< The Thing That Was Cut Out (1) >

After Sung Hyunjae went back, I had a hard time soothing Noah, who was depressed, saying he was a useless reason. Even though I told him several times that if you calculated it out, I had poached him away and hired him, so I should take responsibility, the teary face didn’t relax. Once I said it really was okay, and pointed out and explained one by one about Noah’s worth at length and how it was a benefit for me, finally it became an accepting expression.

It actually wasn’t a loss to me. Rather, it was to the point of feeling uncomfortable because Sung Hyunjae had so meekly backed off.

‘Even if he did this and that, he’s an S-Rank Hunter, so to think that he would wash his hands of it that easily.’

Exactly what impressive demand was he going to make? But it wasn’t coercive either. He only exchanged words without proof, and even readily accepted it when I said I would refuse if it seemed like I wouldn’t be able to handle it. The terms were still too advantageous to only me.

……He wasn’t someone who do something where he would suffer a loss, so what secret designs did he have? Was it actually really goodwill? Just in case, I checked the My Brat skill status window, but Sung Hyunjae’s name wasn’t there.

‘Was I too deep in my preconceptions?’

I didn’t know. Once I saw what he demanded of me, I could be certain.

Before that, should I keep it a secret from Yoohyun, or give voluntary disclosure? …Why did I have to wonder about things like that? Still, I was the hyung. I wasn’t going to hide it, but there was no reason I had to report things one by one.

If he asks, I should tell him.

There was no way he didn’t hear that Sung Hyunjae had come and gone, but there was no contact from Yoohyun until dinner. Then again, seeing from afar, he had just handed over a flower basket and quietly left after a short conversation. Interrogating about that one by one would also be weird.

Instead, there was a call from the Hunter Association urging me on. They asked if it wasn’t about time I produced special skill Awakened People, and when I would start to pick out Unawakened People again. It was work that I took action to say I would do, but seeing them frantically trying to mooch off me for free, I didn’t feel good.

In the first place, if only those people had conscientiously managed the Awakening Centers, there wouldn’t have been a need for me to take action.

‘If Song Taewon stays alive, the Association would probably say the same, but even so, it’s too much to leave him to die.’

Couldn’t Song Taewon swallow up the Association instead? In the first place, I wondered why the S-Rank Hunter in a national institution position wasn’t the Association Head. Why didn’t that person have any greed for power? Should I try persuading him to take over the Association at least for the country?

Besides that, Yerim was going to go to a dungeon, so she asked me to stick to Peace. After arduously going around a dungeon with Yoohyun, Peace was now stat S even in his juvenile form. In addition, Noah was on standby at all times, so I thought there really was no need to pay attention to my safety.

-Gyareureureung

Peace happily rumbled and rubbed his body against my leg from his head to the tip of his tail. It seemed like he really liked that Blue wasn’t at home. I had thought they had gotten close in their own way.

Blue had taken over the top of the circular pergola. When she got bigger, of course the house, but the rearing facility was also stifling, so she didn’t really try to come indoors. So I was planning on making a separate house based on a gryphon’s nest in the rooftop garden. She had broken off wood and took cushions, and made her own nest, but it was at the level that would all fly away if rainy wind blew.

“Peace, if she could decrease her frame like you, it would be convenient.”

Seeing how Blue kept on growing without a break throughout the training, unlike Peace, she didn’t seem to have the talent to go back to her younger appearance. Since Comet was also a flying dragon type, when it got a little bigger, would it try to go outside?

I put up a video of the bigger Blue acting cute on social media. Once she completely grew, she would want to increase her range of flight, so I was already getting worried. Thanks to the issue of Yoohyun decreasing the dungeon attack time last time, the law about monster rearing would soon be relaxed. Still, they would be a lot of people worrying over a large monster flying around in the center of the city.

Did I have to appear on broadcasts more to let people know how our Blue was this good and gentle? There were a lot of requests to show up anyways.

‘If it really doesn’t work out, should I buy land where there aren’t people and make something like a farm?’

Near the seaside would be good too.

Requests for monster rearing were slowly coming in from overseas, but I pushed them all aside for now. It was circumstances where the monsters that Haeyeon had bought had arrived, but they weren’t brought over. The unicorns had become registered with the keyword, so after those guys and Comet finished training one round, I should bring in new ones.

“Chirpie, you want to eat magic stones?”

-Cheep

Chirpie, who was taking flowers out of the flower basket on top of the table and laying them down one by one, gave a short reply. It meant that it didn’t want to.

The more I looked, the difference in its character was big enough that I wondered if it really was a split bird personality. The Chirpie who liked magic stones and ran around here and there chirping and playing, and the Chirpie who didn’t eat magic stones and was quiet with a lot of curiosity. Putting aside the characteristics, why didn’t quiet Chirpie eat magic stones?

