The S-Classes That I Raised [EN]: Chapter 349

347. I’ll Be Right Back (3)

There were many careless people in Korean cafes. This was true even for high-rank Hunters. Since the building cafe wasn’t open yet, high-rank Hunters often visited nearby cafes, and it was common for phones to be left alone on tables. I swiped one of those phones. High-rank Hunters often break their phones anyway, so I didn’t feel any guilt. They probably have good backups like me.

I unlocked the phone using a pattern I had been watching and called Park Ha-yul.

“It’s me.”

[Hyung! Are you out?]

“Yeah.”

[I’m nearby, where are you?]

I told him the location, and he said he would be right there. I told him not to disable the stealth skill, and that I would get in and close the car door myself after he left it open, then ended the call. Then, I wiped the fingerprints off the phone and threw it on the opposite sidewalk.

Soon, a coated van that looked like a celebrity car arrived. I checked that the door was open and got in. As I closed the door, a familiar voice asked.

“Is that you, Hyung?”

“Yeah.”

I disabled the stealth skill and turned to look at Park Ha-yul. Park Ha-yul smiled brightly.

“So, you’re coming with me now.”

“What? I’m─”

“Don’t you want to?”

“…No.”

I should go since he’s asking me to go with him. But.

“I have to go home before it gets too late.”

“Why?”

With a playful question, the car started moving. In addition to Park Ha-yul, there was one person in the driver’s seat, one in the passenger seat, and one in the back seat.

“Is it okay to leave him like this? He might try to run away.”

The man in the back seat said. His Korean was slightly awkward.

“Hyung won’t run away. Right?”

“Why would I run away…”

There’s no reason to, but. I felt a subtle sense of unease, like a thin thorn stuck in my fingertip. Even though this wasn’t a strange situation, I felt like I should feel strange, and my head faintly throbbed.

I came out to meet Park Ha-yul. There’s nothing strange about that. I sneaked out a bit, but it’s not the first time, and nothing bad has happened to me. If I go back, nothing will happen.

“I do, need to go back.”

“Hyung.”

“If they find out I came out like this, they’ll worry.”

“You don’t have to go back.”

Park Ha-yul said firmly.

“You don’t have to live locked up. All you’ll get is being monitored by S-ranks [the highest rank of Hunters].”

“I was locked up, but that’s because.”

I did that. I asked Myung-woo for the shackles, and I allowed them to check my phone records. Because someone with mental skill was targeting me.

“I locked myself up. I thought someone used a mental skill on me. So I was trying to prevent myself from leaving on my own.”

Now I’m out here alone. But Park Ha-yul called me. Not a suspicious outsider, but, no. I frowned and looked at Park Ha-yul. The car continued moving and stopped at a light. We were heading towards Sapyeong-daero, before getting on the Olympic Expressway.

…Why am I assuming we’re going to take the Olympic Expressway?

“…Damn it, we can’t go towards Dongjak.”

“Pardon?”

“I’ll die if I get caught. You will. If you’re going to take the Olympic Expressway, get off at Banpo. No, cross over to Gangbyeonbuk-ro and avoid it as much as possible.”

Park Ha-yul was flustered, and the guys in the driver’s seat glanced back at me.

“Don’t they not know you’re out yet?”

“They didn’t tell me, but they’re probably doing constant checks. It’s common to take the Olympic Expressway to Gimpo or Incheon, and it’s easy to deploy people right in front of the Sesung Guild. Turn to Banpo Bridge.”

The fact that it’s a place where high-rank Hunters come and go is dangerous. Moreover, Kang So-young postponed the dungeon raid and was wandering around with Comet. Comet would likely notice me in the car. The sense of smell of an S-rank monster is very good, and Comet can be active during the day, but it is originally nocturnal, so its sense of smell is even more sensitive.

“If you have any air freshener or perfume, spray it. It would be even better if it’s for dungeon use. But I am, damn it.”

I know my current situation. I knew it, but I was trying to pretend I didn’t.

“Park Ha-yul, you.”

So, you. Park Ha-yul said to me with a tearful face.

“Hyung, you’re trying to help me, right? You have to help me.”

“Hey, you…”

“Hyung can’t do anything to harm me right now, so go to Banpo Bridge.”

At Park Ha-yul’s words, the car turned. He’s planning to go to the airport. I knew that, but my head was refusing to come to a conclusion. I felt very dirty. The fact that the clue was dangling right in front of me, almost within reach, was frustrating. I gritted my teeth and took out a dagger from my inventory and stabbed it into my palm.

“Hyung!”

“Damn it, you, that mental skill…”

“No, you can’t do this.”

