Chapter 117

Kang Soyoung joined us at the cafe I was dragged to after lunch . A bingsu[1] that was wrapped in layers of mangoes, a puffy pancake, a waffle with fruit and ice cream on it, cheesecake, tiramisu, and other various things filled the table .

Could this be all eaten?

“Noah-ssi, can’t I try riding you just once?”

Kang Soyoung asked with sparkling eyes . Noah, with a spoon in his mouth, was bothered and glanced sideways at me sitting next to him . It seemed like Kang Soyoung was being burdensome . Though if you put them side by side and looked at them, they really seemed to suit each other .

…Wait, then what about Yoohyun? It wasn’t that Kang Soyoung was romantically interested in Noah, but with goodwill formed, you couldn’t tell how it would develop . Did I have to disrupt them? Hm, since for now, Noah seemed like he was reluctant about Kang Soyoung .

“Noah-ssi is not a kiseungsu . It is difficult if you keep being like this . ”

Kang Soyoung apologized and slightly bowed her head .

“There is also Comet, so I cannot be like this even more, but he will not leave my sight . ”

“I want to see it in person, too . Truthfully, I also want to try riding- . ”

“Please just eat the bingsu instead . Noah-ssi, try this . It is tasty . ”

“Yes . ”

Maybe because of the two people who kept on aiming for him and sending heated gazes, Noah was timidly hunched over . Be reasonable about it, you people .

“Kang Soyoung-ssi, do you happen to remember when the Seseong Guild Leader changed his way of speaking?”

I asked Kang Soyoung in order to check accurately . For Moon Hyuna, she didn’t meet Sung Hyunjae often, so it could’ve been that it was two months or more since he changed his way of speaking . At my question, Kang Soyoung tilted her head .

“Ah, thinking of it, he changed it . When was it? Was it about one and a half months ago? It seems like it was not as much as two months… It should have been about a few days before Yerim was recognized as an S-Rank . ”

……It was exactly when I regressed . Of course, it could be a coincidence .

“Were there any other changes besides that? Have you heard the reason why he suddenly changed his way of speaking?”

“The reason? Would there be a specific reason? He is incredibly natural at it . Other changes, besides thaaat……”

Kang Soyoung stretched out the last word and stared straight at me .

“I am worried because he seems to be a little, quite interested in Han Yoojin-nim . ”

“Excuse me?”

“Guild Leader seems to be having fun, but there have not been many times where that kind of interest ended well . Truuuthfully, our Guild Leader does not have a good personality, as you know . But he is extremely generous to Han Yoojin-nim . I was quite surprised yesterday, too . It was possible for him to come since an unusual dungeon appeared, but he even went on a clothes errand for you . And you seem that close…”

“We are not close . No, we will pretend to be close limited to a week . ”

There were 6 days left now . Kang Soyoung fiddled with her fork and her eyes slanted down .

“This time especially, he seems to be having more fun, so… even if just for our Comet, it would be good if you be careful . ”

“That’s true . Putting aside your younger brother, it’s dangerous to treat Sung Hyunjae unhesitatingly as well . It seemed like Yerim was worried over it, too . Be careful, if at least for our Blue . ”

Was it ‘our Blue’ already? Continuing on from Moon Hyuna, even Noah nodded his head .

“That is right . I also think that you need to be careful of the Seseong Guild Leader . ”

I got that you were worrying, but even if you told me to be careful, would I be able to do anything about it?

‘Since it’s a situation where I’ll have to approach him first . ’

If it were up to me, I also wanted to only see that person’s face on TV . The bingsu was tasty . The milk ice was really soft .

Rain glided down following the cafe’s large glass window . Between the low noise of the rain, various conversations and laughs came and went . Of course Noah, but even I was the type that listened, so it wasn’t bad . Moon Hyuna and Kang Soyoung lived enjoyably, huh . I was happy that Yerim was placed among them .

Wouldn’t Yoohyun also have one or two friends? …Did he not have any? Since their ages were similar, should I ask Noah if he would be friends with my brother? It was good that he was doing well, but truthfully, if you were twenty, shouldn’t you be having a fun campus life? Why was he working in dungeons?

“Noah-ssi, do you not have plans on going to school?”

“School?”

Noah tilted his head, and Kang Soyoung shouted ‘ah’ .

“I am going to be going to college through special admission next year, but do you want to go together? Though we probably would not take many classes . What about Han Yoojin-nim? You are B-Rank, but the effects of your skills are great, so it would be possible . ”

Why college all of a sudden now? And there weren’t a lot of colleges with high rank Hunter special admission, so if I wasn’t careful, I could become my brother’s hoobae[2] . Though I hadn’t ever seen Yoohyun go to school, so we probably wouldn’t run into each other . I shook my head no, but Moon Hyuna also egged me on .

