#c: sung hyunjae (dungeon)

[sfstranslations]

UPDATE: The S-Ranks That I Raised (400)

“I’m sure you’ve already guessed, but this is it. What I was trying to say.” “I don’t know anything. I’m still waiting.”

Read Chapter 400: Sunset (4) now!

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[dbgdbw]

243.Lanchaea’s Lambda (1)

란체아의 람다 (1)

“Hyung, that thing, it’s Sung Hyunjae?”

Yoohyunie, who was held in my arms, suddenly asked.

“Hm?”

“Seeing how he’s taking useless interest in hyung, it seems to be the case.”

…instead of by his face, was that how you’d ended up recognizing him.

“For starters, he’s not.”

But even as I was saying as much, it was difficult to disguise my discomfort. They were different, but also similar. Could this really just be chalked up to coincidence. Honestly, it was a bit much, wasn’t it. Even if you looked past the similarity in appearance, their Skills and weapons were completely identical as well. Their personalities seemed to differ a bit, at least, but it wasn’t as though they were dissimilar.

“‘Sung Hyunjae’ again, is it.”

Sigma, who had caught Yoohyunie’s words, murmured.

“It’s a person who resembles y-, no, someone that you happen to resemble, sir. My ‘Partner’, you see.”

Figuring that I should go ahead and complete the quest as well, while I was at it, I decided to press on.

“While this isn’t my personal opinion–so, completely objectively speaking–he’s quite good-looking and disgustingly accomplished, but at the moment, stuck just watching through a monitor while cooped up in a room as a hot-pink bunch of yarn.”

Why wasn’t the ‘Completed Quest’ notification showing up. Did I have to push it a bit further? Exactly how much was this thing expecting from me, anyway.

“It seems he’s taken up knitting as a hobby as of late, and the scarf did turn out well, at least. He appears to be good at making cocktails too. He’s good at cooking, won’t eat bread crusts, but will unexpectedly the eat shrimp tail ends, and according to Soyoung-ssi, he’s good at origami too. There’s a massive aquarium in his home. Though it got smashed open, it’s been re-filled with water since, I’ve been told. He’d asked before whether I wouldn’t like go fishing together as, apparently, there’s a good location to personally fish for new stock.”

“Fishing?”

“Yeah, d’you wanna come with? You haven’t gone fishing before, right?”

At this point in time, I hadn’t gone before, either. Before regressing, I’d done so on occasion inside of Dungeons. If you managed to catch the relatively knackless fish that lived inside of Dungeons in alive condition, depending on the variety, they could be sold at a fairly hefty markup for ornamental purposes. For some F-rank Dungeons, rather than monster hunting, it was the fishing that would rake in bigger profits.

After barely scrounging up a few more useless tidbits of personal information, the quest finally got marked as complete. That damn Sung Hyunjae, honestly.

“...in any case, there’s some asshole like that. As you can clearly see, the situation seems to have reversed–you should be going right along and turning tail, no, sir?”

Yoohyunie was brimming with mana, while Sigma would have burned through at least half of his own reserves. Even if he were to attempt anything, the outcome was already decided. To be honest, that he’d bothered to chase Yoohyunie all the way here in the first place was unexpected. I hadn’t thought him to be the type that would knowingly enter into a losing fight.

“I’ll concede that the situation is disadvantageous to myself.”

탁, with a light footstep, Sigma retreated. Having leapt to the top of the crumbling ruins of the wall, he looked down at us.

“Alpha–no, ‘Han Yoohyun’, was it. First… An apology, then.”

For some inexplicable reason, Sigma humbly bowed his head. Just when I was wondering what he was up to, since he was hardly the sort to behave that way.

“I’d assumed that C-rank was a renegade un-Awakened lacking an affiliation and had him Marked, you see.”

He just had to open his fat mouth and spew a bunch of useless shit. Apparently informed about how Marks worked, Yoohyunie’s eyes narrowed at the reply.

“Hyung?”

“Well, the procedure had started when–”

Without listening to the rest of my explanation, Yoohyunie pulled down my scarf and scanned the back of my neck. There was the faint sound of teeth grinding together.

“The marking procedure was interrupted before it was completed, though? …did it leave a trace?”

“...a little.”

It didn’t feel any different, so I hadn’t realized, but that goddamned bastard! This is my real body, you hear! I wanted to know what it looked like, but if it was my nape, it wasn’t like I could see it with my own eyes. Ah–the Teacher Skill. When I quickly used it on Yoohyunie, I could see a slight design imprinted on the back of my neck. It looked like the faint stamp of a seal, that had run out of ink during the process.

The nearly extinguished flames suddenly came roaring back alive, blazing up high. Quirking the corners of his lips, this time, that Sigma bastard took out the contract.

“And perhaps owing to your resurrection, it seems that the contract remains in place, still. So it’s now my turn to collect what I’m owed, C-rank.”

The bastard spoke, using the tip of his finger to underline a part of the contract in a long stroke as he continued.

“In the case that Alpha is granted his freedom, within twenty-four hours, the other party will be compensated with intelligence that he deems satisfactory recompense.’ Is what it says, no.”

“I’ll spill the info, so get your ass down here right now!”

“What would happen if the twenty four hours were to pass without my hearing the intelligence, I wonder.”

“...what?”

“‘Waiting’ is something I can do as well, C-rank.”

