The S-Classes That I Raised [EN]: Chapter 505

503. Seed (1)

“You’re still rough, little brother.”

“Yerim, do you see anyone else around?”

“Nope, no one. Should I keep watch?”

Yerim answered without hesitation. *Ugh*, I shouldn’t be teaching her this stuff. At the words that no one was watching, Yoohyun’s hand twitched. The tip of the jet-black sword pressed against Hwangrim’s Adam’s apple, and blood faintly seeped out.

“You’re being too harsh on a good-natured merchant.”

Hwangrim whined and raised both hands to show that he had no intention of attacking.

“Too harsh? How much did I suffer in China, mister!”

“That’s even more unfair, little Water Dragon. Jinah, say something. We were really good, weren’t we?”

He winked one eye. Good my foot. Though, that guy didn’t do anything to me.

“Just say the word, hyung [older brother/term of endearment for a close male friend].”

Yoohyun said quietly, without taking his eyes off Hwangrim.

“I’ll take care of it as quietly as possible. If it gets a little loud, we can say that a monster wandering around came crawling in.”

“Spare me, Jinah.”

“Why are you making such weak noises when you’re also an S-Rank? Be confident, peddler.”

“It’s because your little brother is formidable. I thought I was going to be drowned as soon as I got off the helicopter.”

I felt a little better at his words that it was no joke. Still, he has an eye for things, as befits a merchant.

“You talk a good game. Even if you were drowned, your tongue would float.”

“It’s a merchant’s virtue.”

“That doesn’t mean I’m going to let you off. Tell me your purpose and hand over everything you have. If you empty your inventory well, I might let you live.”

“Can’t you just kill him?”

Yoohyun said disgruntledly.

“It’s not like I like that guy either, but we need to know what he’s up to. It’s unlikely he really just came to sell cigarettes.”

What a robber. Hwangrim rummaged through his pants pocket instead of his inventory. Then he pulled out something long. Of course, it didn’t come out of his pocket; he just pretended to be doing magic when he took it out of his inventory.

“This is all I have right now.”

“What is that?”

“It’s the horn of a dried swamp single-horned black ox. If you grind it up and eat it, it’s good for stamina.”

“Are you even selling medicine now?”

“It’s something you can’t sell because there’s none left. It’s called a stamina booster, but it’s actually a health food. It’s especially good for improving weak constitutions. It works well even for non-awakened people.”

Yoohyun’s eyebrows twitched slightly at the words that many people had seen the effect. *Yoohyun, medicine peddlers originally say that even dried-up bellflower roots are panaceas.*

“So why are you doing this?”

“I’m requesting a quiet meeting with the head of Dodam Breeding Center. Just the two of us.”

“I refuse your nonsense.”

“Jinah, I’m hurt. I have a fragile heart, even though I look like this.”

“You’d bounce back even if I stabbed you with a knife.”

My gaze naturally went to Hwangrim’s chest. As an S-Rank, this guy also had a damn good body. Envy. And honestly, this guy was handsome too. Somehow, he looked more polished now than he did in China. Is it because he was discharged? Though, it would be more accurate to say he deserted after setting fire to the base.

“…Come to think of it, what happened to the military? I heard that the moderate faction is mostly dominant.”

“The side that says it’s not right to replace everyone and push hunters into the military has gained power. There are only a few hunters left in the military anyway~ The first negotiation with the Murim Alliance [martial arts alliance] went well too.”

That’s good.

“Why would I bother you now, Jin? I’m just going to pass on the information and be done with it.”

Hwangrim said in an unnecessarily cute voice. It doesn’t suit him. But I perked up a bit at the word information. That guy must know something about Park Hayool.

“Still, just the two of us is a bit… Can’t one of Yoohyun or Yerim accompany us?”

“One is too young and the other is too fierce. How about the public servant then?”

“Excuse me? You mean Chief Song?”

“He’s definitely a trustworthy person in terms of public affairs. That’s why he gets called a strange S-Rank.”

Strange? Anyway, I could trust Chief Song too, of course. I wonder if he’s still at the cafeteria. Hwangrim turned around first, and Yoohyun reluctantly put away his sword.

“Mister seems to be weak against a strong body.”

“…Huh?”

Yerim whispered softly as we walked down the hallway.

“What are you talking about all of a sudden?”