Myeongwoo appeared quite late at night. I had turned off the fear resistance, so I felt a slight overwhelming feeling from the spilling heat. It was just heat, but it was a feeling similar to seeing a burning fire from up close. If I met Ismual without the fear resistance, it might seem quite scary.

“Are you okay? Are you properly resting?”

“I’m okay.”

Myeongwoo said, scratching the back of his head. Even though he spoke like that, his face couldn’t hide the fatigue. Even if you said that his stats went up, it wasn’t just one or two days, and it wasn’t to the point that it was okay to continuously overdo it.

“Exactly what are you making that you’re suffering like this? No matter how good the item is, take care of your body first.”

I clicked my tongue and took out some restorative tonic[1] from where they were piled, poured it in a cup, and gave it to him.

“The thing I’m making now is more difficult than I’d thought it would be. I didn’t know it would take this long either.”

“How long has it been since you made an S-Rank weapon – are you trying to make an SS-Rank already? If it doesn’t work well, make easy ones first and raise your proficiency, and then try again.”

“Since I’ve already started, I should see it to the end.”

The smiling face while saying that seemed like he had no intention at all of letting go of his stubbornness. We were going to go into a dungeon together to raise levels, but if it was like this, it would take much longer. If I knew it was going to be like this, I would’ve used the My Brat skill as growth. It would’ve helped him increase his proficiency.

“Right, you don’t have any more of that bracelet from last time, right?”

“That?”

Myeongwoo took out five transparent beads about the size of a hundred won coin from his inventory.

“I made them with the fragments remaining after shaving something down.”

“You shaved something down? What?”

“I’ll tell you later. These are similar to that bracelet last time.”

For now I took only two. If it was damage nullification, then it would be better for Myeongwoo to have them for emergencies.

[Shalos’ Bead]

This time, there was a name properly added to it. Though there wasn’t an effect explanation.

“Shalos? Is that the name of the material that you shaved down?”

“Yeah. It’s something like that. I’m busy so I’m going now.”

Myeongwoo, who put down the empty cup, disappeared as if running away. It really was suspicious. Frowning, I scrutinized the beads in my hand. It felt like I had seen something similar to these before.

“…Even though I don’t know what the material is, to think that he made this kind of item with its fragments.”

Then exactly what… would come from the main part?

‘Myeongwo, that punk……’

It was to the point of seeming a little scary. A good item coming out was something to welcome, but how long has it been since he got the skill – I wondered if he was being too excessive.

“Hi, hyung-nim. It’s good you look well.”

The next afternoon, Moon Hyuna, who had finished her dungeon attack, visited. It was when I was training Blue while I had brought her inside, since she kept on trying to play pranks on the people who were making her house.

-Kkyaoo kkya!

“Hey, the gryphon also grew a lot, huh. I also have to quickly find a baby monster and leave it to you. There’s a worldwide shortage phenomenon because of hyung-nim. They don’t come out in auction houses. Everything’s all gone![2]”

I thoughtlessly stared blankly at the grumbling Moon Hyuna. I mean, what was up with her hair? About 2/3 of the right side of her hair was refreshingly shaved off. The remaining left side of her hair was dyed a deeply reddish auburn, so it was even more unconventional.

“Your hair style has… changed a little?”

“It got burned that day. While I was at it, I just completely cut it off.”

Did it burn that much? Moon Hyuna brushed back the spilling hair and smiled.

“How is it? Does it suit me?”

“…It does suit you, but didn’t people around you stop you?”

“I did hear a lot of nagging! Especially the elder people, there was a lo~t of complaints asking if I was going to go around looking like that, barely as a guild leader.”

Seeing her attitude, cheerfully laughing, it was obvious that she didn’t pay any attention to the surrounding rebukes. Still, it was definitely an appearance that was a bit of a problem for being active in public. Though it was cool.

……It suited her well. And personally, this seemed better too. It was cool.

“What’s up, hyung-nim? You keep on sneaking glances. Did you fall for me?”

“Doesn’t it make sense to stare? And if you really cannot find a baby monster, please try looking for them with the condition that you will leave it first with me instead. I have refused all the overseas rearing commissions that have come in lately.”

“Really? If it’s possible, can you keep on refusing them for a while? Then it would probably be easier to find one. There are a few overseas guilds that have several high rank baby monsters.”

“I cannot take care of them for now, at least because I do not have the energy to spare. Seseong also said that the probability is high for bringing out a baby monster from the A-Rank dungeon they went into this time.”

It was a relief at that, that the other two guilds were quiet.

“And now that I think of it, wasn’t the S-Rank dungeon you went into for management, a first attack? Something good should have come out.”

Even though I knew, I stealthily asked. It was definitely the Festival’s Beluga Whale[3] Tears. As a consumable item that could put a skill on equipment, it was an ice affiliated skill that didn’t suit Moon Hyuna, so she had put it in an auction house. It had caused a big uproar then. Originally, it was won overseas, but now there was Yerim, so I wanted to buy it. Wouldn’t it be perfect if it was used on the SS-Rank Mermaid Queen Earring?