“At any rate, even if you cut all your classes, you still get a diploma if you substitute it with dungeon attacks, so just go . There’s nothing bad about having the label of a college grad . No, if it’s a position like yours, then it’ll be much more comfortable to have it . ”

Hearing that I didn’t need to take classes, it was slightly tempting . There was still a lot of time left until next year, so should I think about it? If I go, I should go to a different college than Yoohyun .

Bbiii-

Just then, cell phones abruptly rang . Not just the ones of us four, but all of the cell phones in the cafe let out a sharp sound . It was a message about a dungeon-related disaster .

“Did one burst open somewhere or something?”

Moon Hyuna took out her cell phone as she stood from her seat . I also checked my phone . It was a message about restricted passage and caution over approaching some sections because of a high rank Hunter going wild .

It was something that happened rarely right after a dungeon attack, but it was somehow suspicious . When I went into the portal site just in case, the breaking news popped up .

“…These crazy guys . ”

At my unconscious mumbling, Moon Hyuna also put on an agreeing expression .

“Saying that the Haeyeon Guild Leader destroyed a portion of the new Hunter Association building because of friction with the Association . The Association is coming forward more unhesitatingly than excepted?”

“They are probably going all out . It seems like I should go over first . ”

“You said you were on vacation . And hyung-nim, your brother might not be here . ”

Moon Hyuna said significantly . It was as she said . In the view of the photo, there was fire on a part of the building, but that much was a sight that could be easily made even without Yoohyun . It would’ve been different if it was a sudden disaster out of the blue . Fire was common .

“If it is a false charge, I will not be able to leave them alone anymore, isn’t that so? And it is no hardship to go see my brother . ”

“Should I go with you?”

“Rather than that, please contact Yoohyun . My phone is not connecting . Noah-ssi, will you help?”

“Yes . Of course I will help . ”

Since traffic was being regulated, it would be faster to fly . And if Noah was next to me, the possibility of it becoming dangerous was low . Even if just the poison was sprayed, most would not be able to approach .

I sent one text and went outside the cafe . Then Noah changed into his dragon appearance . The passersby were startled, and a few threw away their umbrellas as they ran away in shock . I felt sorry . There were some people among them who weren’t shocked, and they took out their phones to film .

When I went up onto Noah’s back, the long wings spread out as we went up into the air . Thanks to the rain, the scales were more slippery than usual, so it was unstable . Still, I was a little reluctant to fit a saddle on a person . If I fell, he would probably catch me . And I had Eunhye .

As the buildings passed by, I made a call . A voice that I hadn’t wanted to hear for a day, replied even before I asked .

[I don’t know the young master’s whereabouts either . ]

“Really?”

[I’m thankful you evaluate me highly, but even I can’t know everything on the spot . Besides that, it looks like you’re doing something reckless again . ]

“If you are worried, why don’t you personally come out? The helicopter looked good . ”

[I’m sad because it seems like Han Yoojin-gun thinks of me so lightly . If you want help, come directly and politely ask . ]

“I suppose you have found a better item than me in the meantime?”

[If I did, Han Yoojin-gun would already be in front of me . There’s no need to respect the secondary one . ]

“It is extremely fortunate that I am the most amazing . ”

He spoke like it was a joke, but it wouldn’t be a joke . Maybe he had heard the contents of the call, but Noah turned to look back at me worriedly, and I pacified him saying it was okay . If there was someone else in the world whose skill window was as weird as mine, then it was something to complain to god about .

‘It seems like he won’t be active, but he probably wouldn’t act like he doesn’t know to the end . ’

If more debt was piled on, I should consider not paying it back and running off . I wondered if I should contact Do Hamin, but I remembered that Yoohyun broke his cell phone . He said that his wallet was lost while he was going around the dungeon with Peace, so he would’ve had his Hunter license and driver’s license newly issued .

-It is that, correct?

At Noah’s words, I put away my cell phone, and turned my head . A bit away, I saw a building where smoke was rising . The new Association building next to the Awakening Center . Maybe it was a waste to break the original building, because only a portion of the 2-story annex attached next door was collapsed . Because of the continuously falling rain, the fire was also mostly put out and only smoke poured out .

‘How petty . ’

If Yoohyun had really run wild, even the main building would be caved in . The breaking news photo was taken well, really exaggeratedly . I belatedly felt heated up as I sent a text . It wasn’t that far of a distance from here, so she would arrive soon .

[Will you break the Awakening Center a little? The round building . I will take responsibility . ]

Just then, a helicopter approached . An armed man who looked like a Hunter gestured at us to go down, but I ignored it and took photos and videos and sent them to Suk Simyeong .

-Is it okay to break the helicopter?

“Not yet . Let’s go down first . ”

We went down to the front of the collapsed building and I took a proof picture so that my face appeared . I also took a video, saying that it didn’t seem like my brother was here . In the meantime, maybe they were interfering with communication, because I couldn’t send it to Haeyeon, but it should be fine as long as my phone was .

“Han Yoojin-ssi . ”

A man in a black suit tried to approach, but met the vicious gaze of Noah, who had released the entire dragon transformation, and froze .

