Chapter 787: Fog and Sea and Memory (1)
“Yuhyun’s skills are…”
I trailed off and looked at Seong Hyunjae. Chief Song was a public official, and Liette was a foreign Hunter with no guild affiliation, so I could let them slide, but Seong Hyunjae was the Guild Leader of Sesung. On top of that, after the regression, Sesung was still a major guild based in Korea. Saying Yuhyun’s stats out loud in front of him made me hesitate.
“Should I cover my ears?”
“No, it’s not that.”
“Han Yujin said he would protect me, so it’s fine.”
Seong Hyunjae said something ridiculous. I’m F–rank, and you’re S–rank, sir. When I gave him an unconvinced look, Seong Hyunjae put on an expression like he had been wounded.
“To think the image of Han Yujin smiling as he told me he would protect me from the young master, that I could hide behind his back, remains so vivid before my eyes…”
“Wh–what nonsense are you talking about?”
There were limits to jokes. He was saying something that made absolutely no sense! Seong Hyunjae dabbed at invisible tears with the tips of his fingers. Your eyes are completely dry, you know? He had always said weird things often enough, but this was completely different from before. He used to feel much more overbearing, so what was this fake crying… Was this actually his real taste? Which side of him was the real one?
“Chief Song, I think the Sesung Guild Leader is acting a little strange. Since I don’t have my memories, he keeps saying nonsense.”
At my words, Chief Song looked back and forth between Seong Hyunjae and me with a grave expression before he opened his mouth.
“If it was you, Mr. Han Yujin… you might have said something like that.”
“…Excuse me?”
“That’s right. You’re tougher than you think~.”
No, even if I was tough, I didn’t think I’d grab the hand of an S–rank who was a whole head taller than me and say, I’ll protect you–! But Chief Song wasn’t the kind of person who would lie. Was it true? I protected Seong Hyunjae? I clutched at my head, but what came to mind was…
‘I’ll have to hide behind Han Yujin quickly.’
Seong Hyunjae’s voice saying that, and the sound of my own laughter, faintly surfaced. I was saying, If I play along with that, it would be pretty funny. What was this? Han Yujin, you…
‘Did turning back time spin my head around too?’
What the hell kind of crazy things had I been doing? Wait, no way. I stopped holding my head and whipped around to look at Chief Song.
“Did I, by any chance, steal your place, Chief Song? You were originally close to the Sesung Guild Leader, weren’t you? But then I butted in and… if that’s what happened, I’m sorry! I must have lost my mind!”
“No, that is not the case. To begin with, Hunter Seong Hyunjae and I are not that close.”
Seong Hyunjae took a handkerchief out of his inventory with the expression of a tragic heroine.
“Mr. Han Yujin and I are sharing a certain kind of risk.”
“Sharing risk?”
“As Hunter Seong Hyunjae began to take interest in you as well, Mr. Han Yujin, my burden lessened. I am grateful for that, and I also feel sorry.”
…Ah. Had I maybe been drawing Seong Hyunjae’s aggro for Chief Song’s sake? While protecting my kids at the same time. Thank goodness. It looked like I hadn’t gone that insane after all.
“And since he is someone who keeps his promises, it should be all right for you to speak about Hunter Han Yuhyun.”
It was true that he wasn’t the kind of person who made promises he couldn’t keep and called it good enough. Still, I held out my pinky to make it clear. If I used a contract, with Seong Hyunjae’s ability, he would somehow find a way to break it. Something ordinary like this would probably be more effective.
“Please promise that you will not leak any information about my younger brother, Han Yuhyun, and that you will not use it, publicly or privately.”
Seong Hyunjae obediently extended his finger and hooked it with mine.
“I promise.”
“Thank you. What the twenty–one–year–old Yuhyun has is the Fragment of the First Flame. It’s a piece of the first fire that ever appeared, and the higher his assimilation rate becomes, the more his stats rise. And right now…”
No matter where I looked, red flames were flickering everywhere.
“I assume his assimilation rate has risen considerably. His fire–attribute skills have probably gotten at least a twofold buff. The range of his domain skill must have expanded as well. If every place currently burning is being treated as within his range…”
A short sigh slipped out on its own.
“Han Yuhyun’s current stats are estimated to be at least SS–rank.”
He had already been in the upper tier of S–rank, so for all I knew, he might have gotten close to SSS–rank.
“On top of that, the Ruler’s Sword is SSS–rank now. It went up one rank.”
Seol had raised its grade. Even the twenty–six–year–old Yuhyun probably didn’t have an SSS–rank sword, but in exchange, he could use Blade–Devourer, which raised the rank of weapons. His stats had also originally been higher, so he would have been able to hold out even with an SS–rank sword. But we were different. Seong Hyunjae and Liette both had SS–rank weapons at best, and their stats were lower too.
“If a weapon clashes directly against the Ruler’s Sword, nine times out of ten, it’ll break. And, Iryn.”
–Yeah, hyung.
“If Yuhyun calls you, you have to go to him, right?”
Iryn hesitated, then nodded.
