of it became public. Compared to then, things are truly peaceful now.”

“Then, Yoohyun… Haeyeon’s Guildmaster, perhaps…”

Song Taewon shed the calm expression he had maintained all along and wore an awkward smile.

“I hesitate to honestly describe the evaluations from that time. You can assume that it was something every S-Class Hunter who awakened early went through at least once. That is why I was extremely concerned upon hearing that four S-Class Hunters were entering the same dungeon. Especially two of them… Never mind.”

They had provoked each other, but no serious problem had occurred. I recalled Yoohyun saying he was disappointed because S-Class Hunters would not normally gather inside a dungeon like that. If they had originally been fighting all the time, they must have had a great deal pent up, since dungeon breaks had become rare. Their abilities had changed substantially since then as well, so it made sense that they would be curious.

Still, it was not acceptable. They should wait until a relatively safe ranking match was created.

“Um, would you like something to drink? Coffee, perhaps?”

Drinks should not cost much. Song Taewon nodded. When I entered the kitchenette, I found a large coffee machine.

How did this thing work…?

As I considered it, I opened a cabinet and found instant coffee packets.

“I came today to check on your condition, Han Yujin.”

As I tore open a packet, Song Taewon’s voice suddenly came from behind me. Why had he followed me in here instead of waiting outside?

“My condition?”

“Yes. Your stats are F-Class, Han Yujin. On the other hand, your special skills are high-ranked. That makes you a very easy target.”

I knew that well too. That was why Yoohyun had suggested keeping me confined, and why I had carefully built my current position.

“The five guilds came to an agreement, but the balance has been disrupted because of MKC. I hear Hanshin Guild is under pressure in several ways as well.”

Was that why Hanshin Guild had not contacted me at all?

“Then I heard that they were taking you into an A-Class dungeon, and I became suspicious.”

More accurately, I had taken them in.

“Have you perhaps suffered any mental or physical harm?”

“…What? They kept trying to fight, so it was tiring, but that was all.”

“You may speak freely. Isn’t it stranger that you came through this unharmed? You may not know this, but there are skills and items in the Hunter world that can control people at will. The lower the target’s stats, the easier they are to use.”

I knew. I had nearly fallen victim to such things before. But I did not need to worry too much now.

Mental skills, especially brainwashing-type skills, did not work well even on someone with F-Class stats if they were mentally stable. And the easiest way to shake someone was fear. All it took was the simple combination of violence and threats.

‘But I have Fear Resistance.’

What could they do when I did not even twitch a brow before an SS-Class monster? That was why I had not worried much about those types of skills or items.

“I’m perfectly fine, so you don’t need to worry.”

Still, I appreciated his concern. At my answer, Song Taewon’s eyes darkened with weight. It was an odd reaction to being told I was all right.

Then a hand touched my throat.

The hand that had approached without my noticing wrapped around my neck, its thick thumb lightly pressing where my pulse beat.

“Manager Song?”

I was somewhat flustered because I could not understand what was happening.

“Have you truly not had anything done to you?”

The heavier voice struck my ears.

“What? Nothing has... Urgh.”

The hand around my throat tightened. I felt my breath growing restricted and thought I needed to escape somehow, but I had no particular way to do it. Should I have carried an emergency alarm?

More than that, there was no reason for this.

“Cough, cough!”

Fortunately, Song Taewon released me soon afterward. I coughed out the breath that had been blocked and looked up at him.

Why...

“Please excuse me. The problem was not the guildmasters, but you, Han Yujin.”

“…Pardon?”

Song Taewon continued, offering me an opened potion.

“I have been observing you since the hospital.”

I accepted it and took a sip. The pain in my throat eased somewhat. Had he been watching me so closely that even Seong Hyeonje’s needling had drawn no reaction?

“I thought Hunter Park Yerim could be understandable. She is still young and seemed quite close to them. But you, Han Yujin, were even comfortable around the Sesung Guildmaster.”

“We’re acquainted, in our own way.”

“That made your behavior even harder to understand. You entered an A-Class dungeon together, did you not? I understand that you lost consciousness on the second floor after an SS-Class monster was killed. You saw the Sesung Guildmaster attack an SS-Class monster, correct?”

I nodded.

“To see the power of a monster so far beyond oneself and still treat it casually is not normal for an F-Class person. Ordinary people become frightened merely when faced with a large, viciously barking dog. If its leash came loose and it began prowling around nearby, few could remain calm. Furthermore, you showed no fear in other circumstances either.”

“Other circumstances?”

“Yes. You reached toward a hatchling with higher stats than yours without hesitation. Hunter Kang Soyoung was more concerned than you were. So I took the liberty of checking, and you were indeed unusual.”

He meant strangling me. I had wondered why he had suddenly acted that way, but he had never intended to truly hurt me.

“Even with your life threatened, you were only slightly startled and confused. You showed no sign of fear whatsoever. It was as if your capacity for fear had been removed.”

He was exactly right.

“But isn’t that a good thing?”

“It is not.”

Song Taewon answered firmly.

“Your current state is like a warning light that has gone out. Overcoming fear is good, but having none from the beginning only makes one reckless. That is even more dangerous given your low stats. What would happen if a lamb saw a wolf and was not afraid?”

It would become a well-prepared dinner.

“But if it knows that wolves are dangerous, it will run away immediately.”

“That is true, but you seem to be at the point of thinking, ‘I should observe the wolf from this distance, since it seems safe enough.’ It may not be extremely dangerous, but it is not safe either.”

Was that so? Still, I had felt afraid before when a skill message had not appeared.

I had felt a little scared when Yoohyun and Yerim faced off. Seok Simyeong’s contact had frightened me a little as well. I had been horrified when I was told to gather fifty S-Class Hunters, and then...

…Now that I thought about it, I had been brushing off most things lately. When the S-Class Hunters had all snarled at each other, I had found it more annoying than frightening. When Yun Yun transformed into a Demon King, the Fear Resistance skill message had not even appeared. Yun Yun had been an SS-Class monster, even if we knew each other.

I certainly seemed less sensitive than I had been about a month ago.

‘Have I become numb because there has been no stimulus?’

I thought it might become dangerous if I left it this way. Perhaps I should turn off Fear Resistance even at home. I could watch horror films with it off or something.

“You’re right. I’ll be careful. Thank you for worrying about me.”

“…You are a difficult person.”

Song Taewon smiled awkwardly at my thanks.

“The marks of my hand have not even faded from your throat yet.”

“…Ah.”

Even I thought that was strange. I should be careful.

“Personally, I am grateful to you, Han Yujin. I had concerns about the Awakening Center as well, but there was nothing I could do. That is why I hope more than ever that nothing happens to you.”

He said it was fortunate that there did not appear to be any major problem, then took a pen and memo pad from his inventory and wrote down a number.

“This is my personal contact information. Please contact me anytime if you need assistance.”

“Thank you.”

But how was Song Taewon getting home? His car was gone.

“Um, I’m sure there is an employee or Hunter with a car. I’ll ask someone to take you home…”

“No. I can go straight there by subway.”

The subway, not even a taxi? If I had a driver’s license, I would have wanted to take him. I should get one.

“Ah, I don’t know if you saw the news, but terrorist attacks targeting Hunters have become more frequent recently. They mainly target the Hunter Association, but the rearing facility has become quite well known, especially with Yu Myeongu here. Please be careful.”

“Yes, I understand.”

The group claiming that dungeons needed to break would not carry out terrorist attacks in Korea until much later. I could not recall overseas cases as clearly, but I remembered the situation in Korea for certain.

Still, there was no guarantee the future would remain exactly the same, so I should keep it in mind.

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