That’s, this son of a bitch! That Sigma would possibly refuse to receive his compensation, was something I hadn’t anticipated. I should’ve been a bit more judicious with my wording on those conditions!

“Even if you were to wait, do you think that I’ll simply tell you what it was after the contract defaults into being nullified! You’ll never hear what it was, for the rest of your life!”

“Then I should be able to acquire the C-rank and Alpha both. That’s not bad, either.”

…fucking hell, I should’ve left my dongsaeng out of the compensation talks. No, if I could get ahold of the SS-rank detox Item from the Point Store first, then that was that. Since it was single use, it shouldn’t be that expensive, right.

콰르릉!

Just then, the lower part of the rubble Sigma was standing atop of began to melt. As the heap of boulders collapsed, Sigma leapt further backwards with light footsteps. His gaze cold, Yoohyunie watched him with narrowed eyes.

“Feeling sore, I see. Even so–I’ll allow you at least a day to tarry in Achates City.”

Saying so, Sigma’s form disappeared altogether. Yoohyunie set himself down from my hold.

“Hyung should stay here and–, no, here might be too dangerous too.”

“And just who are you trying to go after! That’s just what that bastard wants. The further you get from the Mana Hole, the more disadvantaged you’ll be. That bastard came here with a reservoir tank full of his own faction’s mana in tow, along with a retinue of several S-rank Guards. Not to mention that, right now, you’re in a deeply fatigued state, too.”

He had been continually locked away. Even with SS-rank stats, his physical condition couldn’t be called ‘good’. Had he been an ordinary person, he would’ve already wasted away to the point that it would’ve been difficult for him to stand, as it was.

“We can just buy the detox Item from the Point Store and use that. So.”

“I really can’t go after him?”

- With Rinie here too, Hyung!

As one, both of them turned pleading looks on me. Ah, um, well.

“...well, then again. Since it seems like he wants to capture you alive, it shouldn’t be too dangerous, I suppose. Ah, that’s right, did you happen to see the message the Newcomer sent?”

Yoohyunie shook his head. So he hadn’t even had the time to look at the message, huh. The contents of the message Yoohyunie had received was identical to the one Sung Hyunjae had gotten.

“Then, does that mean I can come back to life the way hyung did a bit ago, even if I die?”

“Uh, that’s not…….”

After debating whether I should tell him for a moment, I decided to speak honestly. Since, so long as it could be helped, we’d decided not to hide anything from each other.

“I entered this world with my real body.”

“What? T-then hyung’s–!”

“In exchange, the number of lives I have is five. Since I’ve used one up, I have four left still, now.”

I told him about the disks too. And how, somehow or another, Sung Hyunjae seemed to have ended up inside of the System as well. Even as he frowned slightly, Yoohyunie nodded his head.

“...I’ll just stay by hyung’s side. Even if there’s four left, you never know what might happen. I can’t just leave hyung behind. And without Eunhae, going together would only end up being more dangerous.”

“No need to worry about that. Though, it does have a thirty minute time limit.”

I bought a MiniMini Cookie from the Point Shop and ate it. Soon after, my body shrunk to a tiny size. After his initial surprise, Yoohyunie carefully wrapped his hands around me to pick me up. Having scuttling down the length of Yoohyunie’s arm to approach, Rinie made circles around me.

- Hyung! Hyung! So cute! Like Rinie!

“At about this size, it should be easy to protect me, even without going out of your way. And your flame resistance should be conveyed perfectly well, too. And with my stats at C-rank, plus the S-rank equipment, it shouldn’t be like when I’m an F-rank, where even a glancing blow could be life-threatening.”

- Rinie wants to hold Hyung! Let Rinie hold you please!

Saying that he would do a very good job of protecting me, Rinie squeezed me in a tight hug with his forelegs. But then, if you’re doing that, you won’t be able to help Yoohyunie, you know. As it turned out, because there happened to be a shirt with a chest pocket in Yoohyunie’s–no, Alpha’s inventory, he changed into it and I went into the pocket. Unwilling to give up hope, Irin circled around me.

“Let’s quickly track and take him down!”

From the Point Shop, I bought ‘Hunting Hound(C)’(1). When I activated the single-use Item that would let me track something down within a 3km radius, after setting it on top of the contract with Sigma, soon enough, something that resembled a firefly popped out and, as though signaling for us to follow, flitted meaningfully in place. 텅, with the sound of feet kicking off pavement, Yoohyunie’s body soared into the air.

By scattering viridian willow leaves a short distance ahead and stepping on the leaves, he leapt forward in consecutive movements to climb to the top of a building shrouded in darkness. Nearly the very instant the tips of his feet touched down on the building, 훅–, his body launched forward once more. Several buildings passed by underfoot, in the span of seconds.

“My Point Shop seems to be different from hyung’s reward store.”

“Huh?”

“My reward store is only showing Skills and weapons.”

Yoohyunie, who had been skimming his status and quest windows as he raced on, spoke. Though there was a large selection available, there was nothing like a ‘Universal Key’, ‘MiniCookie’, or tracking Item available, he said. In fact, the Skills and weapons were priced far higher when compared with my reward shop, too.

“...did the Newcomer actually show me some thoughtfulness?”

Or, it might’ve been that Sung Hyunjae had tampered with it, too. In any case, I’d gotten some good profit margins as a result.

- 크르르르르

In the distance, the snarls of monsters could be heard. That Sigma bastard, had he headed towards the location of the SS-rank monsters. If he could rope in the Achates City Guards as well, then it would likely improve his odds. What a cop-out.

