The S-Classes That I Raised [EN]: Chapter 372

370. Beneath the Lake (1)

“Give me my crutches.”

I took the crutches from the soldier waiting outside and tried to walk on my own. But I collapsed before I could even take a proper step. My legs felt paralyzed, like they had no strength at all. Why did I have to be in this state now? If I really couldn’t, I’d have to use a potion.

– Squeak, squeak.

Leafnil flew around frantically, looking flustered, before landing on my shoulder. Its downy feathers rubbed against my neck. That son of a bitch really had to do this when the kid was around.

“A parachute who got promoted thanks to bloodline, family connections, and awakening buffs. Did you even properly shovel once when you were in the military?” [A ‘parachute’ refers to someone who gets ahead due to connections rather than merit.]

He probably didn’t. I envied him as soon as I said it. The world really is unfair. The guy who has everything even gets an S-rank.

“You could have just asked nicely. Why are you squeezing my leg like that? Try saying this: ‘Are you perhaps from Korea? Do you know Korea? Han Yoojin?'”

Cho Hwa-woon didn’t answer but grabbed my arm and pulled me up. Even though I was the one suffering, the method itself was effective. If it were Yoohyun or Yerim, they definitely wouldn’t have tolerated it. Cho Hwa-woon half-dragged me as we started walking again. I felt gazes on my back until we turned a corner and they disappeared.

“Han Yoohyun, Park Yerim, Sung Hyunjae. Are there any other S-rank Hunters who would come to save you? Someone who can destroy Nanjing Airport alone.”

So, Noah was excluded, huh. Moon Hyuna and Kim Sunghan were active without hiding their presence in Korea. The only one left was Song Taewon, but it seemed they didn’t think he would come either. It seemed they assumed that Chief Song had been living his life as a public official too faithfully and would naturally follow the government and association’s policies.

“Well, there’s someone in Japan who would, um, never mind.”

I couldn’t bring myself to say it. Cho Hwa-woon let go of my hand as we approached the stairs. I stumbled and barely managed to lean against the wall.

“The result won’t change anyway.”

Cho Hwa-woon said coldly and left me alone. That bastard, seriously.

‘…More than that, he’s too confident.’

Four airports had already been paralyzed. In the midst of that, even some of China’s S-rank Hunters had become casualties. Yet he was acting like it wouldn’t matter how many more S-rank Hunters came from Korea.

‘Is there something else?’

It was suspicious to rely solely on Yoon Yoon’s long-distance teleportation. If they were planning to push through with sheer numbers, they should be a little more anxious about the current situation. Damn it, what is it? No, no matter what, it’ll be fine if I join the kids and give them buffs. Yoohyun single-handedly wiped out even SS-rank monsters.

So I need a cigarette.

Going back to Hwangrim was difficult, not just because it was hard to walk, but also because I was worried about running into the person who came to find me again. In the end, I just sat down on the spot. I’d grab any passing soldier and tell them to carry me.

‘…Was he here to check on the situation?’

Why did he make it so obvious? Well, he had to make it obvious to check whether I was free from the skill or not. Was he planning to take me out of here if I hadn’t asked to be let go? If he still had a favor to me, it was definitely possible.

Anyway, I was relieved it wasn’t Yoohyun or Yerim, but I still felt uneasy.

Just then, I heard footsteps approaching. It was Hwangrim. I reached out to him as he looked down at me. He reached out his hand as if to grab mine, but I swatted it away, not really. S-ranks are so annoyingly sly.

“Not that, what you promised.”

“After yelling like that.”

“Who told you to fondle my leg?”

Hwangrim smiled and handed me the cigarette case. Then he tucked me under his arm. I dangled as I checked the cigarettes in the case. This should be enough. I’d have to stay sane for a few hours to escape, join up, and use my skills. I was worried about what excuses to make to the kids.

“Why are you asking for cigarettes?”

“Because I just want to smoke.”

“That can’t be it. But I really can’t figure it out. In your current state, it would only be harmful, there’s no useful purpose. And there’s not enough to lure away the kids around you.”

Well, he wouldn’t have thought I’d use it to break free from Park Hayul’s skill. This would rather weaken his vigilance.