At the commanding voice, my body lost strength. The dagger was pulled out, and my hand was immediately healed. But the fact that I had recognized it did not disappear.

“Did you use a mental skill on me?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Park Ha-yul gave me an apologetic look. Frustratingly, even after knowing that this guy was the culprit, I didn’t feel any hostility. Rather, I still wanted to help him. Help him kidnap me. I’m really going crazy.

“Why is it, so severe? Mental skills don’t work well even if the rank is high.”

“Ah, I have a triple A-rank. The effect is almost SS-rank [a rank above S-rank].”

He answered readily. Three A-ranks overlapping. What were they again?

“Icing on the cake and if you look at me……”

“It becomes comfortable to look at me, you can’t take your eyes off me. You knew it, Hyung. I also heard that you can check the non-awakened state.”

…Did it leak from the pre-purge association? He got all three optimized skills.

“What, kind of effect is it.”

“I’m not supposed to tell you.”

“I can’t tell anyone anyway. I didn’t even tell my brother that I met you.”

Park Ha-yul shrugged his shoulders, saying that was true.

“If you look at me, it becomes comfortable, you become careless when you see me. You become mentally and physically defenseless. However, the effect only works if the target likes my face. Fortunately, I’m handsome, so it usually works~ Women, of course, and men seem to feel some degree of liking.”

I admit he’s handsome. If you look at me, it seems like it’s about laying the groundwork before starting to use the skill in earnest.

“You can’t take your eyes off me is a skill that makes you strongly influenced by my actions. The first time you apply it, you have to see me in person, but once it’s applied, you can apply the skill through calls or texts. And Icing on the cake strengthens the previous two skills.”

With the Icing on the cake effect, if you look at me becomes S-rank level, and you can’t take your eyes off me, which is supported by both Icing on the cake and if you look at me, would be about SS-rank. Park Ha-yul only said that it makes you strongly influenced, but isn’t it just brainwashing?

“And it has a better effect on people who knew me before awakening.”

“…It’s no wonder it works so well on me.”

Even if mental skills have a low effect compared to their rank and are difficult to apply, if it’s that level, there’s no way an F-rank [the lowest rank of Hunters] can stop it. An A-rank mental skill would be powerful enough, but it’s triple-layered.

“Is there a way out or a weakness? I know you won’t tell me even if there is.”

“Of course, there isn’t.”

It seems like there is. Well, Park Ha-yul definitely didn’t do this alone, and there’s a backer, and that backer wouldn’t keep an Awakened [a person with special abilities] like Park Ha-yul by his side without a way to prevent it.

The reason why Hunters with mental skills are hardly known is because of that. Even if the skill rank is low, it’s unsettling. Nevertheless, the fact that Park Ha-yul is safe means that there is a definite way to block his skills.

“Does it work on S-rank Hunters too?”

“If the conditions are right.”

It’s really dangerous. Of course, it wouldn’t work as strongly as it does on me. It seems that the A-rank Hunter who let Park Ha-yul into the breeding center was also affected by the skill.

“But even though Hyung is F-rank, you were less affected. You even noticed that I used a mental skill. Even middle-rank Hunters didn’t feel anything strange.”

Park Ha-yul said that Hyung is amazing. Even though he can use the skill so easily, he didn’t try to take over the entire breeding center. It’s partly because he’s worried about being caught, but maybe there’s a limit to the number of people he can use the skill on. If it’s unlimited, it’s completely fraudulent. It would be good even if it was L-rank.

At that time, the guy in the back seat said in a flustered voice.

“The airport is closed!”

That’s fast. Park Ha-yul looked back at me in surprise.

“Did they find out when you came out?”

“No. But there’s a possibility that they did something without me knowing. Our kids are smart. Take off your clothes.”

I took off my shoes and threw them on the passenger seat.

“Throw them out the window. They probably couldn’t insert a tracking device into my body, so shoes are the most likely.”

And maybe even the coat and clothes. I deliberately wore clothes that I don’t usually wear, but there’s no need to leave any anxiety.

“Don’t throw them all at once, drop them one by one. So they can track the route. Make them think I’m going to Gimpo or Incheon. Hey, I said take off your clothes.”

Give me the clothes. I took the clothes from the guy in the back seat and put them on. They’re loose.

“Surely these people aren’t all there are. Are they all Awakened here?”

“Yes. But the ranks are low. It’s easy to get caught if high-rank Hunters move carelessly, so they’re only people with Korean nationality or who lived in Korea. Hyung is F-rank, so.”

“That’s good. That’s why it was hard to track me. What about the rest?”

“Preparing at the airport…”

“They’re all caught, no doubt.”