“Yoohyun-ah, don’t worry about mana.”

“But this world’s–”

“Hyung has a ton of mana potions. I can buy them from the Point Shop, too. So go all out on using your Skills.”

Hyung will generously pour all of the mana potions I’d so assiduously saved out for you. I’d like it if I could cast the Attack Skill 2x Share on you too, but regrettably, I’d used it on that damned guy already.

Another building passed by below. As he stopped on top of a desolate half-crumbling building, the grotesque figure of a monster came into full view.

A monster with scales tantamount to SS-grade armor covering its body. Not far away, what looked to be monsters resembling a gigantic serpent and bear were surrounded by Achates Guards as well. All three seemed to have sustained little to no damage. It seemed that, as Guards below S-rank, the most they could do was throw themselves at the problem in the hopes of buying some time.

And over on the far side, on a building located near the serpent, that Sigma bastard was standing. As though telling us to draw closer, he showed us a smile. That it resembled a certain nugu-ssi(2) only made my mood worsen further.

“Be careful, hyung.”

“Hold on a sec, Yoohyun-ah.”

Stopping Yoohyunie, who had been about to rush forward towards Sigma, I took out an Item. ‘Over Here(SS)’.

“Let’s start things off with a bang, first.”

Cleaning up the Achates and Solemnis Guards hanging around would make things go smoother later. I aimed the pistol that was approximately double my current body at the place where that Sigma bastard was. 반짝, the muzzle of the gun twinkled briefly. It wasn’t that anything had been fired from the gun. With that signal, having designated the location, a brief moment later.

구그긍–

Something appeared from above, in the sky above Sigma and the giant serpent monster. The round object, which had plummeted to the ground in a blink.

콰아아앙–!!

Exploded. Light, as blinding as the rays of the dawning sun, burst outwards, spiking as both a tremendous roar of sound, as well as firepower. Everything in the surroundings was wiped clear in an instant. A faint breeze and a sense of heat reached even where we were, despite the considerable distance.

An Item that would drop an SS-grade bomb at the indicated location, up to three uses.

- 샤아아!

- 쿠워어어!

The monsters howled raucously. The snake, its body mottled with burns from having been bombarded dead-on, writhed violently. Each time it did so, spurts of venom, as well as a miasmic aura, spilled into its surroundings. Even before the heat from the detonation had settled, Yoohyunie leapt into the air. It was an element that was incapable of harming even a hair on my dongsaeng’s head, to begin with.

“My poison resistance did drop in grade, but it’s still S-rank! We can just buy an antidote, too!”

As it so happened, the pocket was located right next to his heart. If the venom tried to permeate through, it should be filtered through my resistance first, and subsequently be purified. Since he had SS-rank stats, too, he should be able to hold up to the poison all the better; even with only S-rank poison resistance, an SS-rank serpent’s venom would still be manageable.

But not for Sigma.

Stepping on viridian willow leaves, Yoohyunie’s body breached Sigma’s proximity in a blink. 화르륵, dark blue flames surged. By assimilating the residual heat from the detonation, even with the application of a small amount of mana, they surged and raged wildly.

Neither did Sigma stay still. Apparently having replenished his mana in the meanwhile, golden currents of electricity enveloped him in a spectacular display. As his chain wove around him in a long slithering movement.

“Irin!”

As Yoohyunie’s command fell, an enormous crimson mass lurched forward from behind Sigma. Irin, having taken the form of an imugi, while cloaked in blue flames, stretched fangs and talons towards Sigma.

카가각, immediately after the chains moved to rebuffed the horned dragon’s attack–without letting the window of opportunity slip by, Yoohyunie lunged at Sigma’s back.

The blade held in Yoohyunie’s hand swung in an arc. Lightning and fire mixed together, devouring the other. Clothes tearing in a long line, Sigma extricated his body through a barely discernible lapse in guard between Irin and Yoohyunie. But that was where the serpent happened to be. An SS-rank monster that’d had its body partly melted away, brimming with poison.

- 시���익!

Flicking its crimson tongue, the serpent stretched its jaws wide open. Sigma, who had been caught up in the miasma, grimaced slightly; the other end of the chain that was blocking Irin shot out, and.

콰득!

Pierced through the serpent’s head. In a smooth movement, by treading on the chain, Sigma vaulted up to the top of the serpent’s head. As though he’d been anticipating Yoohyunie’s pursuit, by jerking on the chain, he impelled the serpent to spit its venom at him.

- 키익!

Mad with pain, the serpent sprayed a particularly viscous batch of poison. Before it could come in contact with Yoohyunie’s body, Irin opened his mouth, sending a billow of flames forth.

콰과과과, burning through the venom in a instant, the Breath of blue flames swallowed up the serpent’s head. Subject to flames that bore infernally high temperatures, the serpent perished without being able to make a sound. As the serpent’s head–burnt to an indistinguishable, charred state–toppled to the ground, a bundle of points blinked into existence.

“Yoohyun-ah, grab the Points!”

The Points I saw were of a far lower number than with the SS-rank monsters from before. A nod towards the acknowledgement of the hardships I’d gone to to pull off the bombings, then.

Sigma had already retreated further without even a single scrap of cloth catching fire, however. Tch, how agile. That guy must have the battle foresight too, after all. But even so, seemingly having been affected by the miasma, his coloring had turned slightly pale.

