The S-Classes That I Raised [EN]: Chapter 243

241. Mr. Exclusive Manager (1)

“So, he really wasn’t dead after all.”

Golden eyes narrowed. Han Yu-hyun’s aura had completely changed. He was still exhausted and injured, but the eyes that had been wavering, as if tossed by rough waves, had now settled calmly.

‘If Alpha also noticed that Han Yu-jin wasn’t dead, how did he find out?’ Sigma smiled. ‘Pretending to be dead, what else has he done?’

“You know you don’t stand a chance. I advise you to surrender quietly.”

The chains, scattering tiny sparks of electricity, writhed like snakes swimming in the air, completely blocking any escape. With Han Yu-hyun’s mana only slightly recovered, breaking through the wall and escaping was nearly impossible. It wasn’t entirely out of the question, but it would take too long, and Sigma wouldn’t just stand by and watch.

But recklessly fighting back would only waste the mana he had barely regained.

“If you stall for time, you’ll be detained by the Akates Defense Agency again, Alpha.”

Sigma mixed threats and persuasion, assuming Alpha was unaware of the current situation at the Akates Defense Agency. He wanted to capture both of them intact, if possible. If Alpha cooperated willingly, he could be dealt with as an accidental casualty during suppression after being released by the resistance.

‘Alpha could be tied down with a suitable contract, and C-class… what would he do? If he found out that the person he was trying to save was in my hands…’

He was sure that this time, he would amuse him more than expected.

“If you contract with me, I will protect both of you safely. Accept my offer before those connected to your stigma return. I promise you much better treatment than the Akates Defense Agency.”

‘At worst, even the corpse you’re holding dear won’t be safe.’ At Sigma’s words, hoping for a wise choice, Han Yu-hyun’s brow furrowed slightly. It was true that his recovered mana was only a fraction of what it should be. As the man said, there was definitely no way to escape this place alone.

‘If I was alone…’

Han Yu-hyun focused his senses on the call he felt immediately after recovering his mana. He wondered where it had disappeared to. Then, instead of answering Sigma’s offer, he spoke.

“Irin.”

He called his spirit. A small, red lizard appeared in the air, wreathed in sparks like embers. Its body instantly grew, turning into a small dragon—no, an Imugi [a lesser dragon in Korean mythology] that refused to ascend. The red Imugi, holding blue flames in its four paws, twisted its long body as if to protect its master.

Kwaang!

With a strike of its flame-covered tail, it slammed into the wall—not breaking it, but melting it. A hole large enough for two people to pass through was instantly created in the once-impenetrable wall.

Almost simultaneously, Han Yu-hyun pulled himself through the opening.

Krrrrrr!

Golden lightning flashed with the surging chains. A waterfall of electricity struck the spot where Han Yu-hyun had been, then poured beyond the wall. As if the previous attacks were child’s play, the floor was charred black, and one wall completely cracked, eventually collapsing.

The light of destruction relentlessly penetrated the corridor, seemingly programmed to avoid killing Han Yu-hyun, unable to even graze his ankle.

“Oh, dear.”

Sigma’s attack futilely destroyed only the walls and floor of the corridor. He looked at the ceiling above, pierced just beyond the wall.

He naturally thought he would head straight for the mana gate along the corridor. But instead of running forward, Han Yu-hyun went upstairs. Combat precognition was only effective during direct combat, and it couldn’t predict escape routes that rejected the fight itself. If it could predict even that, it wouldn’t be limited to combat but would be simple prophecy.

In any case, it was a mistake. An irreversible mistake.

‘What should I do?’

Alpha would have already reached the mana gate. If a guard with the mana gate right behind him was confronted by a guard of the same level belonging to the mana gate, the result was obvious.

Sigma didn’t hesitate long and moved his feet. At least, he wanted to see with his own eyes whether the C-class would revive.

Thud! The closed door burst open, revealing a wide space. Han Yu-hyun stood in front of the blue mana gate. The Imugi, now a small lizard again, sat on his shoulder. Still holding his brother tightly in his arms, Han Yu-hyun faced Sigma.

“I didn’t expect you to follow me this far.”