“Just think of it as me trying to endure that grumpy Cho guy. But all the surrounding airports are gone, why aren’t you guys worried?”

“Because there’s no need to be.”

“Why?”

“There’s a reason.”

Damn it, what is it? He’s just making me anxious. But I couldn’t just sit here forever. One person had already come in. Next time, it could be Yoohyun or Yerim’s turn. I told them to wait, but how long would they endure?

Let’s break through.

Crack, five fingers pierced the tail wing of the plane. The torn-off, flat piece of metal was thrown into the sky. The tail wing spun around and collided with the body of a combat helicopter. A loud explosion rang out, and the helicopter crashed, staggering like a dragonfly caught in a whirlwind. Flames and smoke soared up in an instant.

Nearly half of Nanjing Airport was covered in traces of destruction. Fire spread across the cracked and excavated runway, and the aircraft were so damaged that there was no hope of repair.

“S-stop him immediately!”

“My objective is to paralyze the airport facilities.”

The monotonous voice repeated the words it had already said several times. The heavy steps moved forward, ignoring the soldiers blocking the way. Shaking in the acrid, smoky wind was the hem of a dark gray coat. It was an S-rank equipment that would normally be out of reach, a temporary outfit that also served as a disguise.

The soldiers watched the approaching man with horrified eyes. He hadn’t overturned the surroundings with flashy skills or committed brutal slaughter. He was calmly and surely expanding the area of destruction, even giving evacuation warnings.

In a way, he might have seemed easy to deal with. But even though he was pushing in so slowly, there was no way to stop that visible, slow wave.

The question of which is more frightening, a disaster that ends in an instant or a disaster that slowly closes in, would vary from person to person. But the soldiers here could only shout for the latter. If it ended in an instant, without time to escape or even recognize it, there would be no time to be afraid.

But that man was mechanically carrying out his task. Bound by military law, they had to charge at him without running away. It felt like becoming a bug rushing towards the window of a giant bulldozer clearing a forest.

“…Damn it!”

Knowing it was useless, the soldiers and Hunters charged. Sharp weapons carrying their respective skills cut through the air. Song Taewon didn’t even glance at the sword aimed at his neck but raised his arm and deflected it. Using his wire-wrapped forearm like a shield, he grabbed the spear that was thrusting at him.

Bang! The owner of the spear was sent flying backward like a stone thrown by a kick. The spear spun half a turn in Song Taewon’s hand. With a step forward, the mana-infused spear was thrown powerfully.

Whoosh!

The spear, sharply whipping the wind, flew and crashed into a plane far away. Immediately after, the massive aircraft shattered with an explosion. It was a skill that Song Taewon couldn’t easily use even though he possessed it, a skill that instantly amplified the power of a weapon and caused it to explode. His own weapons, as well as the weapons of Korean Hunters, could be said to be important assets of Korea.

The skills he possessed were, for some reason, mostly of the type that neutralized equipment and the opponent’s skills. In addition to weakening the opponent’s Awakened and making their equipment easier to destroy, he even had a skill that completely destroyed them beyond repair.

“Step back.”

After a brief warning, Song Taewon moved. Now, all that remained were a handful of planes and a portion of the runway that was more than half destroyed. His body cut through the soldiers standing awkwardly. His wire-wrapped hand grabbed a blade and forcefully twisted it. Before they could react, the soldier’s wrist snapped. At the same time, he bent his arm and struck the soldier’s jaw with his elbow.

In an instant, Song Taewon snatched the sword and, like the spear before, infused it with mana and threw it at a functioning plane. Without even checking to see if the sword had pierced the plane, his toes spun in a seemingly smooth turn. His fist broke the shaft of a spear, and he raised his foot high to stomp down on a shield covered in skills.

Thwack! He trampled over the edge of the shield that had pierced through the thick reinforced concrete and grabbed the face of the defense-type Hunter with his large palm.

“Cough!”

The back of the defense-type Hunter’s head, hardened by the defense skill, directly hit another soldier’s face. Throwing the defense-type Hunter he was holding towards another soldier, Song Taewon’s toes kicked up the longsword dropped by the soldier whose facial bones had been crushed. The blade sparkled and spun in the air. He accurately caught it and threw it towards the remaining plane.

