The S-Classes That I Raised

Chiiiiiik─ Thick cuts of meat sizzled as they hit the hot grill, making a sound that instantly made one's mouth water. Next to them, a whole, uncut head of kimchi was slapped down. On a separate grill, large shrimp and scallops were being cooked. Yerim casually popped a red-tinted shrimp into ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) her mouth, tearing off only the head and eating the rest, shell and all. She didn't forget to suck the remaining flavor out of the head either.

"It tastes better with the shell on."

She said, flipping the meat with practiced ease. Whenever they went out for dinner together, eight times out of ten it was barbecue. She wasn't particularly picky, but she clearly loved meat the most. Beef, pork, chicken, duck—marinated, salted, grilled, stewed, or fried—she devoured it all. Though she seemed to prefer grilled meat over soups, and leaned slightly more toward pork than beef.

"I thought you said you'd be busy tomorrow?"

I asked while peeling shrimp with plastic gloves. Yerim nodded.

"They keep clinging to me with 'Let's do this, let's do that.' Especially for next summer. They say my image fits summer perfectly and are freaking out about getting a contract signed now."

Even as she complained, Yerim's expression was bright. She seemed to be in a good mood today.

"There aren't many S-Rank Hunters who do ads, so I guess that makes me more appealing. What about the Guild Leader? Why doesn't he do them?"

She asked while cutting the meat and kimchi, glancing at Yuhyun. Without replying, Yuhyun picked up the shrimp I had peeled for him with his chopsticks. Yerim's eyes narrowed.

"Look at that, just look. That damn Guild Leader, no hands, no feet? Has Mister doing everything for him. Mister, you can't keep spoiling him like this."

"Yuhyun's already twenty. How much longer do you think this will go on?"

"Forever."

Forever, Yerim said, absolutely certain.

"Even I can see that thing is hopeless."

"Don't call him 'that'. Yerim, Yuhyun's your hyung—no, oppa."

Yuhyun and Yerim simultaneously grimaced.

"And besides, Yuhyun doesn't like being touched by others. No need to suffer through that just to shoot an ad. He does the occasional PR interview, though. But don't other S-Rank Hunters shoot ads? I've seen Hyunah do a few."

"Hyunah unni has a fixed contract. She's not allowed to shoot ads outside her company."

Yeah, that made sense. She'd said before she didn't like shooting ads because they always asked for an image she didn't approve of.

"I heard the Sesung Guild Leader occasionally accepts offers when he feels like it. Chief Song's a public official. He did a public service ad once, but apparently getting him to act was a nightmare. He tried his best to follow instructions, but he's so wooden it only resulted in one video. The rest were just photo posters."

"Really? You know a lot."

"They just told me everything without holding back. Mister, are you really not interested? A lot of people want you."

"I told you not to bother me."

"Then peel your own shrimp! Grab the tongs, Han Yuhyun. You're grilling the meat!"

"Why would I, when it's all going into your mouth anyway?"

"Traditionally, meat is meant to be grilled over fire!"

Mmm, they're getting along well. I smiled contentedly, stroking Peace, who was sitting on my lap with my gloves off, watching the two squabble. Just then, my phone alarm rang. It was time. I sent the same message again, just changing the number.

[20 hours remaining.]

If they keep ignoring me, even I don't know what I might do. Yerim stood up abruptly and peeked over at my phone while waving the tongs.

"What are you doing, Mister? I think the alarm went off right on the hour earlier too."

"Yeah, it's a countdown. If the Sesung Guild Leader keeps ignoring my texts, I'm blowing up his house at 3 p.m. tomorrow."

"Oh, me too, me too!"

"No. Chief Song's already tired."

"Just ignore it, hyung. How about cutting contact completely while you're at it?"

"You really don't like the Sesung Guild Leader, do you?"

"I don't care as long as you're not involved. I don't hate him or like him."

"Sure, sure. Like Han Yuhyun can pretend. But the Sesung Guild Leader really likes Mister. And you hang out with him a lot."

"Yerim, we're not that close."

It's not that I like him, more like I find him interesting or entertaining. I guess that's a form of affection too. Yerim narrowed her eyes at me.

"For people who aren't close, you sure click well. Feels like the age gap between you and the Sesung Guild Leader is smaller than the one with Han Yuhyun. Honestly, Mister."