Apparently having used up a significant amount of his strength, Irin returned to the form of a crimson salamander and approached my side. Just when he was about to launch another attack on Sigma.

타다다다다–!

The sounds of a helicopter could be heard. Was it one of Solemnis’ helicopters? Wasn’t going so far as to mobilize even a helicopter cheating!

“Yoohyun-ah, be careful! There are some larger weapons that use up a lot of mana, that are capable of producing S-rank attacks or higher!”

Nodding his head, Yoohyunie used the hand not holding onto his sword to draw a sniper rifle out of his inventory. Thinking to use a sniper rifle to take on a military-use helicopter was a preposterous notion–but when it was an Item in the hands of an SS-rank Guard that was in question, that was a different story. The rifle was leveled at the helicopter, and.

덜컹.

The side of the hulking helicopter slid open. I was wondering whether a weapon would be pointed outside, but what revealed itself ended up being.

부와아앙–

A giant motorbike, roaring noisily. Three sets of bikes dropped out of the helicopter. The bike that was at the fore amongst them had a lance protruding in front. Crimson strands of hair streamed through the air under the moonlight.

“Ho, you bastards! Lanchaea’s Lambda has arrived!”

Upon touching down on the ground, along with a boisterous roar, the bike accelerated in an instant. Reaching an incredible speed through what was most certainly the work of a Skill, the bike collided with the bear-shaped monster. The moment the tip of the lance came into contact, the hide that had been as durable as steel plates crumpled alongside the spearpoint, shredding as though reduced to so much tissue paper.

And soon thereafter–with the sound of a sack of water bursting open, the bear’s body quite literally shattered into infinitesimal fragments.

끼이익, with a long screech of tires against pavement, the bike came to a stop; Lambda, who had eliminated the SS-rank monster in a flash, hefted the lance upright. Displaying a smile, she waved her hand in our direction.

“Hi there, young master!”

It hardly needed lengthy deliberation. It was Moon Hyuna.

-----

(1) 꼬리 무는 개 lit. ‘dog who bites [the] tail’ where tail→trace/trail→dog ‘on the hunt/chasing trail’

(2) 누구(nugu) = ‘who?’ → ‘a certain someone-ssi’

tumblr finally got around to un-shadowbanning the blog, so moving things back here )b

+(Q&A)

Q) i’m a big fan of the willow leaves Skill, and because i don’t think i recall seeing an instance of a physical attack that uses only the willow leaves: is it that, typically, its true form lacks substance, like a hologram, or is it that it does have a physical presence, but is unable to achieve significant force?

A) the usual form is similar to a hologram. expending a minimal amount of mana, it’s merely shaped into the ‘framework’ that resembles willow leaves. as a result, even when countless willow leaves are created, the amount of mana consumed is on the lower end. it’s typically used only to obscure sight, but as that mana is han yoohyun’s, han yoohyun is capable of traversing across them. this is achieved by reinforcing just the willow leaves being stepped on by han yoohyun with an increased amount of mana, the very instant he steps on them; exceptional mana control is required to sustain the flow, lest it be interrupted. it can be used in a variety of different ways, but as the willow leaves are numerous in count, it can be difficult to find an opportunity to use it in the first place^^ lifting another person or an object with them should be feasible as well, but it would require a far greater amount of mana and magical energy in return; and should a clash with the other’s magical energy occur, unable to provide continued support, they may end up being dropped as a consequence.

+(Q&A)

Q) you’d mentioned before that sung hyunjae would occasionally go fishing, and that song taewon, han yoojin, and kang soyoung had accompanied him prior; did those three enjoy fishing with sung hyunjae as well, though?? and why did sung hyunjae want to go fishing with these individuals in particular?

A) kang soyoung shuddered in revulsion. with her boss, she’d rather not do anything other than Dungeon raids^^ meanwhile, for song taewon, fishing is an activity well-suited to him. to be precise, what he enjoys is quietly casting the fishing line while hoping that none of the fish will bite. if the occasion ever arose where he could go on a casual fishing trip with han yoojin, he would probably take well to fishing too. he’d likely complain upon seeing sung hyunjae doing well, or run interference to entertain himself. when he fails to catch very many fish, he’ll probably joke at sung hyunjae to try zapping them with a bit of electricity. electrofishing is illegal, everyone^^ in kang soyoung’s case, she happened to get caught up in things as a casualty, while in han yoojin and song taewon’s case, it’s because sung hyunjae wished to share his hobby with them. with those two people, he wishes to be able to do an assortment of activities together.

+(Q&A)

Q) i was curious whether the reason sung hyunjae doesn’t eat bread crusts is because it’s a metaphor as it relates to sung hyunjae’s narrative, or if it’s simply a trait indicative of sung hyunjae’s pickiness!

A) typically, the trait goes hand-in-hand with the intended metaphor. it’s a longstanding habit of his ^^

※

+(Q&A)

Q) the small yoojinie that sung hyunjae took with him in the epilogue, how does his culinary preferences pan out? in contrast to the yoojinie who refused to acknowledge his preference for sweets, will he come to like sugary/sweet foods as well? or, does he end up taking after sung hyunjae and/or the elder’s food preferences? does he eat bread crusts? if he happens to show signs of 편식(picky eating), how would the elder and sung hyunjae respond??