“Hyuna unnie [older sister/term of endearment for a close female friend] said that too. She said that sometimes you stare at her, but it’s always at her arms, so she doesn’t feel bad.”

“What, I, when…!

No, that’s, well, that’s─!”

“Everyone’s an S-Rank, so they can’t not notice. They’ll know even if you look secretly.”

“Th, no, th…”

“Hyung likes my body too.”

My brother said proudly, and I became even more embarrassed.

“It’s just, because I’m jealous…! It’s impossible for me even if I die and come back to life, so it’s like vicarious satisfaction…”

“No, hyung too…”

Yoohyun hesitated. He seemed to be wondering whether to tell a white lie or comfort me honestly.

“A little, it could get better.”

“That’s right, it was different.”

He must be talking about me in the nightmare dungeon. He was better than me, but still not good enough for my taste. If only I were twenty… no, even ten centimeters taller. I glanced at Yoohyun and Yerim on either side of me.

Yoohyun seemed like he would hit 190cm within a year at the latest. Yerim had also grown more than when I first met her, and I wondered if she would surpass me soon. On the other hand, me… yeah, it’s still not going to happen. I felt even sadder when I saw the back of Hwangrim, who was walking ahead.

‘Still, transcendents often had ordinary physiques.’

Diarma didn’t seem to have a good body in human form, and the King of No Harm, as well as Chatterbox, were skinny even if they weren’t in their true forms. The newbie too, and the Mermaid Queen had an imposing appearance. Ah, that centaur guy too. And the Old Man had broad shoulders when he was an adult.

About half and half. While I was having useless thoughts, we arrived at the cafeteria. It was past lunchtime, so there weren’t many people. Chief Song was about to leave, thinking of moving his seat, but stopped when he saw us.

“Hunter Song Taewon.”

Song Taewon’s expression faintly hardened at Hwangrim’s welcoming appearance. It was obvious that he wasn’t happy, but Hwangrim casually patted Song Taewon’s shoulder with his hand.

“Could you spare some time? I want to have a good time alone with our Jin, but he says there must be an observer.”

At Hwangrim’s words, Song Taewon looked at me with a blaming gaze. No, that’s…

“He said he had an important story to tell.”

“Still, I’m glad you came to me.”

Chief Song said with a slight sigh.

“I hope you won’t go out alone in the future.”

“Of course, don’t worry.”

The four of us, including Gyeol, left the building and went to the annex. As soon as we entered the quiet and spacious reception room, Song Taewon stopped abruptly on one side. It was a position where he could easily see every corner of the reception room.

“How much do you know about Park Hayool?”

I asked as soon as I sat on the sofa. Hwangrim also sat on the sofa opposite me.

“How did you get to know him?”

“Originally, Park Hayool was targeting Hanyujin. Not me, but the military.”

“Excuse me? Me?”

“He was strangely obsessed with the Breeding Center Head. He was also contacting MKC around that time.”

And Park Hayool’s agency was also related to China. After the appearance of dungeons and awakened people, it decreased, but there was a time when the Korean entertainment industry actively jumped into the Chinese market.

“He confidently said that he would become close friends with Head Hanyujin,” he said.

That Park Hayool… he kept secrets, but he wasn’t completely tight-lipped. So I thought there might be something, so I poked around when I went to China for work. Then he awakened.

“His stats were high, but his skills were useless. He was just a bit strong, but he couldn’t fight properly.”

“Is that when that noona [older sister/term of endearment for a close female friend] saved him?”

“To be exact, the military invited a hunter with special skills because of the Goblin King. That hunter’s side used Park Hayool as an assistant. Along with the rumor that it was because he was good-looking.”

Park Hayool followed that hunter’s side to the United States and then returned to China in the form of cooperating with the military after gaining new skills. And then he kidnapped me.

“Who is the hunter you invited?”

Hwangrim raised a finger to his lips.

“It’s a matter of contract.”

“Are you going to shut your mouth about other things too, citing the contract? Should I use a curse-解除 [curse-解除] item on you?”

“Then my trust will hit rock bottom.”

“Isn’t your trust already at a minus since birth?”

Hwangrim looked wronged at my words. Then he leaned his upper body slightly towards me. …He didn’t look this handsome before.

“Hanyujin.”

“…What?”

“Tell me everything.”

…What is he saying all of a sudden? Hwangrim wore a gentle smile.

