The S-Classes That I Raised - Chapter 710: The Final Bet (1)

I contacted our remaining sub–team members and told them it was time to return. I checked my items and, with Myungwoo’s help, repaired my equipment. Glancing aside, I saw young Chaos examining the Sovereign’s Blade, which Yuhyun had handed to him.

“It’s intact. The rank indicator is low, but given the materials, it won’t break unless you face a Transcendent.”

“Does that mean we can’t handle Transcendents?”

“You can—if I wield it.”

Yuhyun studied the blade seriously. Both he and I had acted as if nothing had happened over the past few days, yet there were moments when we each faltered, as if something was off. We both avoided talking about it. I couldn’t bring it up easily, and Yuhyun didn’t want to discuss it.

‘…Still, it’s weird.’

Even if I could shrug it off, why was Yuhyun avoiding it so completely? Had more happened than just meeting his pre–regression self?

—Pii!

Eunhae circled Myungwoo and flew toward me. Myungwoo held out a lavishly adorned necklace.

“My mana well and mana harmonization have both improved. Eunhae’s grown too.”

“Really?”

“Yes. The damage immunity duration has increased. For a moment, you could even block L–rank attacks. Transcendents, I’m not sure.”

I thanked Myungwoo and took the necklace. Hmm….

“Eunhae.”

—Peep!

The bluebird pretended not to know me and perched on my head. I understood she was proud of her newfound strength, but this was ridiculous. The necklace string was layered five times, and over a hundred blue gems— from translucent to deep indigo—glimmered. Ignoring my call, Eunhae sang peep peep.

“Eunhae, you’ve worked so hard. Please accept it once~.”

Yerim laughed, saying it suited me. Maybe she was sulking because the wolf bastards had taken things before. Eunhae had helped me so much—surely I could manage this. I closed my eyes and put it on.

“…When the game starts, you must revert to something simple.”

—Peep peep!

A message popped up: time was up. I bid farewell to Chaos and moved on.

“This is the final wager.”

The Mer–Queen, waiting for us this time, announced. The King of Devourers beside her gave me an approving look.

“You’ve improved somewhat.”

This is Eunhae’s taste, not yours, but if you like it—okay then.

“Splendid.”

Seong Hyunjae said with eyes that clearly disagreed. It’s not my style.

“I have a matter to attend.”

“You look great.”

…Please, Soyeong, buy Byul a dollplay set—princess style, but no dolls. That Seong Hyunjae or the other Seong Hyunjae—Seong Hyunjae is Seong Hyunjae; let him suffer too.

“Chain, you haven’t replenished your team yet.”

“A bit of authorization is needed.”

Seong Hyunjae gazed at the air, at his system window. After some messaging, the Mer–Queen and Devourer King nodded in unison.

“It’s not a qualified applicant, but as a proxy for your original member, it’s allowed.”

Original member? Surely not. Seong Hyunjae manipulated the system, and soon an unwelcome face appeared.

“Oh wow, our Jini is so pretty~.”

Hwangrim winked at me. Why him of all people?

“Hey! Do you manage dogs that way?”

“Sorry, sorry. Did she bite you?”

“Bite? She didn’t just bite—she even forced a contract and you left it be? What were you thinking?”

“It was amusing.”

Hwangrim chuckled and approached me.

“I never thought I’d see one slither in without a tail. I just thought it’d be fun to set it up. Fortuna wouldn’t accept such a contract, so until you said okay, it was as if nothing existed~ I told myself.”

He’d been playing with Chohwayun for no reason. Suddenly I felt a twinge of pity for him. Hwangrim raised his hands placatingly.

“I do obey law and morality, you know.”

“A merchant?”

“A good citizen is a future customer. I must serve well. I have my limits—unlike Fortuna, who bites anyone.”

…From what Gyeol told me, he at least keeps basic standards. In any case, Hwangrim was another oddball.

“What did you do to him? He looked awful.”

“It’s no business of yours—manage your own affairs.”

“I’m considering whether to raise him or sell him. He’s an S–rank on a leash. Many want him. For you, half price.”

“No thanks. Keep him out of sight.”

Seeing Hwangrim’s offer, I didn’t want to decapitate Chohwayun after all. He wasn’t the only one Chohwayun tormented—and this fate suited him. Even if a non–activated F–rank were his master, he’d still end up crawling.

