The S-Classes That I Raised [EN]: Chapter 14

14. Looks Like a Shrimp (1)

Phew, finally solved another case. Now, all that’s left is to finalize the contract and awaken her.

“I’m so embarrassed to say something I never do. Just sign quickly, and I’ll awaken you.”

“Okay. Ah, this is so funny.”

“Don’t laugh.”

“Your face is red all the way to your neck!”

“You’re not any better, you know?”

Park Yerim giggled and signed the contract. As the two signature fields filled, the contract faintly glowed. Then, the surface became smooth as if it had been coated. Yerim marveled and fiddled with the contract.

“I can’t modify it anymore, can I?”

“It wouldn’t work if you could.”

I took back the contract and put it in my inventory. That’s all the preparation done.

“So, are you going to use the awakening skill now?”

“Ah, just a moment.”

She waved her hand and sat up straight as if she were about to meditate. Then, she took a deep breath.

“Will the awakening happen right away?”

“If you’re lucky. It could take up to a week.”

The ‘Promising Sprout’ skill would normally apply immediately, but I deliberately set the time to a week. I don’t know if I’ll be able to apply the keyword immediately like this time when I awaken someone else later.

“Okay, do it!”

There’s no need to be so nervous. I used the ‘Promising Sprout Optimization Awakening’ skill on Park Yerim. And then.

“I, I really got a message window! Mister! How do I check my rank?”

“Think of opening the status window. You can say it out loud.”

“Status window! Oh? Wow!”

Park Yerim’s mouth widened. The word ‘astonishment’ seemed to be etched all over her face.

Well, it’s understandable that she’d be surprised. Her stats are S-rank, and she even has an SS-rank skill. Yerim, who was very excited, shouted and pointed at the table with her hand—

“Mister! I’m S—!”

– Crack!

Ugh? The table broke? No, did her hand sink in? The thick top caved in with the shape of her hand. Oh my god.

“Uh…”

“D, don’t move!”

Damn it. Yuhyun definitely said that those above C-rank can’t immediately adapt to their suddenly changed physical abilities. Yerim is S-rank, so… I’m screwed.

“Your strength is incredibly stronger than before right now. So, don’t touch anything. Got it?”

“Yes, yes.”

“Okay. Let’s get out of here carefully. Move very slowly. Imagine walking silently and slowly.”

Yerim slowly and carefully got up from her seat. It was a precarious movement, like walking on a tightrope. Watching her, I was as anxious as if I had a child in front of me who might fall at any moment.

It’s a relief that this is the first floor without a basement. Even if the floor collapses, no one will get hurt.

“Slowly, one step at a time. That’s right, that’s right.”

“I think I’m getting a little used to it.”

“Still, don’t rush. I said it would take a day.”

I opened the sliding door without taking my eyes off her. After putting on my shoes first, I picked up Yerim’s sneakers. Her sneakers are very old. They even looked big compared to Yerim’s feet. They should have bought her new shoes instead of giving her hand-me-downs.

“I’ll put them on for you, so put your foot out.”

“Okay. Uh… it’s a little unstable to stand on one foot.”

“Then sit down carefully. Slowly—”

Ugh, a handprint was slightly left on the floor. Still, unlike the table, it only had a few scratches. As I put the sneakers on her outstretched foot, she giggled at something funny.

“Doesn’t this make your heart flutter a little?”

“Far from fluttering, it’s making me nervous.”

Why is she talking about fluttering here? After warning her again not to touch anything, I headed to the checkout counter. I have to pay for the table.

“I’d like to pay here. And the table is a little broken—”

“Ah, a fly!”

“No!”

– Crack

The corner of the table crumbled like a biscuit. Yerim smiled, realizing what she had done.

“I used to catch all the bugs at the restaurant. So, I’ve developed a habit, haha.”

Don’t laugh. The employee inside the checkout counter stared alternately at the table and Yerim with wide eyes. I’m really sorry because of my kid. I handed over my card with an apology.

“Please include the price of the seat table and that table in the calculation.”

Feel free to charge me a lot.

The way back to Haeyeon Guild was relatively smooth. The headrest of the front seat of the car was smashed, and the sidewalk block was scraped off at Yerim’s feet when she got off, but it’s okay as long as no one gets hurt.

So don’t come near me, Yerim. She keeps trying to stick to me. It’s understandable that she’s anxious about the sudden change, but if you grab me even once, my arm will be crushed. My stats are F.

At Haeyeon Guild, I only told Guild Leader Yuhyun about Park Yerim’s situation. I didn’t want to cause any trouble if word got out. The Hunter Association would be informed about the new S-rank during the rank assessment.

So Kim Sunghan guarded the surroundings to prevent any unfortunate victims from appearing as we headed to the elevator. It was a great relief that there were few people in the lobby on a weekend evening. To enter areas other than the 1st to 3rd floors, you had to go through security checks, but thanks to Yuhyun’s prior notice, we just passed through.

“I’m feeling a little excited.”

As the elevator doors closed, Yerim approached me again.

“I told you not to stick to me. There’s nowhere to avoid you.”