The planes and high-rank Hunters that were preparing to take off just when I disappeared. It couldn’t be more suspicious than this. I’m sure Chief Song has already been dispatched.

“Is it Gimpo?”

Park Ha-yul nodded.

“Is that a TV? Turn on the news about me. I think it’s being broadcast now, turn up the volume and make it visible.”

“Pardon?”

“That way, they’ll be less suspicious. If we get checked, say you saw the news and will let them know immediately if you see anything suspicious. Do you have a camera? Do you have money? Buy a camera and filming equipment. You’re a celebrity. Do you have sunglasses? The guys in the front should act like celebrity managers. No, before that, we need to get rid of the car. Sink it in the water.”

“I-In the water?”

“It’s easy to find the car, and there will be fingerprints and hair, so we can’t just throw it away. Or burn it. You said all three of you are Awakened, right? First, can you prepare a new car?”

“Yes, there are more besides the airport standby team.”

“Find a place without CCTV, drop off one person, and have one person drive the car to the Han River and sink it. On the way to Incheon. It has to be noticeable that you’re getting rid of the car. They’ll assume we’re going by boat since the airport is blocked. Have the new car come in a celebrity style, and it would be even better if it’s the same model. Usually, when you change cars, they think it’s a completely different model, so they’re less suspicious. Ah, prepare a map and a compass.”

Park Ha-yul and the other guys were flustered but quickly moved as instructed. I used the stealth skill again and got off in a quiet alley. I walked a little to a new location and got back into the new car. Everyone changed clothes and put on sunglasses. They also turned on the tablet TV in the front seat.

“It’s coming out as breaking news.”

The screen changed and showed Gimpo Airport. A plane with a broken tail and Song Tae-won appeared. High-rank Hunters were being arrested. Chief Song’s face was stiff. He’s usually stiff, but now he looked cold.

“Destination, China? You said you debuted in China.”

“That’s right,” Park Ha-yul nodded.

“Which is the closest Chinese airport? How long does it take?”

“Uh, Dalian Airport. It takes a little over an hour by plane. There’s also Dandong. But it’ll be hard to get the plane to take off.”

“We can’t use the plane. It’s hard to use the boat too. There’s a high chance of getting caught at sea even if we leave secretly.”

“Then?”

“Let’s go to the Gyeonggi-do breeding facility.”

I sighed and continued.

“Golden Gryphon, Blue, can arrive at Dalian Airport in about two hours. And usually, they won’t even guess that we’re going to the breeding facility. If we go during Blue’s walk time, we can contact him without being noticed.”

Besides, I usually had the token of Blue’s owner. Even if we get caught on the way, he will listen to me first, and there are no Hunters or monsters that can catch up with Blue in the air.

“Once we arrive in China, we’ll send Blue back right away. You weren’t originally planning to go to Dalian Airport, so there’s no preparation there, right?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Don’t contact me until we arrive. I’m asking you a favor. I can’t run away anyway.”

Park Ha-yul said he understood with a slightly pitiful expression. If you feel sorry for me, let me go willingly. Before long, a checkpoint appeared. I used the stealth skill and urged.

“Park Ha-yul, don’t use your skill.”

“Pardon? Why?”

“It’s suspicious if we pass the checkpoint too easily. They’re looking for someone with mental skills right now.”

At that time, a broadcast about a suspicious vehicle that fell into the Han River was playing on TV. The timing was good. The direction is opposite from here, so the checkpoint will be relatively less strict. A Hunter crosses the Han River. …It was Yerim. My mouth felt a little dry at the sight of her cutting through the water in one breath and lifting the car to the riverbank.

Did Yoohyun go to Incheon? Sung Hyunjae might have gone. If they caught the airport Hunters and confirmed that the destination was China, they would mainly check the West Sea area.

“Hello, you’re working hard~.”

Park Ha-yul took off his sunglasses and greeted them kindly. The checkpoint was easily passed. The road gradually became deserted, and the breeding facility was getting closer. At this time, Blue would be playing in the mountains. I stopped the car at the foot of the deserted mountain and got out. I released the stealth skill and looked up at the sky.

“…You can’t go with me except for Park Ha-yul.”

“Yes, Hyung.”

Not long after.

– Kkyau!

Blue found me and quickly approached. He flapped his wings greatly and landed, greeted me, and then looked at Park Ha-yul with his head tilted.

“Blue.”

– Kkyau.

“Shall we go for a walk with Dad for a while?”

I put Park Ha-yul on Blue’s back first. Blue gets along with strangers quickly, so there was no rejection at all. Just as I was about to get on too.

Clatter!

A familiar sound of chains rang out.

“Fly up!”