The S-Classes That I Raised [EN]: Chapter 28

“…I’m thirty, no, in my twenties.”

I said blankly. Grandpa… to be called grandpa by someone older than me. My hair is still black. My skin is firm without a single wrinkle. Where on earth do you see my grandfather in me?

[I know. But I saw my grandfather in you when you were drunk yesterday. My grandfather also often said he loved me when he was drunk.]

“Ah, so that’s why……”

Even saying that, it’s still weird! Does that mean if a woman you’re seeing gets drunk and says she loves you, you’ll call her grandpa then? Or grandma?

“But I’m not drunk now, and I won’t be drunk again, so you won’t have to think of your grandfather.”

Especially that crazy talk about loving you, I never want to say that again. …Feels like I’ve used up a lifetime’s worth of it, damn it.

[…That, I suppose, is true.]

Kim Sung-han’s voice was filled with regret, uncharacteristically.

[But I still feel like you’re my grandfather, Yoo-jin.]

“No, even if you say that……”

[Is it not allowed?]

“…Excuse me?”

[I won’t say nonsense like that in front of other people. Just a check-up call or visiting from time to time is enough. Since we’re in the same guild anyway, it won’t be a hassle for you either.]

…Is he asking me to play the role of his grandfather? I really don’t understand. Did the alcohol I drank yesterday go bad or something? What kind of structure is in his head that hearing someone say they love him when drunk makes him think of the grandfather who raised him… Oh…….

‘…Wait a minute. The grandfather who raised him.’

It was a caregiver.

I said the keyword ‘I love you’ to Kim Sung-han while drunk.

Kim Sung-han heard the keyword and thought of his grandfather.

Not a parent, friend, or lover, but the person who raised him.

And he overlapped that caregiver with me.

The fragmented puzzle pieces are starting to fit together one by one.

I thought of Ye-rim, who was strangely friendly to me. I also thought of Yoo Myung-woo, who kept sticking to me.

And from the moment the skill was applied, my brother’s attitude of trying to protect me excessively…….

‘…Crazy, what is this.’

The puzzle was assembled, but my head became even more confused.

It was too perfect to deny that it didn’t make sense. The strangely changed attitudes of everyone from Yoo-hyun to Kim Sung-han were all explained.

If the hidden effect of the Perfect Caregiver title, or my ‘My Brat’ skill, is this crazy thing that makes the affected person regard me as the best caregiver they know.

[Han Yoo-jin-ssi? If you don’t like it…….]

“Ah, no. It’s okay.”

I grabbed my head, which was hot, and mumbled vaguely.

“I still have a hangover… I need to go wash my face.”

[Are you feeling very unwell? You should get an IV drip.]

“No, it’s okay. I just need to splash cold water on my face.”

[It’s hot, but still, cold water—]

“It’s okay. I’m really okay. I’m still in my twenties. Then, I’ll hang up now.”

I forcibly ended the call with Kim Sung-han, who kept worrying about me as if I were an old man over seventy.

In the silence that descended, I kept sweeping my hair back.

First… let’s sort things out.

Sort out… sort out…….

‘…What kind of crazy bastard created the system?!’

If this were a real game, damn it, I would leave a one-star rating on every platform and community and write twenty pages of scathing reviews.

I don’t even know if it’s a skill effect or a title effect. Considering it’s a keyword application, it seems like a skill, but the effect is exactly what the title Perfect Caregiver implies.

Ah, whatever. Who cares.

I took a few breaths and calmed my mind.

‘First… it seems like when a keyword is applied, they start thinking of me as the person who raised them, right?’

Kim Sung-han was reminded of the grandfather who raised him, as we just heard.

In Yoo-hyun’s case, since I was already his caregiver, his feelings for me seemed to have intensified. If worry and anxiety doubled, it would make sense for him to try to confine me without warning.

No, that was too tame a reaction for being doubled. And he’s let me go now. Is it added by one point five times instead of two for the same person?

‘I thought the kid had suddenly become strange.’

It was because of my skill or title. Sorry for misunderstanding, Yoo-hyun.

As for Yoo Myung-woo… is sticking to me like a brother? His attitude certainly wasn’t towards a parent.

Lastly, Park Ye-rim.

‘…Is it Dad?’

There was the highest possibility that it was Dad. …I wanted to think so.

But usually, kids… especially girls…….

No, there are daughters who are close to their dads. Ye-rim’s father might have been particularly family-oriented. Maybe her mother was the sole breadwinner, and she grew up in her father’s hands. That must have been it. It had to be.