A) he’s still in his early years yet, and possesses an ordinary preference for snacks ^^ considering his state as a child, there should be a high possibility that he will learn to like the kinds of foods that he becomes exposed to in his environment. it may be that he comes to like some foods that don’t even exist on earth. from the perspective of a young child, sung hyunjae would likely come off as an immensely cool and strong adult. when he sees that kind of grownup avoiding eating bread crusts, wouldn’t he end up thinking so you shouldn’t eat that part, huh. it might be that he ends up assuming that cutting off the bread crusts is a grown-up thing to do. assuming the young chaos doesn’t intervene, that is. both of them veer towards thinking if i don’t eat the things i don’t like, so what. as the young chaos had lived according to his whims as well, he’s the type to just leave things be so long as there’s no outstanding problems, and sung hyunjae would probably either locate or create various ingredients and foods with a similar enough nutritional value. but, of course, since there’s no substitute [for one’s diet], if it began to affect his health, then they would endeavor to address his picky eating.

[sfstranslations]

UPDATE: The S-Ranks That I Raised (401)

“If I’m being honest with you, I can’t guarantee that we’ll be able to bring you out of here.”

Read Chapter 401: Sunset (5) now!

Request access to the My S-Ranks translations by sending us your email through our contact form.

[sfstranslations]

UPDATE: The S-Ranks That I Raised (395)

The bird who soundlessly folded her white-feathered wings while predicting the future slipped into a world on the verge of destruction.

Read Chapter 395: Prophet (3) now!

Request access to the My S-Ranks translations by sending us your email through our contact form.

[sfstranslations]

UPDATE: The S-Ranks That I Raised (385)

“If we’re speaking of how often we’ve met, Han Yoojin, then you’re higher on the list than Han Yoohyun.” “…What?”

Read Chapter 385: New Dungeon (4) now!

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[sfstranslations]

UPDATE: The S-Ranks That I Raised (393)

“But does he really not remember me?” “Huh?” “Yoojin-ie ahjussi, I mean.”

Read Chapter 393: Prophet (1) now!

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[sfstranslations]

UPDATE: The S-Ranks That I Raised (384)

If the Sung Hyunjae here happened to possess even a portion of the memories of the Sung Hyunjae after the regression…

Read Chapter 384: New Dungeon (3) now!

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[sfstranslations]

UPDATE: The S-Ranks That I Raised (386)

Hundreds of strands of moonlight. A portion of them had changed into chains, and a portion had stayed as rays of light. Those were connected to Sung Hyunjae’s body. Like… a puppet’s strings.

Read Chapter 386: New Dungeon (5) now!

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[sfstranslations]

UPDATE: The S-Ranks That I Raised (402)

Yoohyun-ie looked helplessly between the me he had grabbed and the me some distance away. I was sorry for my brother, but if Yoohyun-ie hadn’t come, I would’ve grabbed that fucker’s hair and ripped it out.

Read Chapter 402: Sunset (6) now!

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[sfstranslations]

UPDATE: The S-Ranks That I Raised (399)

“Almost two hours is plenty. Did they deliberately make the sun set slowly?”

Read Chapter 399: Sunset (3) now!

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[sfstranslations]

UPDATE: The S-Ranks That I Raised (394)

“It’s my business, so how does it not matter if I don’t know? I asked you why my kids fought! And just what- what happened to me?”

Read Chapter 394: Prophet (2) now!

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[dbgdbw]

229화

솔렘니스 방위청 (2)

Solemnis Defense Administration (2)

I’d already surmised that, when I opened my eyes, it probably wouldn’t be to a pleasant state. When I recounted all the things I’d done, there obviously wasn’t a reason why I should be shown the hospitality ordinarily afforded for guests.

Even so.

“...isn’t this way too uncalled for.”

When I’m but a frail C-rank. For starters, both of my arms had been tightly fastened behind my back. But rather than a stranglehold, what felt like a wide leather strap seemed to have been wound snugly around several times. On top of that, my hands had been further swaddled by mitten-esque restraints.

Ergo, I couldn’t even lift a finger.

At the very least, my legs had been restrained separately. Not by metal chains, but long leather cords that were connected to the bed. Because a similar tether was attached to my neck, I felt like I’d become a psychiatric patient on suicide watch. The bed was padded incredibly softly, so as to leave no leeway for me to injure myself, too. Well, since I’d tried to hasten towards my death right before that Sigma bastard’s nose, it wasn’t too off the mark, I supposed.

I’d been stripped of all my Items, and had been placed into plain, ordinary clothes. Only the earrings had been left as-is. Was it because it was a magic stat-buffer with a barrier Skill, maybe. 

“Isn’t that right, the A-rank-ssi over there. What unwarranted treatment, and to a C-rank without even an attack Skill.”

I tossed a remark over to the A-rank that was guarding me, but there was no answer. It was probably to prevent me from accessing my inventory, but wasn’t this going overboard still. Didn’t this place have inventory-locking cuffs?

I flexed my arms a bit, but they didn’t budge. Was it an Item, or that it was made of Dungeon par… Ah, right, this place didn’t have Dungeons. So it would be made of monster parts. At any rate, despite not being made of metal, it was proving to be immensely sturdy.

Thankfully, at least having been thrown on top of the bed and not the floor, I pushed my body up to sit upright. In this state, I wouldn’t even be able to attempt an escape.

‘And I won’t be able to just play dead. Will I have to play nice for the time being, then.’