You're sharp, Yerim. The chopsticks in Yuhyun's hand bent like soft candy between his fingers.

"...Hyung, I can adjust to you too. I'll try."

At Yuhyun's serious words, Yerim started laughing and pounded the table. She was about to break it.

"Yuhyun, I love you just the way you are. I love my little brother as he is. So don't force yourself to change."

"Why not? Let him try! Sounds fun."

I already have too many people to banter meaninglessly with, like Seong Hyunjae. And it just doesn't suit Yuhyun. He muttered with a sulky expression.

"I wish the Sesung Guild Leader would just go overseas already."

"He's leaving Korea? Doesn't seem like he'd leave Mister behind. Maybe he wants to take you with him?"

"Don't talk nonsense, Park Yerim."

"Why not? Soyeong unni said he might stay overseas for a while. At least as long as Chief Song. She said Chief Song's been around for over three years already. Never gets tired, keeps using the excuse of taking care of you to harass you. Soyeong unni even clicks her tongue at him."

Poor Chief Song. I couldn't help but feel sorry as I glanced down at my phone. Maybe I should've contacted Soyeong instead. No, let's see this through to the end.

"Han Yuhyun lasted about three months."

Yerim said, counting on her fingers.

"Noah oppa lost interest after a week. Soyeong unni lasted about a month? Hyunah unni also lasted about three months. Most of them ended quietly in Korea, but apparently, there are a lot of people overseas who want to stab the Sesung Guild Leader. Especially those who can't stand the fact that he lost interest in them."

"Isn't it a good thing when someone stops being clingy?"

Yuhyun replied indifferently. Soyeong had once warned me that many people ended badly after catching Seong Hyunjae's attention. I hadn't taken it seriously at the time, but now I understood. He's an exceptionally brilliant person. Practically flawless, with no room for criticism, and when someone like that shows you interest or affection, most people can't help but be swept away.

And when they start receiving his detailed care, it's easy to fall into the delusion that maybe they're special or exceptional too. Even though they're really just a way to kill time. Being accepted by someone so remarkable—it's easy to get drunk on that and become arrogant.

People like Yuhyun or Hyunah, who were already exceptional to begin with, probably weren't affected at all. They might even appreciate the distance, just like Yuhyun said. But for someone who lacks confidence in themselves, that kind of attention would be like a potent drug.

'I need to be careful too.'

If I let myself get carried away, I'll be the one to lose in the end. One clingy person like Yuhyun in my life is enough. And while Yuhyun never actually abandoned me, Seong Hyunjae would cut things off without a second thought.

"If it were me, I'd welcome the Sesung Guild Leader with open arms if he offered me stuff. I heard that when he's really into someone, he takes care of everything. Just take as much as you can and say goodbye cleanly~ And even when he loses interest, he just stops the special treatment, that's all. Hyunah unni still gets along with the Sesung Guild Leader. She just rejected all his offers to help."

That's very much like Hyunah. Chief Song probably turned everything down too.

"Most of all, I think it'd be fun. Han Yuhyun, he said you were boring because you didn't react enough. I could play along really well!"

"What's wrong with Yuhyun? That damn Sesung Guild Leader."

It's annoying enough that he treated someone's little brother like a toy, but calling him boring just rubbed me the wrong way.

"If it's not related to Mister, Han Yuhyun wouldn't care even if the sun suddenly stopped rising. He'd just flip a light switch."

"Chief Song doesn't really react much either."

"No, see. Han Yuhyun hears a dog barking and just forgets about it. Chief Song hears a dog barking and politely tells it to please stop being a nuisance. That's the difference."

...Sorry, Chief Song, but even I think Seong Hyunjae would find the latter more amusing. And yet, Chief Song still responds sincerely every time. That's who Song Taewon is. Makes me tear up. Maybe I should lower the bomb rating. Just enough to blow up the tank and the inside. The f%ull- s#e#ri.es is h-o@sted on My Virt!ual Lib@r$a&r^y$ E-mpir%e, k%n+o#wn+ as MV.7&L#E.M#P^Y*R$.

After dinner, we stepped outside. Since it was nearby, we hadn't brought a car and simply walked. The streets were unusually quiet compared to usual. The curfew had been lifted, but the lingering effects of the monster appearance were still felt. There weren't many people in the restaurants either. A lot of shops were closed, including the karaoke place Yerim often visited.