“Of course! An elixir!”

“…An elixir?”

“Ah, hyung-nim probably doesn’t know well. It’s extremely valuable. It’s a potion good enough that it isn’t an exaggeration to call it an extra life. Until now, only two should have come out. It’s the first in the country.”

I mean, I knew pretty well that elixirs were valuable… Why did that come out now?

“What about other things? A skill granting item, for example.”

“Skill granting? If something like that came out, I already would’ve used it and bragged loudly about it. S-Rank gloves did come out. Though putting aside the rank, the performance isn’t that good.”

……Did it really not come out? It wasn’t like she ran in with just a two person team, like Yoohyun, and the preparation period for S-Rank new dungeon attacks were long and they went in without leaving much extra time, so the conditions should be the same as before the regression.

Confused, I took out my cell phone and looked for the results of the past month’s dungeon attacks. I had looked up a lot of dungeon information because it was the height of when I was looking for brokers and trying hard to Awaken, but since five years had passed, I could only remember a few. But all those few were the same as my memories. America’s White San Cross Shield, Philippines’ Lullaby Singing Book, and even India’s Wind Commanding Bow.

They were famous items, and all the equipment properly came out, so why didn’t the Beluga Whale Tears appear?

‘Was it because of the regression? Or was there a different reason?’

It was more confusing because the other three came out properly. If it was just a coincidence, then it didn’t matter, but… should I ask the system people about this too?

After we talked a little bit more about kiseungsu and Moon Hyuna left, I sent a text to Yoohyun.

[Tomorrow or the day after I’m going to go into an F-Rank dungeon. With Peace. Not to raise my levels.]

[System?]

The replay came immediately.

[yeah]

[I’ll go too.]

Wasn’t he busy yet? I thought it would be fine if I took one more gate stone for Peace just in case a problem occurred. And there was the Shalos’ Beads that Myeongwoo had given me.

Still, while we were at it, let’s keep the promise to look at his skills. This time, it would be good if nothing happened.

I was originally thinking of bidding on a decent F-Rank dungeon, but thanks to Yoohyun coming along, the destination changed to a D-Rank dungeon under Haeyeon management. If there wasn’t anything in particular, then whether it was F-Rank or D-Rank didn’t really matter.

‘Like this, I might uselessly get picky.’

There were too many S-Ranks around me. At the rearing facility, I wouldn’t have cause to see anybody other than high rank Hunters, so it felt like my standard would get weird. It was the opposite, before.

I soothed Chirpie, who wanted to come along, and went toward the building[4]’s parking lot. I was sorry to just leave out Chirpie, but how could I take it along? A soft fluff ball that couldn’t wear equipment. Should I ask Myeongwoo if he could make items for Chirpie to use? Though he had to finish the thing he was making now first.

It was to the point of feeling bad for the Hunters fretting over wanting to contact Myeongwoo. There were purposely a lot of people standing guard at the rearing facility, but that Myeongwoo didn’t go out.

When I arrived at the parking lot, Yoohyun, who was leaning against a car, turned to look at me. It was just a white summer shirt and comfortable pants, but he looked like he would appear in some fashion catalog. It wasn’t just thanks to the S-Rank stats; that guy was good looking before Awakening, too. He was a born S-Rank, so it probably wasn’t that there wasn’t an effect.

“Hyung looks tired as ever. Are you okay?”

“I didn’t take enough naps. Blue moved to the garden now, so it’s okay.”

Once I grew Comet too, I was free. Or even if I said so, I didn’t know when a nocturnal baby monster would pop up again.

We got into the car and started to the dungeon building. Just look at that Yoohyun, not wearing a seatbelt. Why don’t you take care to wear it on normal days? Wasn’t it that kids follow what they see[5]?

[1] idk if this is a good eng tl, but anyways it’s like traditional medicine that’s supposed to keep you healthy or sth like that

[2] lit. ‘the seed has completely dried’

[3] it’s literally ‘white whale’ but the krn-eng dict says it’s the beluga (whale)

[4] from now on, when yj talks about ‘the building’ in terms of his place, it’s going to mean the building connected to the rearing facility, because in krn, he differentiates them by using the eng word for building. When he talks abt his house+facility, even if he uses the word ‘building’ (the krn word), I’ll tl it as ‘facility’ so that eng readers can differentiate. In prev ch, I used ‘the other building’, but I think letting you guys know that ‘building’ means the connected building is better.

[5] lit. ‘the upper water has to be clear for the lower water to be clear’ where ‘upper/lower water’ means like in a stream/river, and the meaning is that if the higher up person does well, then the lower (in rank/status/position/age, because kr has a strict age-based hierarchy) person will do well. The krn-eng dict did give me example eng idioms, but I didn’t recognize any of them, so I used one that I thought was similar enough.