The S-Classes That I Raised – Chapter 1

[Regression (1)]

“…Hyung, are you okay?” (TL Note: Tentatively using Hyung instead of Older Brother)

He asked. His guts were spilling out of his side like he’d been torn open, yet he asked if I was okay.

His face, pale but still calm despite being on the verge of death, annoyed me. I sat on the ground and looked up at my younger brother without saying anything.

This guy had been getting in my way at every turn. He was annoyingly good at everything, so I’d heard countless times to just stay put and not drag him down. In the end, I didn’t just hold him back—I ended up breaking him. They weren’t wrong.

But still.

“…Why are you here?”

Even though he’d saved me, my voice came out curt.

Why did you bother coming here? Why not just let me die for my reckless behavior?

We were never close. Whenever we saw each other, it was like a cold wind blew between us. When my leg was shattered, he didn’t even visit me in the hospital. When I asked him to help me fix the leg that would leave me limping for life, he coldly rejected me and kicked me out. Since that day, when he threw money at me and told me to just live off that, we hadn’t exchanged proper words.

At my question, he gave me a bitter smile.

“Why did I come, you ask? Shit.”

Even though I thought he was being ungrateful, I couldn’t help but curse. How many people rely on him, yet he risked his life to save a useless blood relative like me? Crazy bastard.

Since when were we so close? If you died and made the news… damn it, I would just curse at the TV a bit and forget about it.

So why the hell did you save me?

I was angry. Angry at my own pathetic self, and the irritation welled up.

Yeah, I’m always the useless older brother. Even in a situation like this, I’m just a piece of trash filled with childish resentment.

So why couldn’t you just leave me to die in some dungeon corner?

“Listen carefully, hyung.”

He ignored my question and continued.

“Lautitars falls asleep every five hours. If you hide for just one more hour, it’ll go into its sleep state. That’s when you can escape through the entrance. I’ve taken care of all the minor monsters, so as long as you don’t mess with Lautitars, you’ll be safe.”

As he said this, he handed me a small blue stone. It was a gate stone that creates an exit in a closed dungeon. It could only be used near the entrance and was a very rare item, single-use and only for one person.

I tried to act tough and didn’t take the gate stone.

“Forget it. You use it.”

At my words, he laughed.

“I have my own. Though I won’t be needing it.”

…Of course, the strongest Hunter in Korea would have several of these precious gate stones. Reluctantly, I took the gate stone.

Only then did he look away from me and focus on his own injuries. Without his skill’s power, he’d have collapsed long ago from these severe wounds.

“…You have a gate stone, but no elixir?”

“Nope, just small potions, but they won’t do much. Lautitars’ claws carry a powerful curse.”

He laughed again. I couldn’t understand how he could still laugh.

But even his calm demeanor soon reached its limit. His knees buckled, and his body slumped forward. Reflexively, I caught his upper body.

The smell of blood, which I hadn’t noticed until now, filled my nostrils. It was overwhelming.

I thought I was used to the smell of blood from running through dungeons, but this made me want to throw up. Nausea hit me.

I had the urge to push his body away and run.

“…Hey.”

His breath was almost imperceptible.

No response.

He wasn’t even smiling anymore.

“…Are you dead?”

My voice was trembling. It shouldn’t matter to me if this bastard dies or not.

“Han Yuhyun. Are you dead?”

Damn it, this stupid bastard. Even if I make it out alive, all I’ll get is a ton of hate. People will be clamoring to burn the trash who killed his brilliant younger brother.

“Are you screwing with me until the end?”

I muttered helplessly.

Even now, he’s still getting in my way. Now I’ll have to live in hiding. This is beyond messed up.

[The title ‘Nurturer’ activates its effect.
Nurturer’s supplementary skill ? Final Recompense
All of the skills and stats of the awakened ‘Han Yuhyun’ are transferred with double efficiency.
Duration ? 01:00]

A system window confirming his death appeared. It was one of the supplementary skills of my title, where if someone I had given a growth buff to died, their skills and stats would be transferred to me for one hour.

And even doubled.

As power surged through my body, some of his memories also flooded in.

‘My brother is an F-Rank awakened.’

This bastard, even at the end—

‘So I shouldn’t get involved with him.’

Yuhyun had been talking to someone. His voice sounded slightly sad.

‘We’ve already drifted too far apart, but from now on, I need to keep my distance even more. Awakened ones with Hunter qualifications aren’t as protected by the law as ordinary people.’

‘If my brother becomes my weakness, those guys will surely target him.’

…Who the hell are those guys?

‘Damn it, wipe out every last one of them!’

It was when my leg had been ruined. He had been furious. And sad again.

‘No. Tell him it’s impossible to get healer support… It might actually be better that way. Just drive him away… and then maybe, as brothers, I’ll be able to help him without being too involved…’

‘Hyung, I’m sorry.’

‘I’m sorry…’

‘Please don’t enter any more dungeons.’

‘Hyung.’

My brother’s memories choked me. The surroundings were quiet, but his constant cries of ‘Hyung’ rang painfully in my ears. The body in my arms was cold and stiff.

I felt like I was losing my mind.

He screwed me over until the very end. Who are you to protect me? I’m the older brother. I was the one who lost our parents early, dropped out of school, and raised my younger brother.

“Damn it. Do you think I’ll regret this?”

It’s your fault for never saying a word.

I gently laid his now cold body on the ground. His face looked peaceful. Like he was the only one who’d found peace.

“I’m not going to cry for you.”

Why would I cry for a guy who acted selfishly to the end? It would be a waste of tears.

I stood up. When I checked my status window, I saw a plethora of skills that had appeared. All of them were top-tier, and on top of that, they were buffed twofold.

A laugh escaped me.

Just one hour. For my brother’s life, I became the strongest in the world for just one hour.

“Damn it, what am I supposed to do with just an hour?”

Han Yuhyun, the Black Flame Emperor, living for another forty or fifty years would’ve been far more beneficial. Even if he had become an old man, he’d still be many times stronger than me. How could a one-hour, single-use power compare to that?

“Stupid bastard. Damn stupid bastard.”

Tears pricked my eyes at how stupid my brother was. The title of genius was wasted on him. He was the stupidest guy in the world.

“Gigant Shield.”

As I used the skill, a faint golden light enveloped my body. Originally, this shield couldn’t withstand Lautitars’ claws, but with the double buff, it could hold even if I took a direct hit.

“This was all yours anyway. So I’ll get revenge for you.”

I slowly stepped out from the crack in the wall where I had been hiding. In the vast cavern ahead, a giant monster came into view.

Lautitars. Rank 1 Dragonkin. The Venom and Curse Dragon King. It had appeared only twice before, and both times, it was deemed impossible to defeat, with the dungeon closed by stalling for time.

The red dragon with three heads was staring right at me. Of the three heads, the middle one had its eyes burned out. Despite Lautitars’ incredible healing ability, it seemed it couldn’t recover from the wounds inflicted by Yuhyun’s blood flames in such a short time.

Yeah, my brother was amazing. And now, I’m twice as amazing.

Shit. You’re dead.

–TL Notes–
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