"Mister, look at that. The claw machine shop's window is smashed."

"It probably attracted monsters with its lights and sounds."

If the lights are off, the sounds muted, and strong air fresheners are used, mid-to-low level monsters usually pass by quietly. That's why casualties were minimal this time too.

"How's the egg? When do you think it'll hatch?"

Yerim asked as I set Peace down from my arms and pulled out the blue egg I'd kept in my shirt pocket. There wasn't any visible change yet.

"There's nothing special to do. I'll just keep it close. Iryn, don't touch it."

Iryn, who had lightly draped himself over my shoulder, flicked his tail sharply.

— Iryn doesn't like that thing!

"It's like your sibling, so you should get along."

— Yuhyun hyung only likes water spirits!

"I like both of you, both. You're both precious, Iryn."

He was acting just like a firstborn who couldn't accept a new baby sibling. Iryn puffed up his cheeks in a comical way and spun away, returning to Yuhyun. Yerim looked on with concern as the fire spirit melted back into Yuhyun's clothes.

"Just asking, but... it's not going to harm it, right?"

"If it wanted to, it would've done it already. It's just making a scene whenever I pay attention to the egg."

It wouldn't be hard for him to approach it unnoticed.

"Once it hatches, I bet the two of them will get along just like you guys—"

"We don't get along."

"We don't."

They'll get along eventually. They might fight a little at first, though. Yerim spotted a convenience store with its door open and flew off, saying she'd grab ice cream. My phone alarm rang, and I sent the message again. Still no reply.

We returned home, each with an ice cream in our mouth. Fortunately, aside from one broken leg of the living room table, nothing else was damaged. Chirp and Belare were both quietly behaving themselves.

[18 hours remaining. Yerim says she'll turn your lights off for you.]

[17 hours remaining.]

[16 hours remaining. Are you asleep, by any chance? It's still early, but.]

[15 hours remaining. I'm going to sleep.]

[I hung up the thing you gave me. Chirp is chewing on it.]

[Doesn't seem very effective. Still, I slept a little more than yesterday.]

[Ah, 10 hours remaining.]

[9 hours remaining.]

[8 hours remaining.]

[7 hours remaining. Evacuate the poor fish.]

"It's complete."

Kim Hayun placed the Peace plush on the table. The old one was cute too, but this one was really, truly adorable. It retained the real features as much as possible while adding plush-like deformations to make it rounder, chubbier. The fur was fluffy and well done—it made you want to hug it right away. But Peace was clearly in a bad mood, so I held back. If I so much as touched the plush, he looked ready to rip it apart.

"It's really well made. Since Peace is listening, I'll keep my compliments to a minimum."

"They say some dogs get jealous of plushies that resemble them. It's cute."

Team Leader Kim Hayun said with a satisfied smile.

"I heard Peace has a new wing skill. Would it be possible to see it?"

"Yes. Peace, want to show your wings? Wings."

– Kyauwng.

Peace glanced up at me once, then leapt onto the table. He spread his wings wide. With a thud, the plush was knocked off the table by the wings and tumbled to the floor. Seeing that, Peace purred even louder in pride and spun in a full circle.

"So it definitely manifests from nothing. But is it physically connected to the body? Please verify that for us."

Kim Hayun asked while pulling out a camera. I parted Peace's fur to show where the wings were attached. They looked almost fully connected to his body, but there was a faint gap. No wonder there wasn't much movement in his body even with strong wing flaps.

Kim Hayun took photos from several angles, then nodded in satisfaction.

"Since it's a skill, I think we should produce a version of the plush with wings and one without. You haven't publicly revealed Peace's skill yet—do you have a date in mind?"

"Hmm, I haven't really thought about it."

"You mentioned Comet's growth is nearly complete, so let's do another broadcast or article introducing the monster mounts."

She said it would be good to start selling the plushes around then too. With Blue's recent impressive activity, she should be included as well.

We exchanged other breeding facility-related discussions too. She gently pushed that I should hurry and hire more people and get the system in order. Right, yeah, I should.

"Team Leader Kim, you're familiar with Team Leader Seok Gimyeong, aren't you?"

"We know each other reasonably well."

I swallowed dryly under her curious gaze. I couldn't keep being the only one uncomfortable around Seok Gimyeong and Kim Seonghan forever.