I’d already installed the disk, so let me go already, won’t you. I need to go to be with my dongsaeng, please. Even convicted criminals are allowed family visitation, aren’t they.

Just then, the door opened, and a familiar face entered. Seeing the way the A-ranks immediately snapped to attention with a salute, it was almost like I was back in the army. Since it was the City Defense Administration, I supposed it was the equivalent of the army. Though it seemed terribly ill-matched with the Sung Hyunjae that I knew. …no, lounging at the top as a military commander, that seemed pretty feasible. Or maybe a dictator. 

“Despite being an SS-rank, you’re so unable to handle a lone C-rank that I needed to be restrained like this? You’re certainly much more timid than I’d assumed.”

Sigma approached me. They really looked almost identical, was it honestly not the real one. Since I’d already become a captive anyway, I tried using the Deadly Hatchling Class’s Teacher Skill on him. When I did so,

[ Skill cannot be used on target! ]

A message window popped up. Abruptly, I felt myself deflate. I’d still remained hopeful, even so, but it really wasn’t him. Sung Hyunjae, this damn guy, where had he gone and what the hell was he doing? Had he even made it in here, actually. Who knew if he’d ended up getting bounced off to some weird place instead, after being the sole one–yet again–to kick up a fuss during the process, from his delicate sensibilities getting triggered.

Though, if Sung Hyunjae did appear here, that would at least be pretty funny. If he were to come upon someone who had the same face, Skills, and even weapons as himself, no matter how dull he might find the world to be, he’d be bound to find it a real fucking riot, right. I really wanted to try setting them up with each other.

“Again, growing disappointed over something on your own.”

“...pardon?”

“As though you’d expected something of me, only to be disappointed. During that first meeting, too.”

At his words, my conscience prickled. Had I been too overt about comparing him to Sung Hyunjae. 

“Ah, that’s. Because Sigma-nim has been so different from what I’d heard. As you’ve been so much more amiable, kindly, and magnanimous, I thought you might be the kind of great figure that would take pity on a wretched C-rank, and let him go, you see.”

“This, without even so much as knowing my name, do you mean.”

“...it wouldn’t be your real name anyway, right. Sigma-ssi.”

“Sung Hyunjae.”

…I ended up twitching reflexively. His eyes curving, the bastard looked down at me. 

“I didn’t think my face was of a caliber that would allow it to be mistaken for another’s.”

“Really quite full of yourself, aren’t you. It’s just a fact that, at any given point, there will be at least three people in the world who resemble you quite a bit. While I can’t say that the Sung Hyunjae-ssi I know has a pleasant personality, either, he’s at least not the type to do something like haul off and kick a random passer-by. So it is a a case of mistaken identity. As it was simply a momentary blunder on my part, kindly piss off.”

“So the conclusion is, a refusal to talk. You’re close with that Sung Hyunjae character? A friend?”

“There’s no reason for me to divulge anything to begin with. You’re certainly being inordinately invested in another’s interpersonal relationships. Whoever I might choose to meet with, I don’t see how that’s any of your concern.”

The A-ranks shot furtive glances over at me. They all appeared to be quite taken aback. Who did that C-rank think he was, having the gall to make jabs like that, was probably what they were thinking. Though, if Sigma got pissed off enough to go chop~ with my head, that would actually work out quite nicely for me. But he wasn’t the type to do something like that, of course.

“Though I do prefer those who know how to keep their silence.”

서걱, the leather straps were carved away in an instant. The movement was almost too quick for me to even catch. Then, the cord that had been connected to my neck was ruthlessly jerked forward.

“Really, gkh, treating someone like a dog, huh!”

Subject to this kind of treatment, why even live. Even if this wasn’t my first time encountering something like this, because I’d been so encircled by people who liked me lately, it made the sting feel more pronounced. 

The door opened, and I was dragged away just like that. The hallway was on the wider side. The ceiling was high above as well. I could spot surveillance cameras installed at regular intervals. Outside of those, there didn’t seem to be any other security measures. Seeing as how they’d stationed an A-rank to act as my guard, this place was likely swarming with high-rank Hunters, so I could see how that might be the case.

“You could at least divulge where we’re going, no? Is this place actually the City Defense Administration building?”

“Yes.”

“Then, do introduce the place at least. Judging from the look of things, it seems that I'll likely be involuntarily extending my stay here for a while, or possibly even longer, so I should know what I need to know to be able to make my way around, at the very least.”

At my words, Sigma stopped walking and turned back to look at me.

“Like this?”

”You were hardly intending to unbind me to begin with, I should think.”

Was there something like an armory. The actually prized items would likely be protected in inventories, but you never knew. Yoohyunie had a safe in his residence in Haeyeon Guild, too. 

I walked forward until I hit the end of my rope, then turned to look back. When I jerked my chin as if to indicate what are you doing, instead of coming over, Sigma’s stalled steps resumed once more. 

“Are there any restricted areas, or the like? I’d like to know how the security system functions, as well.”

“Your question is too blatant regarding your intentions, is it not.”

“And what could you possibly fear, when I’ve even been bound so. Who knows, perhaps if I judge there to be a great enough potential for profit, I may yet sing obediently enough. I may not look it, but I’m quite avaricious, you see. How do you do~ Is there perhaps something like an armory nearby?”

The A-rank that had been standing in front of the elevator took one look at us and froze. With an expression that broadcasted that they didn’t know what to say, they looked back and forth between me and Sigma. 

