The S-Classes That I Raised – Chapter 54

[ Chirp (3) ]

-Screech!

Thud!

The moss monkey’s head cracked open as it fell from the tree. At the same time, the little chirp on my head flapped its wings.

-Chirp chirp! Chirp chirp!

It signaled that the moss monkey I had just killed had a mana stone.

I had already fed it two F-rank mana stones, and since then, every time I killed a monkey with a mana stone, it started chirping at me for more. It seemed like it could sense whether there was a mana stone or not.

“You’re quite the glutton, aren’t you?”

This was the sixth one, and it still wanted more, fluttering around excitedly. Unlike Peace, this little one didn’t even touch meat and only ate mana stones.

-Chirp! Chirp!

“Alright, alright.”

It’s been less than thirty minutes since we met, and it’s already sticking to me and demanding food. Maybe it’s too young to recognize who’s who, just assuming anyone who feeds it is a parent.

The moss monkey’s mana stone was usually located near the back of its neck. As I pulled out a knife and cut through the skin, the little bird on my head started doing a tap dance.

-Chirp chirp chirp! Chirp!

Ugh, blood splattered. Even though I tried to be careful, my hands and sleeves up to my elbows were stained with the monkey’s blood. I’ll have to find a pond and wash up later.

The little chirp had come down to my shoulder by now, and I handed it the mana stone. Although it was small since it was just an F-rank monster’s stone, it was still large enough that I didn’t expect the bird to gulp it down so easily, but it did, swallowing it with effort.

-Chirp!

“You still want more?”

-Chirp!

I couldn’t understand exactly what it was saying, but it didn’t seem full yet. Fine, let’s see how much you can eat.

I combed through the small forest, hunting down more moss monkeys. When raiding a dungeon, it wasn’t necessary to kill all the regular monsters. As long as more than half of them were cleared and the boss monster was defeated, the dungeon would be considered completed. However, the Association recommended wiping out all the monsters whenever possible to stabilize the dungeon for a longer period.

Since they hadn’t developed a technique to accurately gauge dungeon saturation yet, you had to file a report if you left after killing only half the monsters.

Once there were no more signs of moss monkeys, I headed towards the pond. The little chirp, having devoured all the mana stones I’d fed it, seemed to be in a good mood, softly chirping as it hummed.

“If mana stones were normal food, you would’ve exploded by now.”

It had eaten everything I gave it, consuming more than its own body size. Even if it was a mana stone, it had to go through its digestive system, so it seemed to absorb them pretty quickly.

-Chirp chirp chirp~ Chirp!

“You’re such a little glutton.”

This bird is going to be expensive to feed. Even F-rank stones don’t come cheap.

The pond at the edge of the forest was fairly large. Floating in the clear water were what looked like lily pads, and in the middle of the pond, there was a small green island.

-Gurgle…

Sensing something, a giant moss turtle slowly lifted its head from the water. Its long, protruding fangs looked quite menacing.

-Chirp! Chirp! Chirp chirp! Chirp! Chirp!

“…You’re giving me a headache. Calm down.”

As soon as the little chirp saw the turtle, it started going wild. It didn’t seem scared—it looked like it wanted me to kill it. With the moss monkeys, it waited until after I killed them to beg for mana stones, but now, it seemed like that turtle’s mana stone was especially appetizing.

-Chirp chirp chirp!

“Alright, alright.”

I picked up the excited chirp from my head and held it in my arms, worried it might fall off. Meanwhile, the giant turtle slowly swam toward me, parting the water as it approached. That’s good, come closer.

-Roar!

“What’s with the roar?”

Whip!

I wrapped its long neck with Extending Tendrils and,

Thud!

yanked it hard, throwing the giant turtle out of the water and onto the ground. It flailed, flipped over on its back. Without wasting time, I slashed its bent neck with my knife.

-Chirp chirp chirp! Chirp!

“Yeah, yeah. Wait a sec—.”