All of that happened in an instant.

Song Taewon pulled out the shield, blew up the functioning plane, and walked towards the last remaining plane. The only thing that filled the surroundings was the sound of burning. Occasionally, there were explosions, the sound of something bursting.

As he walked silently, he suddenly stopped. It was because a ringtone was ringing inside his coat. Even in the midst of that chaos, Song Taewon took out his phone, which didn’t even have a scratch on the screen, and answered it. He expected to hear a familiar voice right away. But the other side of the phone was silent.

“……”

Song Taewon’s expression hardened at the unfamiliar silence. He opened his mouth, then closed it again.

[I heard the news.]

After a long time, the silence was finally broken.

“…One is left. How did it go on your end?”

[Who knows.]

A dry laugh was heard softly. Song Taewon felt the back of his neck prickle. He tried not to have unnecessary thoughts, but human imagination squeezed out a persistent unpleasantness. Why was he hesitating to give a detailed explanation? And why was he letting out that kind of laugh, the kind he had never heard before?

[First of all, they say it’s midnight. There’s nothing we can do since they say it can’t be done before then. And get rid of the phone.]

As soon as the call ended, the phone was crushed in Song Taewon’s grip. Before the fragmented pieces could fall and touch his toes, his body disappeared from the spot. Kwaaaa, a part of the last remaining plane’s fuselage scraped along the runway, burning.

Splash, the phone sank into the lake with a small splash. A sleeping fish jumped up as if startled by the commotion, then dove deep below the surface of the water.

“The accommodations here might not be very comfortable, Mr. Chu.”

A light voice was heard from behind. Hwangrim smiled as he bounded up the stairs in one go.

“The airport is paralyzed, but the hotels in Nanjing and Hefei haven’t closed down. The others have already left.”

“It’s an important deal, and I haven’t received what I’m owed yet, so I’m thinking of staying for a day to take a look.”

“It’ll take a while for Ki Seung-soo. Or do you want something else?”

Hwangrim, who had approached with large strides, offered a cigarette.

“Our handler seems to like the pet you made. You did a good job.”

The eyes, reflecting a different color than their original, narrowed with a smile. A faint red light formed in the darkness, and ashes fell to his feet.

“Personally, I hope we can see each other often in the future.”

“If the deal goes well, that might happen.”

“Then should I treat the handler well?”

Hwangrim threw the half-smoked cigarette into the lake. The light that had briefly sparkled soon disappeared.

“Ah, and. I think you should stop digging around in the US.”

Well, it’s none of my business. Hwangrim turned around. Chu Soowoon stared at his back for a moment before looking down at the watch on his wrist. It was a little past nine o’clock. The hands of the watch seemed to be moving particularly slowly today.

“I told you he’s not scary.”

Despite Park Yerim’s words, the goblin couldn’t bring itself to get close to her, circling only from afar. Goblins were reluctant to approach not only S-rank Hunters but even A-ranks. That’s why they had no choice but to deliver messages from Han Yoojin by leaving them far away.

“S-ranks are scary.”

“Yeah, especially him.”

“He’s scary too, but he’s scarier.”

The goblins chattered, glancing at Han Yoohyun, who was silently following them.

“He’s like Kim Sobang [Korean historical figure, often used to represent a kind and helpful person], but not Kim Sobang.”

“He’s not Kim Sobang, he’s Han Sobang. He’s not married, so he’s Han Doryeong [term for an unmarried young man from a noble family]. Then am I Park Nangja [term for a young man]?”

“No, you’re little Kim Sobang.”

“Big Kim Sobang!”

“Middle Kim Sobang!”

“I like Middle Kim Sobang!”

“The puppy is cute too!”

“Scary but cute! Black!”

The goblins giggled and stopped by the lake. As the night deepened, the lake was as dark as the sky. The surface of the water, with a piece of the moon floating on it, swayed slowly. Then, with a splash, a small sound of water.

– Kyururuk!

A small head covered in blue scales suddenly popped up. The baby water dragon looked around, then looked at Park Yerim and cried softly.