“I came here, thinking to see my loving brother’s face, but do you know where he is?”

I could not see him . Even though articles definitely came out saying that he was here . I asked with a smiling face, but the returning gaze was cold . That was too much .

In the meantime, the number of people encircling the surroundings increased . So they wouldn’t feel suspicions, I quickly checked just their ranks . Three A-Ranks, and the rest were B or lower .

“You cannot be here . Please come with us . ”

“I have something I am curious about, but are there people inside that building?”

“All of them were evacuated . As it came out in the breaking news, the Haeyeon Guild Leader, Hunter Han Yoohyun- . ”

“So where’s my brother?”

That he merely broke a bit of a wall and stopped – be reasonable about your nonsense .

“He is in the middle of escaping . ”

“Are you seriously crazy?”

“It is your younger brother’s matter, so I understand that it will be hard to accept . First, let us move locations, and I will tell you in detail . ”

“Tell me in detail? The way I see it, all of the buildings here seem like they collapsed down . ”

“Excuse me?”

“Of course, it’s not something my brother did . Because a dungeon that wasn’t found in time nearby, burst open . ”

The faces facing me were puzzled, as if asking what I was saying .

“I guess you guys can’t see it yet . A giant black dragon . ”

Instead of those guys, Noah flinched and searched around the surroundings . The idiots still had expressions like they didn’t know what was happening .

“You petty bastards . If you were going to put out an article saying that the Haeyeon Guild Leader ran wild- . ”

Kwagwagwang!!

An explosive sound that smacked into one’s ears rang out . As if I was waiting for it, I didn’t even bat an eye and continued speaking .

“You should make this much of a mess . ”

Even without turning my head, I could guess what those guys were looking at, by just the dazed faces . I continued to hear the sound of the building collapsing and rocks falling down . And .

-Keureureureu

A fierce growling shook the air .

“Sh-shit! It’s a dungeon break!”

“Dragon type; it’s at minimum an A-Rank dungeon!”

“Noah-ssi, for safety, can you knock them out?”

An S-Rank dragon type appeared, so it would be dangerous if unimportant people ran wild . Noah threw himself at the Hunters running away . Then, one by one, the Hunters lost consciousness and fell . The movement was so fast, that to my low stat eyes, it looked like a golden wave .

After asking him to check if there were more people around, I drew back . The black curse and poison dragon that was sitting on the ruins of the Awakening Center stretched out her neck toward me .

The Awakening Center building was lost, so I would be able to extend my vacation a little .

-Darling, it’s fun for me, but is it okay?

“Of course it’s okay . Since I handled a dungeon break for them, wouldn’t I receive thanks from the Association?”

‘The Haeyeon Guild Leader went wild’ was a false report . The fainted idiots and the traces of a giant dragon would be proof . The people who knew about Riette might be suspicious, but if we played innocent, then that was it . Where did the gate of the dungeon that burst go? Just yesterday, one disappeared, so one could disappear today, too .

“Since they said there aren’t any people, please push down the building next door as well, wicked dragon-nim . Cleanly . ”

-Anytime, princess! I’m paying the price for you to raise the kid with this~ .

“I will put my heart and soul into taking care of it . ”

Along with husky laughter, the dragon raised her body on her hind legs . The tail hit the ground, and the scales of two hind legs shook all at once .

Eujijik, right after the ground let out a groan at the powerful pressure .

Kwa-ang!!

With a short and thick boom, the dragon’s body rammed into the building . The glass windows burst simultaneously . Without time to appreciate the sparkling scattering pieces, the lofty building split . The building that was made of a tough steel skeleton and concrete broke easily and fell like a sugar sculpture .

“Please be careful . ”

Noah, who had come over at some point, pulled me back and hit the building debris that were bouncing over with his arm . Riette stomped on the remaining chunks with her large feet and crushed them . She did well . I felt all refreshed .

“Dungeon breaks really are dangerous . It is incredibly fortunate that an S-Rank Hunter, Noah-ssi, happened to be here . ”

Whatever the blinking Noah had thought, he smiled slightly .

Rain kept on falling . Around the time I was getting worried over catching a cold even though it was summer, cars appeared . Several ones . Ambulances were mixed in . Among the people who came out, I saw Yoohyun, too . My brother came over and held an umbrella over me .

“Why’re you here getting hit by rain?”

“Look at how it looks here . There’s no place to avoid it . ”

“You should’ve taken care to bring an umbrella . ”

While we were idly chatting about things that didn’t suit the surrounding scene, the hands that were taking care of the fainted Hunters were busy . I felt a gaze piercing me and turned my head . It was Song Taewon . That person also didn’t have an umbrella . When I smiled welcomingly, the face that was wet with rain stiffened .

It was during my vacation, but it was an atmosphere like I couldn’t not make time for him . When would I rest?

[1] a krn shaved ice desert

[2] underclassman, opposite of ‘sunbae’