Seong Hyunjae, who had been watching us, spoke.

“You two get along—”

“No, we don’t!”

“But you do so well together!”

Hwangrim slapped his arm on my shoulder and grinned.

“I love you, Jini.”

“Get lost, get lost, damn you!”

“We’ve had such deep fun together—”

“You son of a bitch!”

“The dog is Fortuna. I’m her owner.”

Why did Seong Hyunjae bring this idiot to mess up my mood? I punched Hwangrim’s clinging head. Only my hand hurt. When I met Seong Hyunjae’s eyes, Hwangrim smiled benignly.

“I’m glad you’re enjoying yourselves.”

Glad? Enough was enough. The Mer–Queen told Seong Hyunjae to send the team members back.

“Sweetheart, see you later ♡”

Hwangrim tried to kiss my cheek, but was whisked away. Ugh, what a creep. I dusted off where he’d clung and glared at Seong Hyunjae.

“Did you summon him to harass me?”

“Of course not. I lost the dog—so I brought its owner.”

“He’ll cling to Director Song, too.”

Seong Hyunjae looked eager to watch. I hoped Hyunah would fend him off. Mari might handle it well; I worried slightly for Samir.

“This game will be a simple pick for the most advantageous option. The list is based on recommendations by related Transcendents, chosen at random. Who will roll?”

“Whether I roll or you roll, it makes little difference. If it’s okay, I can.”

If I roll and get something lousy or he rolls something favorable, it’s all the same. I took the die and threw it.

[Fishing]

Fishing? Is there a Transcendent who enjoys that? Though I suspect Seong Hyunjae would be good at it.

“Do you choose weight or number of fish?”

“Weight! That’s fine, right?”

“As you wish.”

We were transported to a rocky islet near a vast sea. Our team members were summoned as well.

“A seaside! We win!”

Yerim shouted confidently at the sight of the ocean. Yerim, that’s not how it works—probably.

[Skill use is prohibited.]

I knew it. If we used Skills, Yerim would pull fish in and Seong Hyunjae would shock the water. Then two doors appeared.

[These doors lead to each team’s aquarium. Fish you catch move automatically into the tank and may infiltrate the opponent’s fishery. Inside the fishery, Skills may be used. Time allotted: 10 hours of this space’s time.]

“Let’s just fish cleanly.”

“I’ll try.”

“Peace, would you like to sit by the door?”

—Kyaang!

“Adult form. Good. Let’s watch daddy fish from there~.”

Peace wasn’t suited to fishing anyway. Seong Hyunjae’s team held rock–paper–scissors among themselves to see who’d sit out. Mari, who took it seriously, lost. She looked crestfallen.

“I can’t fish?”

“Neither can I, Mari. I’ll take a shift.”

Samir volunteered to stand guard. Director Song also raised his hand, but Seong Hyunjae stopped him cold.

“I can’t let Director Song, who once won first prize by catching a marquee fish, miss out.”

Director Song was an unexpected dark horse. Sure enough, he handled the skillfully prepared rods. So did Hyunah and even ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) Hwangrim. Our team…

“Why line up? Couldn’t we just jump in and grab fish?”

“…I only learned spear use from my sister.”

“Uncle, I think diving in is faster.”

“Honestly, I’d do the same.”

We were doomed. All we could rely on was beginner’s luck.

“Okay… let’s each take one rod. And this is the bait…”

As I explained, I eyed Seong Hyunjae’s team. Look at Hwangrim’s bait skills—so familiar.

“…Let’s imitate them as best we can.”

“Can’t we use spears? We could catch by hand.”

“First, let’s try fishing.”

“Director Song scores!”

I heard Hyunah’s voice. Hwangrim rushed with a net, and soon a big fish was pulled up. Then Seong Hyunjae’s rod bent dramatically. We were truly lost. At least I’d done sea fishing in the pre–regression dungeon and had prepared tackle for the kids. Yuhyun and Noah fished earnestly; Yerim and Riette already looked bored.

“Uncle, may I hook and pull them in?”

“Me too, me too!”

“…Do as you wish.”

Sometimes fish got caught by fins and came up, so it was okay. Yerim and Riette began flailing their rods, tangling lines and flopping about. I quickly separated them.