[Amazing Achievement! Cleared an F-rank dungeon solo with F-rank stats, F-rank attack skills, and fewer than three items!]

…Huh? Where did this achievement message come from…?

[S-rank title, ‘Miracle Rookie,’ granted!]

More windows popped up with various items. But, wait a minute—what’s this?

“Miracle Rookie?”

So, it’s a title you get for solo clearing a dungeon with F-rank stats, F-rank attack skills, and minimal items? Those conditions are insane. Who could possibly get this? At least let people use full gear!

Well, I got it anyway.

‘I guess the system doesn’t count the stats and skills I gained from the Blessing.’

It might be possible for someone else with a special skill or some high-stats equipment to get it, but who would even attempt something like this? If you’re equipped well enough to solo an F-rank dungeon, you’d just go tackle a D-rank dungeon with a team. And anyone who could afford gear like that must be filthy rich. The equipment alone would cost at least a few billion won.

-Chirp chirp! Chirp chirp!

As I stood there dumbfounded, the little chirp started squirming out of my arms, jumping down and flapping towards the giant turtle’s corpse.

-Chirp!

Jeez, this glutton. Now you’ve gotten blood all over your feathers. I quickly slit the turtle’s belly and pulled out the mana stone. Even for an F-rank boss monster, it was quite large. It was about the size of two of my fingers, too big for the little bird to swallow in one go.

-Chirp! Chirp!

“Hold on. I’ll break it up for you.”

-Chirp! Chirp!

The little bird clamped down on my pants leg with its tiny beak when I just held the mana stone without breaking it. Why is this bird so greedy? Clicking my tongue, I brought the mana stone down to its level.

“Look, it’s too big.”

-Chirp!

Delighted by the sight of the mana stone, the bird tried to bite into it. But…

-???

It let out a wheeze as it struggled to swallow the stone whole. Hey, there’s no way that’s going to fit. It’s like trying to thread a camel through the eye of a needle.

“You’re going to choke at this rate. Give it back.”

Worried that it might hurt itself trying to swallow the stone, I pulled it away. The little bird froze in shock and plopped down onto the ground, then suddenly started wailing,

-Chiiiiiiirp! Chirp, chiiiiirp!

It looked up at me, crying like it had just been through the most devastating betrayal. I was caught between being exasperated and finding it cute—where did this little piglet even come from?

I quickly crushed the mana stone into smaller pieces and scattered them in front of it. As soon as I did, it happily began pecking at the fragments, as if it had never cried at all.

After watching the little bird eat for a bit, I opened my status window. There was the new title.

[Miracle Rookie (S)

A remarkable rookie hunter who solo cleared an F-rank dungeon with minimal stats.

Dungeon item rewards doubled.]

…Wow, doubling dungeon rewards? That’s great. Really great. Except I won’t be raiding any dungeons.

‘What’s the point of giving me a title like this when I’m not even going to use it?’

This would be an amazing title for an A-rank hunter at the very least. Especially in an S-rank dungeon—getting double S-rank mana stones, double S-rank items, and double first-clear special rewards would be a massive jackpot.

But giving this kind of title to someone with F-rank stats? Are they messing with me?

‘Even for a low-rank hunter, it’s way better than nothing.’

At the very least, you’d be making twice the income, and it would be a lot easier to find a team with this title. If they’re lucky, they might even get carried through a C-rank dungeon.

Still, I don’t think this title is really worth S-rank.

Maybe one day, if the Blessing skill activates, I’ll find some use for it.

The other items weren’t anything special. Maybe because I cleared the dungeon solo, they were better than usual for an F-rank dungeon, closer to D-rank rewards, but they were all common items.

‘I wonder if I’ll get titles for solo clearing higher-ranked dungeons too.’

It’s tempting. With my current abilities, I could definitely solo a D-rank dungeon. C-rank would be possible, but the size of the area is too large—it would take more than a day or two to clear by myself. Since the Blessing skill’s duration isn’t much longer, I should safely aim for a D-rank.

