The S-Classes That I Raised [EN]: Chapter 182

Noah’s expression turned strange when I said I was going to see the Sesung Guild Leader. He fidgeted, seemingly lost in thought, before cautiously speaking.

“There’s a birthday party tonight, maybe I shouldn’t go either.”

“Why wouldn’t you go? It’s a good opportunity to network. Besides, you’re supposed to accompany Myungwoo.”

There probably isn’t any stupid S-Class hunter who would mess with Myungwoo, but safety first. Since they’re both attending the party anyway, Noah agreed to protect Myungwoo. I’ll just stay home with Peace.

“I’m also worried about sending Myungwoo-hyung [older brother or male friend] alone, but…”

“Hyung?”

“He told me to call him that comfortably.”

It seemed Myungwoo liked Noah more than I thought. Well, Noah is quite cute. And kind.

“You can call me that comfortably too.”

Noah’s eyes widened at my words.

“I… I want to, but… No, never mind.”

“It’s okay.”

“…No, I really shouldn’t. Really.”

What’s this about? Why is it okay for Myungwoo but not for me? Am I more of an uncomfortable person than I thought? Come to think of it, wanting to be seen as cute is more of an attitude towards someone much older. I’ve also been making him do all sorts of things… Maybe I seem like a boss. It would be unpleasant if a boss casually told you to call them ‘hyung.’ My bad.

“Don’t worry about it, just do whatever you’re comfortable with, Noah.”

After all, we should avoid companies that feel like a fake family.

I packed the gift and contacted the recipient. Seong Hyunjae-nim [honorific title], your delivery is scheduled to arrive soon, so please come to the Sky Garden to receive it. No proxy receipt or anything like that, you must receive it in person. So, in response to my question of whether he was home, he replied that he was waiting.

‘It’s a little annoying that he’s accepting the gift without inviting me.’

Let’s just think of it as throwing away something I can’t use elsewhere.

With Noah’s help, I headed to the Sesung Guild. It was morning, but the sunlight was already strong, so I put on a hat, making me feel even more like a deliveryman. Thanks to flying in a straight line without any traffic, we arrived quickly.

I could see Seong Hyunjae standing in the lush rooftop garden. He was dressed casually, as if he had come out from home.

“Let’s go straight up.”

Noah descended and stopped about two meters above Seong Hyunjae. The wind from his flapping wings ruffled his light-colored hair. I responded to the gaze looking up at me with a smile for now. Then, I opened my inventory. The list was filled with the same name.

[Sveil Sheep’s Yarn]

I took it all out and poured it down. Bundles of hot pink, soft yarn fell like rain. I had filled not only my inventory but also Noah’s to the brim. The fluffy yarn wrapped around the birthday celebrant, piled up, rolled around, and completely covered the surroundings in pink.

I was about to land in front of Seong Hyunjae, but I landed a little further away, worried that the yarn would fly away from the flapping wings. As I walked through the fluttering hot pink yarn, Seong Hyunjae, covered in hot pink, looked down at me.

“It’s high-quality yarn that’s excellent for insulation and resistant to contamination, so it won’t get dirty easily.”

The yarn itself was expensive, but I practically rented a factory to dye it hot pink, creating a special hot pink dye for dungeon items. While I was at it, I also changed Yerim’s shawl to white.

“Hold out your hand.”

I took out a pair of knitting needles and placed them on his obediently outstretched palm. These were also custom-made.

“Happy birthday. Although I wasn’t invited, I’ll leave you with a gift. Prevent dementia and live a long, long life.”

“Oh my, are you the thirteenth fairy?”

Seong Hyunjae smiled and said nonsense.

“If you fall asleep after being pricked by the needle, Han Yoojin-gun will—”

“Ah, I was wondering what you were talking about. Do you have any conscience?”

He’s going to become Sleeping Beauty… Ugh, just imagining it makes me feel bad. In the first place, would you even get pricked by a knitting needle?

“I’ll be leaving now, so please contact me if you fall asleep forever. I’ll send a wreath.”

“A gatecrasher? That’s disappointing.”