–Iryn is Yuhyun’s spirit, after all. But the fire Yuhyun is using right now is different from Yuhyun’s own. So Iryn won’t be able to use much power either.
That, at least, was a relief. Then.
“Could you go to the twenty–six–year–old Yuhyun? Just check whether he’s all right, please.”
–He’s the same Yuhyun, so I can go! Iryn will stay by Yuhyun’s side!
The red lizard’s form slowly vanished. Iryn also possessed strong fire power, so he should be of some help to Yuhyun while he had been rendered powerless.
“Chief Song, here.”
I took out Silekia’s wing and handed it to Chief Song. Since it had high fire resistance, it would help.
“Even if it’s the First Flame, he hasn’t assimilated completely, so the power of Plunder should work. Please take care of defense.”
“Yes.”
Yuhyun did not seem able to use blue flame right now. Facing the immature First Flame would be better than facing the blue flame that burned his own life and swallowed even the system.
Rumble–. The sky, which had cleared for a moment, darkened again with the storm clouds Yerim had made. The range was narrow. If it spread beyond this area, it would only be pushed back by the intense heat.
“Mister! I’m almost done!”
Yerim shouted loudly. Shaaaa! A roaring sound of water rang out, and a moment later, boom–, an enormous volume of water hammered the ground. The building we were standing on shook from the force of it. I quickly climbed onto the railing and looked toward where the pillar of water had been. The two masses of water had fully merged and were surging enormously, and Yerim, floating above them, raised her hand toward me.
“A magic stone came out!”
Yerim flew toward the rooftop. I quickly took out mana and stamina potions.
“But the color’s murky.”
“You worked hard, Yerim. Hurry and replenish yourself. Are you hungry?”
“No. I should give this to Mister Sesung, right?”
Yerim held out the large but dull–colored magic stone to Seong Hyunjae. Seong Hyunjae accepted it, tilted his head, then handed it back.
“It will be useless to me.”
Was he being picky about quality? As Yerim drained several mana potions in a row, she studied me.
“You remember me, right? You didn’t forget anything?”
“Of course I remember. As for what I’ve forgotten… I’m not sure. Even without the item’s influence, it’s not as if I remember everything. You don’t remember everything from when you were little either, do you?”
“Right! Then is it only Mister Sesung that you especially can’t remember?”
“Mm, probably?”
More precisely, my memories of Seong Hyunjae and Chief Song were heavily weighted toward before the regression. It seemed like the rest of the people hadn’t been erased as much.
‘Could it be related to keyword application too?’
Those two were the only ones not registered as keywords. I had applied keywords not only to Yuhyun, Yerim, and Peace, but also to Noah, Liette, Hyunah, and even Hayul. Since the keywords connected them more strongly to me, maybe my memories of them had been erased less.
[The fire changed direction!]
Hayul sent me the message. Peace also returned right on time. Peace set down a large sack full of items. They were the things I had hidden.
“Thank you. Good job!”
We immediately moved to the nearby Han River. We traveled along with Yerim’s water and climbed onto the observation deck of Dongjak Bridge. The Mermaid Queen’s sea spread wide as it mixed with the Han River. The storm clouds followed us as well. On the opposite side of the sky, smoke was thick. It seemed that not only Yuhyun’s fire, but ordinary fire too, was spreading. Thank goodness this was a dream world.
Beyond the water, I saw fire surging in like a wave. I extended my hand forward. A transparent sphere rose above my open palm. Inside it, glittering particles swirled chaotically, like a snow globe.
[Small Light of the Clan – SSS–Rank
A bead crafted by a certain monarch for the revival of his clan. It strengthens the bonds of those you have accepted and allows you to exert various forms of influence over them.
※Influence increases if a similar skill is currently applied.
※Duration: 30 minutes. Cooldown: 20 days. Can be used immediately at double effect by consuming the item.]
Maybe it was because this had been the achievement reward from catching the King of Predation, who had wanted his species to prosper, and the transcendents’ subordinates; the item I received buffed the people who belonged to me. The particles inside the bead flowed out. They scattered in the air in tiny flecks like sleet. At the same time, I used the Teacher skill.
[Peace++
Park Yerim++
Liette+
Song Taewon
Seong Hyunjae]
Letters visible only to me appeared inside the bead. They were the people the item applied to. Did those plus signs mean my influence increased even further? The names were probably listed in order of keyword application and other feelings toward me. Peace was higher than Yerim. As expected, Seong Hyunjae was at the very bottom.
Then, one after another, all kinds of buffs appeared. Every buff had a base of +100%, and five each could be applied to three people. In other words, I could double Yerim’s magic power or attribute power. On top of that, Yerim had ++ influence, so it could increase up to 120%. It was similar to My Kid Is The Best, but with fewer usage restrictions, and although it was limited to five buffs, it worked on three people at the same time. No wonder it was a higher rank.
And for now, it even had one more effect that was even more useful.
“Peace! You protect me.”
–Krrung!