‘Sorry, Peace, but it looks like I’ll be staying home a bit longer.’

The exclusive pass might be an issue, but it shouldn’t be too hard to get one for a D-rank dungeon. If I can’t, then I’ll just let it go. No harm in trying.

“If you’re done eating, let’s wash up and head home.”

I washed my hands first and then dunked my outer shirt into the water. The blood that had soaked into the fabric slowly spread across the surface and disappeared. It didn’t seem like I’d be able to wash it out completely. It’d be better to just rinse it off and buy new clothes on the way back.

I also grabbed the little bird and dipped it in the water. Its size shrank to half of its original fluffiness. So it was all feathers, huh?

-Chirp chirp!

I wondered if I had soaked it too much, but with just one shake, it fluffed right back up again. Convenient.

Just in case, I washed my face too. The cold water helped clear my head, and the message from earlier came back to mind.

‘Should I be moving more proactively?’

I had assumed the dungeon difficulty and increase in numbers would be the same as they were before the regression.

But apparently, that’s not the case.

Even though they were trying to slow it down, it seemed like things were still progressing faster than before.

‘Monster Mounts will help cover some of it, but… should I start focusing on people as well?’

The system creator, or rather, creators—they had said “we”—gave me that quest to gather fifty S-ranks. It was probably a hint that I needed to raise more S-ranks to prepare. If I could help people like Yerim or Yu Myungwoo, who originally wouldn’t reach S-rank or obtain special skills, it would significantly bolster our forces.

Of course, I couldn’t use Optimized Awakening often because of its 30-day cooldown, but there was something else I could do.

‘The Special Skill Awakening Center.’

I had briefly thought about it before but never acted on it.

A facility where people’s optimal skills could be discovered through Promising Talent, and then the right environment provided to awaken them.

If I could help people awaken skills suited to them, instead of settling for mediocre combat abilities, it would definitely be useful in the long run. Even if they didn’t get an optimized skill, I could raise them through the Keyword like I did with Myungwoo if they had potential.

“…The problem is I only have one body.”

-Chirp.

I grumbled as I wrung out my shirt. Damn it, how am I supposed to handle all of this by myself? Raising monsters, checking people’s aptitudes, helping them awaken, applying Keywords to boost their skills, connecting Goblin and Seok Hayan in the meantime.

It’s like they’re telling me to juggle childcare with a full-time job.

“And yet I can’t just sit back and do nothing because the future is so uncertain.”

What’s the point of building anything if a nearby S-rank dungeon erupts and everything gets destroyed? If a first-class dragonkin popped out, the whole place would crumble like a sandcastle.

I thought I’d be able to relax for at least five years, but damn it, why is my life so hard?

Tap tap.

I shook off as much water as I could and put my clothes back on. I cleaned the soles of my shoes, covered my face with a scarf, and put the chirp inside my hat, hiding it under the remaining cloth.

“Don’t come out, no matter what.”

-Chirp!

Its chirping sounds just like a regular chick, so anyone would assume I was carrying a bird. Someone unfamiliar with monsters might think it’s just a baby from a large species of bird.

After making sure the little bird stayed hidden, I exited through the gate beside the pond.

As I stepped out of the dungeon management building, I checked my phone. Since I had been inside the dungeon, I hadn’t been able to get any calls, and the only texts I had were from unknown numbers. If anyone realized I was missing, my phone would’ve been blowing up by now.

Before heading back to Haeyeon Guild, I stopped by a clothing store and bought a new shirt. I deliberately picked one that was a bit loose, tucking the chirp inside my clothes and using Lizard on the Wall to hide from the shop clerk. Fortunately, they didn’t notice either me or the chirp.

‘Chirp, please stay quiet.’

As long as it doesn’t make any noise, we’re good.

Thankfully, after eating the turtle’s mana stone, it seemed content and was dozing off.

