Hunter Kindergarten, Dolphin Class! - Chapter 102
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 102
I went into a nearby restroom and quickly splashed water on my head and body before coming out.
The more the situation flows differently than expected, the more I can’t let go of the thread of reason.
Maintaining an obsessively calm attitude, I asked the dazed Supervisor Park to call for people.
And then….
“Hah….”
‘After hearing just those words, I came right in.’
Into this Storage Room engulfed in flames.
‘Damn.’
This was my carelessness.
‘I should have anticipated that the children would run out.’
I judged that I could finish everything inside the restroom. Since I didn’t expect Baseball Cap Boy to suddenly run out from there, I let my guard down.
‘But now isn’t the time to sit here regretting.’
I covered my mouth and nose with my water-soaked sleeve and advanced quickly.
Fortunately, the interior of what appears to be a Storage Room seems to be made of fire-resistant materials, so the flames aren’t growing beyond a certain point.
However, the heat that made me break out in sweat within just a few minutes was still there, serving as a reminder to stay alert.
And the more that happened.
‘It’s déjà vu….’
The fire incident I experienced on my first day at work naturally comes to mind.
The chaotic mess that occurred because the twins were fighting.
The memory of that day when I barely managed to handle it using my Taming Ability, which was nothing more than a bonus service.
I even had the illusion that the scene of an incident that had now become a memory was being recreated before my eyes.
However, there are definitely differences from that time.
‘Back then there were only the twins in the classroom, but here there are 6 children.’
Including that Spy Kid, that makes seven….
Moreover, it’s cramped.
The passage was narrow.
Display cases surrounding both walls like a maze are packed so densely they reach the ceiling.
I roughly scanned them with my eyes and continued running.
Before long, I confirmed that massive Storage Cases had randomly collapsed, blocking the passage.
The person who could create such a scene is….
Seo-ro.
‘As expected, the twins…!’
Using one hand as support, I leaped over the collapsed Storage Cases. Glass shards from cases broken by the impact of hitting the floor scratched my palm.
Before I could even register the pain, water….
Water?
“…!”
I used the case I had just jumped over as a foothold and leaped up again.
No sooner had I done so than water began rushing in at high speed beneath my feet.
Seeing that scene, one child flashed through my mind.
Seo-ra!
It seems Seo-ra started the fire and then sprayed water again to try to clean up the mess(?)….
Thanks to that, the fire appeared to be extinguished quickly…. but the water rushing in at a terrifying speed displayed a different kind of intimidation.
I bit down hard on my teeth and moved forward, stepping on the fallen Storage Cases like stepping stones.
‘What exactly is this place for.’
Inside the Transparent Cases I was stepping on were objects I’d never seen before in my life.
Below my feet, a slightly crooked Name Tag caught my eye.
‘S-Grade Unreleased Item…?’
…I tried hard not to pay attention to them and kept moving my feet.
‘I think I need to jump over there to get in.’
Barely avoiding being swept away by the water, I finally arrived at the end of the storage room.
‘But our kids aren’t here either…!’
However, the trail of their disappearance was clear.
Right there, a freight elevator connected to the end of this warehouse-like space.
The elevator had stopped at Basement 2nd Floor.
From this 4th Floor, they had gone down to Basement 2nd Floor again.
That place doesn’t seem to be connected to the Underground Dungeon, since it’s not marked in English.
‘Then… is it connected to the Underground Parking Garage?’
Whoosh.
As soon as I made my decision, I tensed my thigh muscles and jumped.
The space where the freight elevator was located had a high ledge, so there were no traces of water.
However, I twisted during the landing process and slammed my shoulder straight into the wall. I clutched my shoulder with my hand from the burning pain and pressed the elevator button.
‘Hurry hurry hurry’
After a moment, I took the arriving elevator and got off at Basement 2nd Floor…
-The door is opening.
The typical Underground Parking Garage scene was revealed, packed with cars on all sides.