“I won’t touch you. Do you think I can’t even control that much?”

“You completely crushed the headrest, and you’re saying that? If someone had been in front, you would have been a murderer.”

At the word ‘murderer,’ Yerim’s lips poked out. I wondered if I had gone too far, but considering the future, it was better to give this much warning. There’s such a big difference between an unawakened person and an S-rank that you could say they’re different species.

To prevent accidents, she always needs to keep in mind that she is not ordinary.

Yuhyun was waiting alone in the Guild Leader’s office. As we entered, he gave us a business-like smile.

“Welcome, Miss Park Yerim.”

“…Hello.”

Yerim greeted awkwardly. I didn’t think she was shy, so what’s wrong?

“First, I will guide you to the place where you will stay while you adapt to the change in your abilities. On average, it takes a day for an S-rank to adapt. After that, you can live your daily life as before, so you don’t have to worry.”

Yuhyun explained politely. It felt strangely unfamiliar. Considering the value of an S-rank Awakener, that would be the standard, but maybe I treated Yerim too casually.

“Please follow me this way.”

Yuhyun led the way out of the room. What should I do? It’s almost Peace’s mealtime. Can I go?

“Mister, what are you doing not coming!”

Park Yerim gestured and called me, standing blankly. She even glared at me as if to say, ‘Hurry up.’ Come to think of it, I decided to be her guardian. I have to follow her.

We took an elevator that didn’t stop on the 1st to 3rd floors, unlike when we came up, and went down to the basement. There were training facilities for Awakeners in the basement.

As we walked down the long hallway, Yuhyun continued to explain.

“The 2nd and 3rd floors of the basement are spaces for training. However, for full-fledged combat training for A-rank and above, you must go to the training center located in Gyeonggi-do [a province in South Korea] for safety reasons. In particular, the use of skills with lethal force is strictly prohibited in urban areas, so please be careful.”

“…It seems like there’s a lot to learn.”

“You will receive formal education after registering as an Awakener. Until then, just be careful when using your skills.”

“Yes.”

Come to think of it, what are Yerim’s skill effects? I’m curious.

“This physical training room is where Miss Park Yerim will stay for the day.”

The place we arrived at was a wide room with various exercise equipment. The high ceiling and the walls and floor, which seemed to be made of a special material, stood out.

“It doesn’t matter if the equipment here breaks. Please use it to get a feel for your abilities. The walls and floor can withstand the strength of an S-rank level 1. Does your strength stat exceed 100?”

“No. It’s 61.”

“Then there won’t be any problems.”

61, huh. That’s three times the total of my stats. If you only consider strength, it’s fifteen times. Just because the stats are fifteen times higher doesn’t mean the actual strength is fifteen times different, but it was definitely an insurmountable difference.

“There is also a shower room and a sleeping room over there. It doesn’t matter if those facilities are damaged either, but please use them after you get used to your strength to some extent.”

“What if I need something?”

“You can make a request through the phone in the sleeping room. If you break the phone, press the emergency bell next to the sleeping room door.”

“Do you have any other questions?” Yuhyun asked. Park Yerim shook her head in response.

“Then let’s talk about the rest tomorrow after you adapt to your abilities.”

With those words, Yuhyun turned around. I should go up now and feed Peace. He’ll be waiting.

“Mister, where are you going!”

As I was about to turn around, Yerim shouted. Where am I going?

“I’m going home.”

“Leaving me alone? How can you do that? You said you’d take responsibility!”

It’s not wrong, but the nuance is a bit strange. Yuhyun stopped and turned to look at me.

“Responsibility, hyung [Korean honorific for older brother or male friend] ?”

“I decided to be her guardian.”

“Guardian?”

“Her parents aren’t around, and she doesn’t get along with the uncle she lives with. She doesn’t want to be involved with that family.”

It’s not bad, is it? But Yuhyun’s expression looked bad.

“The guardian of a minor Awakener is usually an Awakener with a higher or similar rank, unless it’s a parent. That’s the only way to control them. If you need a guardian, I’d rather—”

“He already decided to be my guardian, didn’t he?”

Park Yerim interrupted Yuhyun. Her expression was colder than her age, reminding me of the Ice Witch Park Yerim I saw in the past and future. Why is she overreacting again?

“Miss Park Yerim, it’s not possible for the safety of the guardian. There have already been several cases where a low-ranked guardian who doesn’t have the safety net of blood relations was assaulted while giving advice to their ward.”

Oh… there’s that problem too. Well, dealing with a rebellious teenager who is much stronger than you wouldn’t be easy at all.

Thinking about it that way, I got a little scared. The contract says Yerim will protect me, so will it be okay?

“I contracted to protect Mister. So there’s no problem with safety. I don’t even intend to harm Mister in the first place.”

“Even so, it’s a separate issue whether hyung can properly act as a guardian. Moreover, as the rank difference is too great, various other problems will follow.”

“…I don’t know about that. But.”

Park Yerim looked at me once and continued.

“If you don’t let Mister be my guardian, I won’t join Haeyeon Guild.”

…What? Wait a minute?