“I’m very worried about you. You’ve had a lot of hard times, haven’t you? I’m an S-Rank and have a wide network, so I can help you.”

No, really, why all of a sudden? My heart felt a little strange. Hwangrim got up and walked around the table to sit next to me. He put his arm around my shoulder. Gyeol, who was pushed away, flapped his wings unhappily and went down to my lap.

“I know roughly. About the beings outside.”

“…Is that so?”

“It must be a headache. And the guy who’s handing out invitations is close to you? Did he approach you with good intentions?”

“That’s…”

“Hanyujin-ssi [Mr./Ms. Hanyujin].”

Song Taewon had already come to the side of the sofa. His heavy, sunken black eyes looked down at me, at Hwangrim.

“Hanyujin-ssi’s condition is a bit strange right now.”

“Yes?”

“Think about Hunter Hwangrim’s skill.”

Skill… even though it’s someone else’s skill that I heard from Yoohyun, wait a minute. I quickly turned off the fear resistance skill. At the same time, goosebumps rose along my spine. *Shit, damn it!*

“Get off me right now!”

I was horrified by the sight of me being affectionately attached to Hwangrim and tried to push him away. Hwangrim didn’t budge and instead half-embraced me. Immediately after, strength entered Song Taewon’s body.

“Park Hayool’s skill! Damn it, you made contact here!”

“Don’t be so disgusted, Jinah. You were as docile as a little lamb just a moment ago.”

“Release Hanyujin-ssi.”

“The public servant is quick to notice too.”

Hwangrim’s arm held my upper body tightly. Gyeol fidgeted and pulled and scratched Hwangrim’s arm. Of course, there wasn’t a single scratch.

“Hunter Hwangrim.”

“I’m not going to harm him, so don’t glare at me so fiercely. It seems like I’ve rubbed you the wrong way.”

“Of course, I’m wary of you. Haven’t you already kidnapped a Korean with stats equivalent to a non-awakened person?”

Song Taewon’s expression was much colder than usual. An S-Rank hunter kidnapped an F-Rank and harmed him. Chief Song would feel that it was a serious crime that he couldn’t tolerate.

“If you don’t release Hanyujin-ssi, I will use force.”

“Jinah, what should I do? It seems like you’re not worth much as a hostage. Would your little brother have been better?”

“If it were Yoohyun, your head would already be rolling over there!”

Damn it, his arm is like a log! The more I struggled in vain, the colder the air around Song Taewon became. I sent him a look that said, *I have Grace on, so it’s okay to beat this bastard up!*

“It was, 월식 [Wolshik/Lunar Eclipse].”

Hwangrim looked up at Song Taewon and raised the corners of his mouth.

“A shadow created to swallow the moon.”

My movements stopped. Song Taewon also stiffened. How did he know that?

“Hwangrim, you!”

“I told you I know.”

Even so, even the transcendents didn’t know much about Song Taewon. At best, Crescent Moon and Young Chaos, who had met him directly, might have noticed. The King of No Harm was already dead. But how?

“Don’t tell me, you contacted Crescent Moon!”

“It’s not that side. I’ve heard of it though.”

Damn it, what the hell is this guy? Song Taewon, who had been stiff, gritted his teeth. I couldn’t easily guess how he felt.

“Release Hanyujin-ssi.”

“You’re so stiff. You must be curious, about yourself.”

“I don’t care.”

Song Taewon took a step forward. Hwangrim clicked his tongue at the sign that he wouldn’t tolerate it any longer. Then he took something out of his inventory. At the same time.

“……!”

“Chief Song!”

Song Taewon’s legs buckled powerlessly. He collapsed and knelt down with a thud.

“What are you doing!”

“I just temporarily incapacitated him, so don’t get too excited. It’s okay.”

“Okay, my foot!”

My heart was pounding because I had even turned off fear resistance. My whole body was chilling and my mouth was dry. Gyeol didn’t know what to do and kept looking back and forth between me and Song Taewon. But not yet, I shouldn’t receive Gyeol’s help.

‘What the hell is going on.’

I had to find out what was going on. I tried to calm down and swallowed hard a few times.

“Really, there’s no harm to Chief Song, right?”

“Of course. Then shall we have a cozy conversation, just the two of us?”

I nodded, looking at Chief Song, who was barely holding on without completely collapsing. Okay, let’s hear it.