And quite far away, as I had expected, I could see our class children and… Nabi.
“…!”
Among them… a man?
The boy I had seen in the restroom was nowhere to be found, and instead a sturdy Adult Man was standing there.
And in a strange state where Our Kids had grabbed one arm and one leg each, leaving him helpless and struggling.
I raised my guard and slowly approached them silently.
And as the man’s silhouette gradually became clearer, I realized.
‘…That man is that boy from before.’
The ball cap baseball cap the child had been wearing, and the fairly large backpack he had been carrying.
Most of all, the black clothing worn top and bottom and even the waterproof material jacket with a dark greenish luster.
…The outward appearance was identical.
I clenched my fists.
If I assume these two people are the same person…
‘Is that guy a spy?’
Someone who was a child just a few minutes ago suddenly became an adult?
…No, considering the situation unfolding now, it might make more sense to see it as ‘an Adult Man temporarily changed into a child and returned to being an adult again.’
Thirty years ago this would have been dismissed as nonsense, but what kind of world do we live in these days.
People create fire from bare hands, pull down clouds from the sky to solve droughts, and if that’s not enough, they now travel distances that would take 5 hours by car in just a few seconds.
If scientists who died 30 years ago knew this fact, they’d have seizures and struggle to come out of their graves…
‘That’s reality.’
Therefore, I can’t dismiss this crazy situation of a child suddenly becoming an adult as something absolutely impossible.
This is… reasonable suspicion.
‘Whether it’s an Awakening Ability or using an item, he must have done something.’
I swallowed.
I approached while using the parked cars to avoid exposure as much as possible.
Little by little, as I got closer to them, their voices became clearly audible.
“This is driving me crazy… You saw, right? I’m an adult, I tell you? I’m not your friend, I’m a sturdy adult. So please, go away.”
“Lies! Your ability is to grow big like an adult, isn’t it?!”
“Why are children so suspicious?”
“Just quietly come with us to our kindergarten and play.”
“…We can’t communicate at all.”
More than I thought… isn’t this a serious situation?
Hiding behind a car and quietly listening to their conversation, I was confused.
The man seems to be resisting, but is he going easy because they’re children?
-Beep beep.
“….”
Then, both the man’s and my head turned at the same time.
Someone had pressed a car key button. As if responding to it, a car’s hazard lights in one corner blinked twice.
…This crazy.
And at that reaction, the man who had been responding relatively quietly until now completely changed his attitude.
“…Damn it. Get off me!”
The man, realizing someone else was coming, now tried to shake off the children using force.
Confirming this, I rushed toward the man without delay.
Just as the man barely managed to shake off all the children and was about to leave.
I charged forward and embraced the man’s waist as we collided, slamming him down to the floor!
***
From then on, a childish physical fight between adults began.
I tried to keep creating distance between the children and the man as much as possible while holding his waist.
And the more I did so, the more violent the man’s kicking became.
‘Damn it.’
This bastard seems determined to destroy my stomach.
Instead of using my fists, I tried to subdue him by putting my weight on him somehow.
Even while getting beaten, I kept pressing him down to the floor.
Still, because he kept punching my jaw, I couldn’t help but look up occasionally.
Then I saw Nabi running quickly toward me.
I immediately looked away and shouted.
“Nabi! Stay still!”
“….”
“Don’t come here and wait there with your friends! If you come here, Hyung will really scold you!”
There are too many eyes watching here.
The CCTV cameras densely placed with almost no blind spots, this man right in front of me….
And considering the car owner who pressed the car key that I haven’t identified yet.
‘I absolutely can’t accept Nabi’s help here.’
I gritted my teeth and put more weight on him.
‘Status Window!’
“….”
What, no response….
At that moment.
“You, are you… a BOND employee? This is a bit awkward in this dog-like situation, but how about we make a deal?”
The opponent pinned to the floor began speaking smoothly while panting.