I climbed onto Peace’s back. He had transformed into an adolescent form smaller than his adult body, making it better for evasion. Now that the instinct of the fire that wanted to devour me had been maximized to the point that even Grace was useless, I had to avoid Yuhyun as much as possible.
Rumble. The few buildings that remained were engulfed in flame and collapsed. The fire was neither black nor blue, simply red, and it struck me as beautiful at a glance, but also chilling. It burned everything it touched as the crimson wave towered high.
“He’s coming!”
Yerim swung her spear. The shawl fluttered with her movement. I immediately applied buffs to Yerim. Water attribute, mana control, magic power, agility, fire resistance. Shaaaa, water rose as if to oppose the fire. Clear and blue, the Mermaid Queen’s sea lifted its head. Butterflies and willow leaves scattered over the raging flames. Yuhyun came into view, both eyes stained red.
“Han Yuhyun!”
Yuhyun’s gaze turned toward me. A gentle smile formed on his face, and.
Thooong–!
Water and fire collided. Chiiiiik! With a sound that tore at the ears, steam erupted like clouds. Water tried to press down like a dragon rising to the sky, but the fire split into countless strands and burrowed through it. Yerim clenched her teeth.
“I can block it, but putting it out is going to be hard!”
“That’s fine! Yerim, you keep blocking the fire and support us!”
The Mermaid Queen’s sea and the Fragment of the First Flame began to mix. Above the pillar, twisted together in red and blue, white clouds surged upward, while hardened remnants fell below like rain. Without even sparing that side a glance, Yuhyun kicked off a willow leaf. I immediately buffed Chief Song.
Strength, agility, defense, Plunder skill enhancement, fire resistance. And the remaining slot for one more person went to.
Ssss–
White particles of light flowing out from the bead scattered toward Yuhyun as he approached at terrifying speed.
[Han Yuhyun+++]
Yuhyun’s name appeared at the very top of the bead. A 130% “debuff,” including influence.
Influence could go in a good direction, but it could go in a bad one too. I used debuff influence on Yuhyun. Agility, strength, magic power, fire attribute, Melted Last Gate. Yuhyun’s speed visibly slowed. Even so, he was still fast. As Yuhyun leaped onto the observation deck in a single breath, Chief Song blocked his path. The Ruler’s Sword, wrapped in red flames, swung down with tremendous force.
Bang!
A fist wreathed in black shadow struck the black sword head–on. Even though his Plunder skill erased the flames and weakened the attack as well, part of the chain on Song Taewon’s gauntlet split apart. Kagagak, the black sword flexed smoothly and dug toward his opponent’s waist. At the same time, Yuhyun’s foot flew toward his opposite side.
Sliiide–
Song Taewon slid as if lying down. With exact timing, Yerim laid down a path of ice, and Liette sent a sword strike from a safe distance. Tungg! While Yuhyun caught the sword strike, Song Taewon’s sliding body reached the end of the observation deck roof. Just as he was about to fall.
Charruruk–
A golden chain caught his foot. Song Taewon, having drastically reduced his body weight, kicked off the chain and launched himself into the air. At the same time, chalang! The chain split into short segments and scattered through the empty air. Song Taewon spun half a turn in midair, almost standing upside down, and stepped hard on the chain again. Below him was Yuhyun.
Song Taewon dropped straight down. The increased weight and acceleration gathered in the fist wrapped in black shadow. Instead of dodging, Yuhyun held his sword horizontally.
Kwaaang–!
A collision like an explosion. Kwaddddeuk, a third of the observation deck was blown away by the aftermath, and Yuhyun, shoved back, regained his balance wrapped in butterflies and willow leaves. Song Taewon was also sent flying all the way to the opposite edge of the observation deck. Seong Hyunjae caught him, and Liette scattered potions.
“At that level, your little brother really does seem about SSS–rank?”
…That was with the debuffs on him. Yuhyun, without so much as a scratch on him, let the Ruler’s Sword hang low. Just when I wondered what he was doing.
Ping, piiing–
Drops of molten metallic liquid flew in from the sea of fire. Blade–Devourer.
‘He burned down this entire area.’
And among everything burning there was the equipment and items I had hidden. Including swords and blades from S–rank to SS–rank. Hmm. How many had there been? Quite a lot.
“I expected this, but it really isn’t going to be easy. For reference, twenty–six, twenty–seven minutes remaining. On the buffs and debuffs.”
“Assuming Hunter Han Yuhyun was going all out, I have a rough sense of it now.”
Chief Song spoke without taking his eyes off Yuhyun.
“I agree that it will not be easy.”
But no matter what, we had to catch him.
[Hyung! I found him!]
At that moment, Park Hayul’s message flew in.
–What is it this time?
A small, round, pale sky–blue jellyfish drifted toward me, swaying gently. Uh…
“Ru Ga Pheya?”
Was that right? And then.
“Stop, Han Yuhyun.”
A blue willow leaf, no longer transparent because of a lack of mana, flew in, and Han Yuhyun, with a pale face and a red lizard perched on his shoulder, spoke to Han Yuhyun.
–TL Notes–
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