‘It didn’t really feel like she was treating me like a mom, did it?’

Right, if she thought of me as her mom, she wouldn’t have just ended with ‘disgusting’ when Yoo Myung-woo stuck to me; she would have called the police. It must have ended with ‘disgusting’ because it was her dad. Definitely.

I took a deep breath and opened the My Brat is the Best skill window. And I looked at it in detail.

[※ Cannot be applied if the target is aware of the keyword’s effect.]

This phrase was what bothered me.

I had passed it over without much thought before, but now that I knew the new effect, it felt completely different.

‘Does “aware of the keyword’s effect” mean that the other person realizes the reason they feel like I’m their caregiver?’

If I confessed to someone who regards me as a parent, ‘Actually, your feelings are brainwashing caused by a skill~,’ they would naturally feel betrayed. If I lose their trust, I’ll lose the qualification of being a perfect caregiver, or something like that.

‘It’s okay if Yoo-hyun finds out, and Yoo Myung-woo would probably let it go if he thinks about what I’ve done for him.’

Park Ye-rim and Kim Sung-han are the problems.

Of course, it would be best if they didn’t find out. It’s a whopping L-grade title and L-grade skill. To feel something strange, their mental strength stat would have to be around SSS-grade. So, if I’m careful with my words, there’s no possibility that the affected person will become aware of the keyword’s effect.

…Of course, there’s absolutely no way I’ll get drunk. Should I put a gag on when I sleep? So I can’t talk in my sleep.

‘I should just use it on monsters instead of people. It’ll be safe if they can’t understand me.’

I’m even scared to say ‘I love you.’ I won’t be able to confess in the future… Huh?

Wait, just a minute. What happens if I really fall in love with a woman?

‘The moment I confess, does she become my dad……?’

She could even become my mom.

I sincerely love you, and the other person blushes and says, ‘Yeah, I love Mom too’—crazy, crazy, crazy, seriously, damn it, crazy, what is this!!!

‘It’s, it’s okay. I just won’t say I love you.’

For the rest of my life. Not even by mistake, in my sleep, or unconsciously.

If I slip my tongue, my wife, with whom I’ve been living happily, might suddenly say, ‘Mom, I’m sorry. But you’re Mom,’ and leave home to meet a new man. A terrifying situation could unfold.

And she comes to greet me with her future husband? Asks me to sit in the parents’ seat at the wedding hall? Lights the candles? My wife’s husband bows deeply, calling himself my son-in-law? Huh?

What is this, a story that wouldn’t even appear in a soap opera.

I was sweating so much that it felt like it was coming out of my eyes.

‘If I meet someone I really want to be with for the rest of my life, I’ll just cut off my tongue.’

I’ll just cut it off coolly, damn it. I’ll say I had an accident while entering a dungeon. …What if that bastard Yoo-hyun brings a healer? Even an A-grade can regenerate a tongue. Do I have to become a crazy bastard who refuses treatment?

…Ah, whatever, I really don’t know. Anyway, I have zero luck with romance for the next five years, so let’s not think about it.

‘Low-grade skills didn’t have this much attached to them…….’

Well, even A-grades had a couple of effects not mentioned in the description, so L-grades would have even more. Still, it’s like playing Minesweeper. I’m even scared to use skills.

‘They should explain these important effects. They just need to add one more line. Like, “The target regards the skill user as their caregiver,” even if it’s brief.’

Perfect Caregiver, My Brat, Growth Buff, I love you, Influence. There were hints, but how am I supposed to deduce it from that? I’m not Sherlock Holmes.

“Your blue tie tells me you had bean soup this morning, recently broke up with your lover, and started quitting smoking, and you’re left-handed, wow!”

I should just raise monsters. Safely and peacefully.

I sorted out my thoughts and got out of bed. Wait, I feel like I’m forgetting something.

‘Ah, right.’

I sent Kim Sung-han a text asking him to come visit me once before entering the dungeon. Since the skill has been applied, I should help him grow. And… is there anything else?

Even though my hangover was gone, my head throbbed.

I also have to receive new hunter training, so I should wash up and go out soon. What time was it? It was definitely 10 a.m.… Ah, I’m late!

“It’s been changed to 2 p.m.”

Yoo Myung-woo said, poking his head out from the kitchen as I rushed out of the room.

“More than that, that cat has been restless since last night—”

“Cat? Peace?”

“You were carried in unconscious when you came home. So, I think he was surprised.”