“That’s……”

“Could you press that button for me? As you can see, I’m currently like this, so.”

With a dazed face, the A-rank pressed the button. So the elevators bore similarities to ours. Usually, the important things tended to be kept belowgrounds. I contemplated asking them again, but then simply lifted my foot to press the button for the very bottom floor. The elevator rapidly descended. Please do not use your feet to press buttons that others will also use. So long as you weren’t restricted as I’d been, that is.

When the door opened, two armed A-ranks standing guard could be seen. The hallway that extended beyond was partitioned off by what looked to be a thick glass door. 

“Hello, kindly pardon the intrusion. Could you open the door, please?”

When I spoke while standing in front of the glass door, the A-rank, flustered, looked to Sigma to monitor his response.

“Open it.”

At the short command, the door swiftly opened. A SS-rank hall pass, essentially. Worked superbly.

I walked down the hallway. I didn’t know where I was going, but when I came across a fork in the path, I would orient myself towards the side under stricter surveillance. My hall pass followed along behind me without any complaints. By pushing him forward every time I encountered a snag, the path ahead opened up quite readily. SS-rank indeed. 

The final door was even guarded by an S-rank. Where might this place be. When I gestured at my hall pass with my eyes, the door easily fell open this time, too.

“...could ask, what in the world you might be doing?”

Unlike the A-ranks, who had only regarded us with fretful eyes, the S-rank inquired of him directly. Sigma answered lightly.

“Conducting a stroll.”

“Isn’t that a bit much, honestly. I’m not a dog, alright?”

“Then shall we turn back?”

“Woof woof.”

What ‘turn back’, after managing to get all the way here. It seemed like just yesterday that I’d heard ‘papa’ coming from that son of a bitch, and now the bastard that would be the spitting image of his son was treating me as a dog. Aigo, it was just my luck.

Even as I complained, I quickly stepped inside. Moving past the triple-reinforced door, into the innermost space. The expansive grounds were flooded with a soft, gently ebbing bluish light. 

Mana Hole. 

The moment I saw the light that spilled over from the deep cistern, there was something that floated across my mind.

The Third Source, the deepest spring. 

That the things I had seen in Diarma’s memories had a relation to the Mana Hole, the feeling occurred to me. Was this place the Third Source’s world. Rather than our world, which was the Fifth.

…not that it really mattered. And it was an artificial world, created within a Dungeon, anyway.

The area around the Mana Hole was teeming with unknown machines. The people operating the machines extended greetings towards Sigma, while regarding me strangely. 

“Does this place not have any bulletins, or something? Like a map. When do you folks take lunch? Would it be lunch, actually. As I don’t have a watch, you see.”

“There’s time left yet till lunch, and so.”

Sigma began walking. His destination was one of the rooms that had the Mana Hole at its center. There was some kind of rune inscribed onto the floor of the room, and in the center, there was an operating table where someone could be restrained.

Instinctively, I began to back away. Hey, hold on.

“What’re you–”

“Begin preparations for the engraving procedure.”

Sigma said, pressing a button on the wall, and a B-rank Awakened entered soon afterwards. Even though they were a B-rank, their mana reserve bank seemed to be quite sizeable. Engraving, he’d said?

“...I’d assumed it had already been done while I’d been unconscious.”

“The procedure cannot be completed without the subject being conscious. As one’s flow of mana comes to a near standstill while unconscious, establishing a connection with the seal is difficult. It’s owing to this, that mishaps where Skills are used while sleepwalking do not happen.”

The B-rank kindly explained. I see. This world was certainly far more advanced in its Awakened research. Soon, another B-rank Awakened entered while pushing a cart. Ah, there seemed to be a syringe, and what looked like an IV drip too. 

“Could you undo these restraints?”

The B-rank asked, and the straps that had been binding my arms fell away. My hands and arms were liberated once more. The moment I became able to move my hands, I immediately activated a flare. 

“AckI!”

“Ugk!”

Both B-ranks staggered in place at the soundless flash of an eye-searing light. Since escaping any amount of distance was impossible with just the flare, I took out a dagger instead. To be honest, I was reluctant about stabbing a knife into my own neck, and that was why I’d tried to arrange to be killed by a monster instead. Even if it wasn’t really dying, it was still unpleasant business.

But, right after I’d managed to get the knife in my hand. 

턱, my wrist was caught. And then, my arm was mercilessly twisted backwards. 툭, the dagger fell to the floor.

“It hurts! Are SS-rank eyeballs capable of tanking flares too, then!”

I’d thought he’d at least flinch momentarily. Holding me down on top of the operating table, Sigma ripped away the collar wrapped around my neck.

“So your curse resistance is above S-rank as well. Though it’s an A-rank inventory locking collar, it held no effect.”

…so I’d had an inventory locking Item stuck on me, huh. One of the B-ranks forced me flat on my stomach on the operating table before restraining me again, and the other B-rank picked up the syringe that had been dropped before taking up another one in their hand. 

“This is a numbing agent. It will likely sting a bit.”

Gripping my arm, the B-rank began to inject its contents. But even if you said it was a painkiller.

“Wait, I have poison resis–ack!”

A scream tore out on its own. The pain was excruciating, as though the discs of my spine were being ripped out. It was agonizing enough that tears blurred my eyes.

“The numbing effect should have taken place immediately……?”

“Poison resistance, I have poison resistance! S-rank!”