“I have something to retrieve from that side.”

Han Yu-hyun’s brow furrowed as Sigma pointed to Han Yu-jin. It struck him again that this man was similar to Sung Hyun-jae.

“You’ll never touch him, so don’t even dream about it.”

With those cold words, flames soared. Black and blue flames spread in all directions in an instant. With the mana gate right behind him, Han Yu-hyun didn’t need to worry about mana consumption, and he unleashed flames like endless waves.

At the same time, lightning struck. Instead of clumsy defense or evasion, power clashed head-on with power. Dark blue flames and golden electricity intertwined and swirled like a tornado.

Kugugugu-!

Everything shook, and the ceiling and floor burst open simultaneously. Burning, melting, and shattering, even the structures receiving the endless power of the mana gate couldn’t withstand it and their forms crumbled.

Thud, thud. The ceiling, farther from the mana gate than the floor, began to collapse completely. Immediately after, the dance of flames and electricity soared above the ceiling. The area above their heads was already wide open, and the impact began to spread throughout the building.

“It’s about to collapse.”

Sigma said with a smile, stepping onto the chains to avoid the melting floor. As he said, the Akates Defense Agency’s central building couldn’t withstand the continuous impacts. The dozens-of-story building began to collapse rapidly. At this rate, they would be buried alive, but.

-I’ll take care of this!

With a cheerful shout, Irin transformed back into the red Imugi and soared. Passing through the center of the building in a straight line, blue light overflowed and exploded. The upper part of the building, melted to the point of almost evaporating, scattered like rain as small debris.

Except for the basement level, the building itself completely disappeared. People who had taken refuge during the bombing, and those who were horrified by the shaking building and fled, stared blankly at the scene.

Under the clear night sky, dark blue flames did not lose their momentum and continued to expand their territory. Lightning also leaped, but the limit of mana was clear. There was a huge gap between Han Yu-hyun, with the mana gate behind him, and Sigma, who did not, like a deep sea and a limited lake.

Hwareureuk!

Eventually, Sigma retreated, avoiding the flames that were surging up to his feet. Against overwhelming firepower, none of his skills or experience were of any use. It was an expected result, but Sigma smiled slightly bitterly.

It was then. A faint breath escaped from the body in Han Yu-hyun’s arms.

“…Yu-hyun.”

“…Hyung?”

-Hyung!

Han Yu-jin opened his eyes.

* * *

What I saw when I opened my eyes was a dark and unfamiliar space. I was momentarily panicked by the empty space, and then my heart sank.

“Yu-hyun!”

Before my head could understand the situation, my hands started to tremble. Then, as if I had been doused in ice water, my whole body began to shake coldly.

‘What is this? I asked for a waiting period, but that meant I wanted to be able to choose when I would be revived. But why am I dropped in a place like this without any selection window?’

Is time passing outside? Yu-hyun.

“Damn it, Newbie! Volleyball! Wilson!”

I was going to revive immediately. Right after dying, without a gap. So that Yu-hyun would mistake that I hadn’t died but had only lost consciousness for a moment.

From the beginning, I had no intention of losing my life in front of my brother, but even if Yu-hyun knew that I had multiple lives, I tried to avoid dying right in front of him as much as possible, but even after things went wrong, I thought it would be okay because I could revive immediately.

But this, what the hell.

“Save me! Right now!”

I shouted in a cracked voice, but there was no answer. My heart burned with worry. I was suffocating. Please, let time be stopped here or at least much slower. I was afraid to even imagine what Yu-hyun was doing, what he was feeling right now.

Still, he would know that this isn’t the real world, right? …If he doesn’t. If he went berserk as soon as he fell here and didn’t even receive the system message properly. Damn it, he needs to know. Newbie, please.

“Is anyone there?! Someone!”

Please, my brother. I searched around, hoping for anything to come out. There was nothing, but I groped even the air. As time passed meaninglessly, my anxiety increased. Before I knew it, tears were falling.

I should have just asked to be revived immediately instead of asking for a waiting period. No, I should have been more careful and saved my brother. Even a barrier skill as soon as the warning window appeared… Warning message.