Oh, dear. Well, since he can’t understand me, I couldn’t explain that I was just briefly out of it because I was drunk.

I quickly ran to the living room. I saw the small beast huddled in front of the glass door, clinging to it, not in his comfortable sleeping place.

“Peace!”

– Kkuueung, kkeueung! Kkiang!

As soon as he saw me, Peace scratched at the glass and whined desperately. Yes, yes. My baby. You were very worried.

I quickly opened the door and hugged Peace, who clung to me.

“You were very surprised, weren’t you? It’s okay, I’m sorry. That won’t happen again.”

– Gyareureung

“Yes, yes. My Peace.”

If I get drunk again, I’m a dog, a dog.

“Here.”

Yoo Myung-woo approached me with a tray holding cups. But why are there four cups? The colors of the drinks inside are also slightly different.

“What is that?”

“Hangover relief drinks. From the far left, it’s what your brother, Kim Sung-han-ssi, Park Ye-rim-yang, and I bought.”

I appreciate the thought, but I don’t need it.

“As you can see, I’m fine, so I don’t need to drink it.”

“They said they’re going to check if you drank it.”

“Who?”

“All three of them.”

Seriously, they’re even checking this…… Well, it’s my fault for using the skill without knowing them well. It’s not difficult, I just have to drink it, so I was about to reach out when I stopped.

“You’re not going to say which one I drank first, are you?”

“I have to answer if they ask……”

Yoo Myung-woo answered hesitantly. Well, what power do you have to refuse?

Let’s see, Kim Sung-han will be fine. But my brother and Ye-rim are the problems. We’ve already had a fight.

I doubt they’ll fight over this again, but you never know.

After a brief moment of contemplation, I picked up the drink Yoo-hyun sent. In times like this, it’s best to side with the strongest one.

“By the way, do you have a brother you’re close to?”

I asked as I emptied the last glass. The skill effect is still only half speculation, so I had to confirm it for sure.

“Brother? I don’t have one? Only older sisters who are much older than me.”

…Could it be an older sister? The way he clings to me makes it seem like it. It’s better than a mom, but I don’t like older sisters either.

“Were you… close to your sisters?”

“No, not at all.”

Phew, that’s a relief.

“Then, what about your parents?”

Yoo Myung-woo smiled bitterly and shook his head.

“If I had a good relationship with them, I wouldn’t have had to sign that slave contract [exploitative contract]. I did receive a lot of allowance when I was young. My family was doing well back then. But both my parents worked, so it was hard to see their faces, and my sisters ostracized me and later treated me like a servant. They’ve all been married for a long time now, so I don’t even contact them.”

If it’s not family, who does he think I am? A relative? A teacher? Some other adult in the neighborhood?

“Um, is there anyone who comes to mind when you see me?”

I just asked directly. Myung-woo looked puzzled.

“No, there isn’t?”

There isn’t? What, did I guess wrong?

“Perhaps someone who has helped you the most in your life or someone you rely on in particular? I think there would be at least one person.”

“Of course, there is.”

Yoo Myung-woo said, a little embarrassed.

“It’s you, Yoo-jin.”

“…Me?”

“Yeah. Of course, it’s you. Who else would it be? Even if we put aside what happened at the association, who would hesitate to come save me in a place full of gangsters, even if they were blood relatives? My family would have pretended not to know, of course.”

Now that I hear it, that’s true.

But I saved Yoo Myung-woo after the keyword was applied, and before that, I only comforted him with a few words. It certainly wasn’t enough to be treated as a caregiver.

If there wasn’t a suitable caregiver, does that mean the effect wouldn’t be applied?

‘When I think about it, I don’t have anyone I would call a caregiver either.’

Of course, it’s not like there was no one who took care of me at all. But there was no one I could think of with affection and be grateful for, like Yoo-hyun or Kim Sung-han.

No matter how great an L-grade skill or title is, it can’t forcibly create something that doesn’t exist and exert its effect. So, Yoo Myung-woo just likes me purely and is sticking to me…….

“Why are you suddenly stepping back? Do you still have a hangover?”

“Huh? Oh, a little…….”

I want to maintain a reasonable distance for privacy and mental health.

‘Then, in the end, Ye-rim is the only one left.’

Yoo-hyun is still thinking of me as his brother, just to a greater extent, so it’s impossible to confirm, and only Ye-rim is left.

…Dad. Please be Dad. I believe in you, Ye-rim. I believe in Ye-rim’s father, who must have been family-oriented.