Seong Hyunjae grabbed me as I turned around. He pulled me in, took off my hat, and placed his chin on my head. He did this last time too.

“I wasn’t invited, so I am a gatecrasher.”

“My items have a free pass anywhere.”

“Don’t make up ridiculous excuses and tell me the real reason. Is it related to being upset?”

It’s unlikely that he suddenly got depressed for no reason, there must be something. After a moment of silence, Seong Hyunjae opened his mouth.

“I’m getting bored.”

“…Pardon?”

My heart sank for a moment. If I didn’t have fear resistance, I would have been terrified. I wondered if he was already tired of me, but the subject wasn’t me.

“I feel like I’m repeating the same things. The same place, the same interior, the same programs and menus, and even the gifts that have already arrived feel like I’ve received them before.”

Seong Hyunjae’s voice was quite gloomy for him. It seems his memories from before the regression are becoming clearer, making him terribly sensitive.

‘Until now, it’s all been a series of different events.’

Many things have changed since I intervened. Almost nothing was the same as before the regression, it was very different. Two S-Class hunters and guilds disappeared, the Association was changed, the breeding of Giseungsu [a type of monster], the blacksmith, the new S-Class hunters, and even dungeons I had never experienced before.

But birthday parties are different. It was supposed to be the same as planned, with nothing changing. Except for a few more invited guests, everything would have been the same.

‘So he felt more strongly that the same thing was being repeated.’

Unlike the other changed events, the déjà vu may have been more vivid because it was so identical.

“It’s surprising that a hot pink yarn gift isn’t unfamiliar.”

“Of course, Han Yoojin-gun is an exception. Very new.”

Because I am the most detached person. An extra who would have been buried without any influence.

Suddenly, I wondered if that’s why Seong Hyunjae was more lenient with me. Not just as a skill, but as an object of interest in itself.

If I hadn’t moved, there would have been nothing new for him. It would have been difficult for a human who feels bored enough to be upset by the repetition of a birthday to endure months or years of repetition.

But since I’m knowingly twisting things up so much, he may have unconsciously welcomed it.

“So I deliberately left you out.”

My heart skipped a beat again. Could it be that he felt a strange sense of déjà vu and was trying to experiment?

‘Come to think of it, the invitations arrived particularly late for Yerim and Myungwoo.’

It had arrived early for Yoohyun. Moon Hyuna was not in the country, and I remember Riet had received it a while ago. Yerim was later than that, and Myungwoo was even later. Could it be that he postponed it for those who felt less of a repetitive feeling? Yerim was a famous A-Class hunter even before the regression, even if she wasn’t an S-Class. But I wouldn’t have even heard of Myungwoo.

And I am the F-Class hunter who has changed and intervened the most, but who would not have been associated with Seong Hyunjae at all and would have only been rumored to have a bad reputation.

‘He’s such an unnecessarily sharp person.’

It’s something he could have just passed off as déjà vu, but he’s going out of his way to check.

“I’m truly grateful that you feel I’m so special. Well, I’m good in many ways, really.”

“I should be the one who’s grateful. Thanks to you, both Doryeon-nim [young master] and Chief Song Taewon have become interesting.”

“Don’t talk about fun with someone else’s brother. Before that, you knew Yoohyun longer than you knew me, didn’t you? What’s with the sudden change?”

“Sudden change? If it wasn’t Han Yoojin’s brother, Han Yoohyun, I wouldn’t have been interested in him in the first place. He wasn’t the type to blend in quietly with society. He would have wandered around more freely than Riet. It was amazing to see him willingly submit and make his own nest.”

“…You speak as if you know him quite well. And don’t call him that. I never told you to treat my brother like an object.”

A low laugh fell from above my head.

“Han Yoohyun is rare, but not unique. But Han Yoojin’s brother is one of a kind. He was unique enough to catch my eye, and I was especially curious about the reason he was made that way.”

There are several S-Class hunters born, including himself, so he doesn’t value them that much. Well, he treated Riet quite plainly.

‘…So, if I wasn’t there.’