“A deal?”
I looked down at him.
His face, still half-hidden by the baseball cap, wasn’t clearly visible.
‘His lower face looks young though.’
“20 billion. Let me go and I’ll transfer it right away.”
“….”
When I remained silent, he continued talking.
“Really. Should I transfer it to your account? Or cash? Just tell me the location and I’ll secretly put cash there tomorrow. This isn’t a bad offer, right?”
He looked like someone desperate to somehow persuade me and get out of this place quickly.
“Ha….”
I sighed and lifted my head…. then slammed my head straight into that man’s forehead!
Feeling a shock that seemed to make a thud sound and a throbbing headache, I opened my mouth.
What bullshit.
“20 billion? Who would believe that?”
The man just kept groaning in pain while clutching his head.
Regardless, I lowered my voice and said.
“And instead, catching you and making you pay for the damage our kids caused seems like it would cost more.”
“….”
“If you want to make a deal, you should offer something that matches the other party’s interests.”
I can’t even begin to imagine how much it would cost to clean up the chaos our kids caused on the 4th floor.
‘What reason would I have to suddenly risk my life trying to catch you?’
I say it’s instead of the 4th floor remodeling costs, but… Still, if I catch this guy, at least I’ll get yelled at less!
I exhaled roughly and pressed down on him harder.
If I just hold out a little longer like this, someone will come.
“Over here! Here! Teacher Hwiyeon!”
…Supervisor Park!
‘You found us well!’
Just then, Supervisor Park’s voice came like a savior.
I was worried that after seeing the state of the 4th floor, he might faint and not be able to find us.
I suppressed the urge to wave my hand and shouted.
“Over here! There’s a suspicious person here!!”
“30 billion! No, no, 50 billion!”
…Oh, he wavered a bit.
“The suspicious person keeps trying to tempt me with money!”
“100 billion!”
Hey, this is fun. Let’s see how far this goes.
I continued to struggle and wrestle with this guy, determined to hold on and not let him go until the end.
The moment I confirmed that multiple employees were quickly approaching us from far away.
-Click.
“You’re the one who refused?”
“…!”
“I was being sincere. You seem quick-witted, but you don’t recognize my sincerity.”
Before I knew it, he had taken out some blunt object in one hand and pressed it against my solar plexus.
And.
‘Ah.’
A burning sensation that felt like it was consuming me from the heart rose up.
I felt nauseous.
I think I’m going to… throw up…
‘This feeling is similar to when I wore the Control Device…’
My head became foggy, my limbs felt stiff, and my body tilted to one side. Without even having the presence of mind to properly resist, I… collapsed to the floor.
In that gap, I saw the man kick off the ground and run away.
That was the last thing before everything went black.
When I barely regained consciousness and opened my eyes again, Supervisor Park and the children were surrounding me.
Supervisor Park asked me with a face that looked like he was about to cry.
“Are you okay?! Teacher? Are you hurt anywhere? You suddenly collapsed!”
“…How long was I?”
“30 seconds!”
“…Ah.”
30 seconds.
It felt like I was in that state for 30 minutes.
However, Supervisor Park’s face was deathly pale, whatever thoughts he had during those 30 seconds.
‘I unintentionally caused him worry.’
“It seems we lost the spy… I’m sorry. You did your best to catch him, Teacher, but our personnel were all scattered due to the investigation, so it took some time to call them here.”
“…That’s disappointing. But it’s okay. It’s not Supervisor Park’s fault either.”
Of course, seeing the children now looking at me with their pretty eyes wide open in worry did leave a bitter taste in my mouth.
‘I was planning to properly catch that spy and somehow connect it to these kids’ incident….’
“Still….”
I took out the bag I had been carrying and handed it to Supervisor Park.
“This is…!”
“I managed to get the bag. What you were looking for should be in there.”
At least I had seized that guy’s bag.
I smiled while being conscious of the cold sweat running down my back.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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