I made my way back to the dormitory the same way I had left, arriving at the dormitory floor without any issues. The hunter at the entrance had now put down their book and was knitting. With high stats, their hands were moving incredibly fast.

At the door to my room, I checked my surroundings before deactivating my skills. I took off my hat and sunglasses and moved the little chirp back into the hat.

All that was left now was going inside.

‘…Is it safe to leave a baby bird and a cat in the same place?’

I suddenly grew concerned. While Peace is a unicorn subspecies, it’s still a feline and a carnivore, and this little Chirp is unmistakably a baby bird.

…Would I walk in to a bloody scene? Is it even okay to raise them together? Would Peace understand if I taught him not to harm it?

‘Not all monsters are carnivores, and there are bound to be predator-prey relationships among them.’

I’ll have to consider this when raising multiple monsters in the future. If I leave Peace gnawing on a dragon’s wing bones in front of a baby dragon we’re supposed to raise, that’d be awkward.

“What should I do?”

I definitely shouldn’t just barge in unprepared. With my current stats, I could hold Peace back easily, but I only have one body. It’d be hard to calm both Peace and the chirp if they got worked up. Should I ask for help from the hunter at the entrance?

No, it’d be better for Peace if it was someone he’s familiar with. When’s Yerim coming back? Maybe I should call her. Just as I was about to check my phone, I sensed an S-rank approaching.

“Hyung? You said you’d sleep off your cold. What are you doing standing out here?”

“…And why are you here? I told you not to come.”

“I wasn’t going to wake you. I just—”

-Chirp.

The chirp let out a sound. Yuhyun glanced at me, then at the hat I was holding. Well, I got caught sooner than expected.

“…Is that a chick?”

“I found it.”

It wasn’t a lie. I did find it. It just happened to be in a dungeon.

-Chirp chirp.

“You found it?”

“Yeah, someone left it in the hallway. Maybe it wandered in from somewhere. Anyway, I found it.”

“And you’re sure it’s a chick?”

My brother narrowed his eyes in suspicion.

“It’s not exactly a normal chick…”

Screw it, I’ll have to explain sooner or later. I pulled back the cloth covering the chirp and revealed it.

“It’s a monster baby.”

“What?”

“F-rank. Weak. Someone probably couldn’t bring themselves to kill it and left it behind. I mean, I do raise monsters, right?”

Like the people who abandon puppies at shelters or pet cafes. Don’t abandon your pets, folks.

“…”

“Just go with it.”

Yuhyun let out a small sigh. Why are you sighing when I’m the one raising it?

“Even if it’s an F-rank, it’s still a monster. You need to tame it. I’ll call someone tomorrow.”

“Fine. While you’re here, help me calm Peace down.”

“Calm him down?”

“If I just walk in with this thing, Peace might think I brought him a live snack.”

I quickly explained the situation and rewrapped the chirp in the cloth before opening the door. Peace had already sensed I was nearby and I could hear his footsteps pacing back and forth behind the inner door.

“Peace, have you been behaving…”

I started to ask, then quickly changed my words.

-Squeak!

Ignoring his request for attention, I walked into the living room. A bigger space would be better.

“Now, Peace, no attacking.”

I said as I lifted the hat. Peace had been staring at the hat the entire time, his ears perked up and his eyes wide.

“It’s not food, it’s your little sibling.”

I slowly uncovered the chirp from the cloth.

-Chirp!

Its white, round head popped out. It chirped again, and Peace’s eyes grew even wider.

“This is your—”

-Grrr…

Ah, I guess he doesn’t see it as a sibling. Peace bared his fangs and leaped toward the hat in an instant.

Just before his teeth made contact with the hat,

Smack.

Yuhyun grabbed him by the scruff of the neck. Then,

Whip—

He tossed him?! What the hell—

…Han Yuhyun, you bastard!

–TL Notes–
Hope you enjoyed this chapter. If you want to support me or give me feedback, you can do it at patreon.com/MattReading

Join my Discord! https://discord.gg/BWaP3AHHpt