‘…Sung Hyun-jae.’

I had forgotten for a moment. It wasn’t the Newbie. The person managing the system right now.

“Sung Hyun-jae!”

Immediately after shouting.

Click.

A screen turned on. In the light-filled screen was Yu-hyun. My brother, hugging my corpse. A tear-stained face and injured shoulder. Han Yu-hyun, trying to hold on to me until the end, even with a face that looked like he would die at any moment.

I couldn’t think of anything. With the feeling of blood draining away and the strength of my whole body disappearing, someone grabbed my collapsing body.

[You need to come to your senses.]

“…Now, sob, right, now.”

The words to send me back didn’t come out properly. I just gasped a few times. I felt a hand patting my back.

[The young master is still holding on. I can’t interfere, so Han Yu-jin-gun has to do it. Now, hurry.]

Another window appeared in front of me. There was also a keyboard to send messages. I somehow moved my trembling hands. My brother, Yu-hyun.

-Yu-hyun.

The message was sent, and the eyes of my brother beyond the screen widened. Light entered his dark, tear-stained eyes. My heart, which had been weighed down, regained its vitality.

-Hyung is here.

The movement of my hands became faster. The trembling stopped. It’s okay. My brother is okay. He will be okay. I quickly sent messages in succession.

“Quest, how do I send a quest?! He needs to recover even a little mana to hold on! Mana potion, no, he won’t have time to drink it if I just give it to him, so make him recover immediately as a reward!”

[If you use a quest, you won’t be able to send any more messages. There’s an allocation.]

“It’s okay, hurry!”

Even if there are no more messages from me, Yu-hyun will be able to wait. I was sure as I looked at the expression of my revived brother. It’s okay, no problem. He seems more okay than me. Really, like that.

A hand wearing a white glove reached out from behind me. After touching something, a quest window popped up.

[Write the quest name and keep the content brief, the rewards in detail.]

“There’s no time to write long.”

I answered and quickly sent the quest. A quest window appeared on the screen.

[Protect Me

Let’s hold on safely until Han Yu-jin revives! Protect Han Yu-jin’s body for 5 minutes against a powerful enemy ^▽^

Reward: Automatic recovery of a small amount of mana]

“…What’s with the emoticon? I never used anything like that.”

[It’s a beginner option.]

What are you talking about? And the tone of the content has changed.

[You’ll be able to interfere in more ways once you get used to it. The young master seems to have recovered safely. Congratulations.]

Beyond the screen, Yu-hyun stood up. Flames rose as if to block Sigma… Huh? The color of the flames changed. The black color faded and turned blue. …Is it because of Alpha’s body? Sigma started to persuade Yu-hyun. It seems better to negotiate than to fight in his current state.

“But when can I revive?”

[We are working hard to restore your consciousness.]

“Consciousness?”

[Han Yu-jin-gun is currently unconscious due to the shock of a fatal injury. You need to press the option to revive, but that’s impossible while unconscious.]

“You know that well.”

[…I only found out after looking into it a little while ago.]

Somehow, his tone was a bit subdued. In the meantime, Yu-hyun summoned Irin. The red lizard suddenly grew… What is that?

“…Irin?”

Is that also because he fell into another world? Irin possessed the body of a dragon… Why is Yu-hyun so indifferent? Aren’t you surprised? With Irin’s help, Yu-hyun safely escaped and reached the mana gate. Now I’m completely relieved. He wouldn’t lose to Sigma near the mana gate.

“Anyway, thank you, Sung Hyun-jae-ssi. That Newbie, he should have told me this in advance… But what happened? How are you using the system—”

I turned around. A familiar suit came into view. And the face, this.

“Ack!”

Hot pink yarn! A large ball of yarn was floating where his head should be. I screamed and reflexively pushed the body away. The suit and gloves collapsed to the floor, and the yarn rolled around before popping back up.

[That’s too much.]

“Wh-what, what is that!”

[Don’t worry, it’s not my real body.]

“I’m not worried at all, okay?”

^^ The yarn ball smiled. Is there a rule that system administrators have to possess round objects? Don’t flutter the ends of the yarn. Don’t pretend to be cute.