When I howled at them, the B-rank reacted with flustered shock. That Sigma bastard, who had been observing from a few feet away, opened his mouth.

“Keep going.”

“But the pain will be quite substantial.”

“The fault lies with the one who won’t deign to lower their resistance Skill level.”

Fault, this mother–. A cold sensation touched with my nape again, and my spine began to burn again. 

“I can’t control it! I can’t, I said!”

I shrieked that, because my stats were low compared to the Skill level, and because it wasn’t even my natural affinity, that I couldn’t control it, punctuated by screams. Towards the end, it may have degenerated into cursing at them to at least kill me with dignity. 

“Sigma-nim, it appears that forcing a connection will be too dangerous, after all. At stat C-rank, without the numbing agent and the mana neutralizer, he will be unable to withstand the procedure.”

“Is what they’re saying, C-rank.”

The son of a bitch said, seizing my head and forcing it up so our eyes would meet. I couldn’t do it, so the hell did you want from me. I wasn’t sure if, having fallen to S-rank now, I’d still be able to toggle the resistance Skill off–but I would also rather suffer a miserable death than turn it off. When they probably had all sorts of drugs at their disposal, like hell I’d be crazy enough to turn off my poison resistance. They probably had concoctions like truth serums in spades, no doubt.

If the fact that I could resurrect after dying ended up getting out, then I’d really have forfeited any chance at escaping. 

“I don’t ever want to see even a hint of your fucking mug again, so don’t you dare show up at my funeral.”

That bastard Sigma laughed. Then he turned to look at the B-rank.

“A solution?”

“In order to attempt an engravement with the poison resistance set at S-rank, the enlistment of cooperation from Medsang City will be necessary.”

“See that the request is submitted.”

With the issue of the high-rank healer too, was Medsang City a place that specialized in healer or support-types, then. The moment I was freed from the operating table, with no strength left in my legs, 풀석, I collapsed in a heap. I groped at the back of my neck, but perhaps because the procedure had been aborted partway through, I couldn’t feel any sensation at all yet. 

“...whether it’s the protection one or the mana one, is this really so necessary?”

“Without a corresponding Mana Hole mark, one’s mana recharging ability is greatly reduced. Looking at just the rate at which it charges, there is over a tenfold difference.”

Though it seemed like there might be another reason besides that one, too. But neither Sigma nor the B-ranks said anything further. 

As we were being told that it would take several days before assistance could arrive from Medsang.

“Surely you aren’t planning on saying to leave me hogtied like this the whole while till then, are you. Aren’t there any S-ranked inventory locking Items? Or, we could draw up a contract. If I use my inventory, then my curse resistance Skill level drops a rank, something like that. I can’t imagine that an S-rank cursed contract wouldn’t exist, so.”

Surprisingly, Sigma easily granted my request to please be allowed to live with human rights. Of course, I was tested to verify that my curse resistance was indeed at S-rank, and an inventory restricting Item was secured around my neck. It included a built-in tracking feature as well.

My limbs had found freedom, but I still had constant surveillance posted on me. The A-rank that had followed me into the room I’d been guided to after lunch monitored me without taking their eyes off of me at all. 

‘Though the camouflaging Skill should be able to fool the eyes of an A-rank easily enough.’

The moment I used the Skill, they would probably try to pinpoint my location to capture me. And because the line was still connected to my neck, even if I disappeared from sight, all they would have to do was yank on it to reel me in right along. Though the length was different from before, and allowed me to at least roam around the room without problem. 

The only things in the room were a coffee table, a kitchen table, and a TV. There was an attached bathroom as well. Would they follow me in there as well. 

“I’ll be in your care for the next while~”

I extended a greeting, but the A-rank only regarded me without replying. Making a show of being disappointed, I sprawled out on the bed. After staring back at the A-rank for a while, I turned on the TV.

Time meandered by, and dinner came and went with a heartily received meal. The A-rank that had taken up the next shift in the meantime was now wearing the same bored expression, too. The prisoner in question was an un-geared C-rank, whose inventory had also been locked. Escaping with an A-rank as my adversary was effectively impossible. Because that was an obvious fact, no matter how well-trained the guard, it was inevitable that a slip in their vigilance would still occur. 

Moreover, because the surveillance cameras were running as well, the moment a problem happened, reinforcements would come running immediately.

‘Even from my vantage point, the situation really does seem hopeless.’

Polishing off the cookie that had been included as dessert, I brushed the crumbs from my hands over the side of the bed. At the very least, with only one surveillance camera, a blind spot did exist.

Casually shifting my body, I turned to lay down while facing the wall. I brought the covers up to about my shoulders as well. Only the sounds from the TV broke the silence.

Yeah, I wouldn’t be able to make a break for it while empty-handed. But, if it so happened that I wasn’t empty-handed.

‘Point Store.’

[ ◐▼◐ || Welcome to! Point Store! || ◑△◑ ]

A window that was visible only to my eyes popped up. A store that carried every type of weapon, as well as a whole range of assorted odds and ends in Items. And the amount of points I had was.

[ 2,210,566P]

With much thanks to that accursed Sigma-nim. Even if I had to use all two million points to give him a proper fucking ove… Well, using all of it seemed a shame, so maybe one million… Hmm, with a baseline of five hundred thousand, and, depending on the situation, using up to a max cap of a million–I’ll stage a clean breakout.

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next update will be an excerpt from geunseo’s afterword → ch231