The images of Yoohyun and Riet came to mind at the same time. My heart ached. It’s not that things are bad now. He seems pretty good these days… but…

If I wasn’t there.

“Now that I know the reason, I have no intention of messing with you. I promised to treat you well, so I have to put up with that much.”

Seong Hyunjae said soothingly as my silence grew longer. It’s a little surprising that he’s even saying he’ll put up with it.

“Isn’t it because messing with me is more effective?”

There’s no answer. He’s probably just wearing a friendly smile on the outside.

“Don’t pick on kids unnecessarily. And leave Chief Song alone. He’s already tired.”

“Isn’t the scope of your fence too wide? I’ll leave the children Han Yoojin-gun is holding, but. And I’m treating Chief Song Taewon well.”

If Song Taewon heard that, the wrinkles on his forehead would be twice as deep as usual.

“This time, I sent him a custom-made suit with the invitation. Sadly, it was immediately returned.”

“What are you doing when you know he can’t accept it?”

“Of course, there’s also one for Han Yoojin-gun, so don’t be jealous.”

Ah, damn it. Please stop talking nonsense. I glanced at Noah, who was sitting far away. He was close, so he didn’t raise his voice, so it was a distance that was difficult for Noah’s stats to hear, but it was still bothering me. When our eyes met, Noah wagged his tail. Like a puppy claiming to be waiting patiently.

“Do you want white, black, or—”

“Black.”

It won’t work even if I refuse, so let’s just accept it.

“You’re not greedy, Han Yoojin-gun. So I’ll give you all twenty suits.”

“It’s not like I’m a set of gold, silver, and iron! I refuse!”

“You’re humble, so here are ten more.”

…I don’t like birthday punches, but I’m in favor of it today. Of course, with other S-Class hunters beating him up instead of me.

“So, are you not going to give me my invitation? The gift I have for tonight is much better.”

“I was planning to pick you up myself.”

Yeah, right. He would have left me out and compared and confirmed the sense of alienation until the end.

“I can’t receive such treatment from today’s protagonist. I’ll go on my own.”

If you’re bored, go knit.

With various unsettling feelings in my heart, I headed to the Haeyeon Guild. Yerim was in class and Yoohyun was at work. While the A-Class ranking match was attracting people’s attention, the dissolution of MKC was proceeding rapidly. Haeyeon and Sesung, and even Breaker, who belatedly joined in. Everything that needed to be divided was already decided.

“Why did you go to the Sesung Guild Leader?”

Yoohyun handed me juice as I sat on the sofa in the office. He still didn’t welcome me wandering around, but unlike before, there was no sharp air. Even now, he was dissatisfied, but the tone was closer to a simple question rather than blaming.

“I went to complain about why he didn’t send me an invitation. He said he would come to pick me up himself, so I said I would go on my own.”

“You didn’t have to go. I wasn’t planning on going either.”

“If you don’t go, what about Yerim? I can’t send her alone yet.”

“I told the Breaker Guild Leader. And if I don’t go, Hunter Kim Sunghan will attend instead.”

Because of me, one of the three had to stay in Haeyeon. Even if Kim Minyi was known as an S-Class hunter, it was uneasy to have a fake S-Class hunter when several overseas S-Class hunters were coming in.

“Why didn’t you tell me in advance?”

“If I did, you would have pushed me to go. I was going to tell you while we were eating dinner later.”

Is it a clock? Yoohyun said as he made a call somewhere.

“Then hyung [older brother] needs to get ready too.”

“Oh, okay.”

I stared blankly at my brother, who was skillfully acting as a guild leader, ordering preparations for my attendance at the birthday party over the phone.

‘…Is he feeling suffocated?’

Seong Hyunjae’s words kept swirling in my head.

Yerim was very happy when I said I was going with her. She was constantly worried about leaving the ahjussi [middle-aged man] alone and tried to pick out clothes for me, but I barely stopped her. Our Yerim’s sense isn’t bad, but it’s a little too focused on the cute side.

After Myungwoo and Noah, Moon Hyuna even came here on purpose to join us, and then we set off to attend that damn birthday party.