“Hey, Hyung. Something’s tugging here.”

Yuhyun’s rod had a bite! Then Noah’s rod was pulled too. So fast—was this a hotspot?

“Slowly, slowly! If you yank, the line could snap. Good!”

Yuhyun reeled in a huge water… snake? The water snake, flung onto the ground, was whisked into the aquarium. So anything hooked counts as fish? I saw Hwangrim’s team pull up an octopus. Beside him, Mari had a starfish.

“A star shape!”

A starfish larger than a person. Noah had caught a tuna–like fish.

“It’s caught! Uncle!”

Yerim, who’d given up and sat grumbling, now beamed. Well done! Yet Seong Hyunjae’s team was doing even better. Especially Seong Hyunjae and Hwangrim—it was pro level. They’d grace the cover of a fishing magazine.

‘We can’t let this continue.’

Three hours passed in an instant. Our team had done decently, but the gap was half a bale of fish. Clutching my rod, I eyed Seong Hyunjae’s aquarium. I could overturn it, but that would waste strength. Instead—

“I’ll just check our aquarium briefly.”

I set down my rod and entered our team’s aquarium door.

“Oh.”

Inside was like a huge swimming pool, with our caught fish swimming within. It looked more like a fish farm than a tank.

‘This is our team’s aquarium.’

And thus our territory. I remembered farming as a temporary administrator. I opened my system window. If I fully asserted control over this space, I could apply a Skill.

A growth buff—and perhaps accelerate time flow inside the tank. I poured all my mana into the system window and this space. Then I dragged over the fish feeding trough and scooped a large shovel–full.

“My dear ones, I love you all!”

Water snakes, tunas, turtles, squids, sea anemones—everyone! I scattered the feed across the surface. Fish swarmed in. I scooped up a turtle and kissed its smooth shell.

“Grow big!”

The contest is decided by weight, measured when time ends. You could catch a big one, but you can also raise them afterward—no problem, right?

“I’ll kiss and care for you—just grow three times bigger!”

With that, we had a chance! I even mixed mana crystals into the feed from my inventory. I love you, fish of the tank!

[Meal: fried chicken and cup noodles!]

A message surely from Newbie arrived. Cup noodles aren’t healthy, but after so long I was tempted. Yerim made hot water, and we each held a cup noodle and gathered around the table. Seong Hyunjae folded the lid of his cup closed—but it kept popping open. You’re not supposed to fold it like that. Director Song, familiar with it, secured it with chopsticks. Although Yuhyun had never eaten cup noodles, he’d watched Yerim often enough to know how to close the lid.

“Kids, mostly eat chicken. Meat’s better than noodles.”

So many varieties. When Hyunah lamented no beer, Hwangrim produced a potion bottle from his inventory.

“Breaker–brand wine~.”

“I like you, damn you! Team leader, slice a fish into sashimi~.”

“I know how to do that! I’ll fetch one from the tank!”

Mari dashed to Seong Hyunjae’s aquarium. Seong Hyunjae pulled cups from his inventory. Among the wine glasses, I recognized one.

“Wait, that’s my cup!”

“It was in the inventory.”

“I have one too.”

“…Me, as well, Hyung.”

So that’s why my cups kept disappearing! With monsters around, I’d stocked several unbreakable dungeon–made cups. Director Song, glancing at me, produced a cup too.

“It’s handy to stash dishes in the inventory when washing up.”

So too with laundry. Those breeder commemorative towels were great. Mari returned with a perfectly sliced fish, and the noodles finished cooking.

“This is how you use the cup lid~.”

Mari demonstrated, folding it funnel–style and showing Seong Hyunjae. That’s not in the instructions. After a pleasant meal, we grabbed our rods again. Our team was still at a disadvantage, but—

[Team Han Yujin Wins!]

The result surprised everyone. Yuhyun looked up at his giant water snake in astonishment.

“Hyung, wasn’t that smaller than me…?”

It certainly grew rapidly. The other fish’s bellies were inflated too.

“Wow… a true giant squid.”

“Um, Yujin–ssi? I think I caught a tuna under a meter long….”

Everyone was bewildered, but since we won, it was for the best. Now, on to the main game.

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