S-Classes That I Raised to Devour - Chapter 48

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 48. The Eve of the Storm (1)
Association Chairman Cheon Mujon contacted him. Said he should go on a blind date.
‘It’s probably Cheon Ihwa.’
He didn’t refuse. He owed too many favors, and the more he refused, the more stubborn Cheon Mujon became.
“Minji. I need to postpone today’s lesson for a bit. Something urgent came up.”
“How urgent is it?”
“I have to go on a blind date.”
“With whom?”
“Someone.”
“…But you’re going to a blind date looking like that?”
Unwashed hair, a stretched-out white t-shirt, a hiking jacket over pajama pants. The crowning touch was military-issue Green Military Slippers.
No matter how handsome Chae Mujin’s basic features were, he couldn’t win anyone’s affection dressed like a penniless bum. Especially not Cheon Ihwa, who was meticulous about self-care and fashion.
Lee Minji’s incredulous expression made Chae Mujin shrug.
“It’s the concept of someone who was dragged out against his will.”
“I don’t know who the other person is, but I feel sorry for them.”
“You see it that way too, right? No matter what, I’ll be back within an hour.”
“What if you don’t come back?”
“I’ll give you a hundred thousand won.”
Chae Mujin arrived at the building where they’d agreed to meet and stood in front of the elevator.
Then, instead of pressing the elevator button, he pressed the call bell.
—Yes, management speaking.
“Waves crash against Venice’s night sky.”
After speaking the secret password, the elevator descended on its own to the basement.
It stopped at Basement Level 5, a floor that didn’t exist on the buttons. The doors opened to reveal a café filled with constellations.
A bartender-like woman gestured for him to come inside. He passed through a partition and found a woman glaring at him with her chin resting in her palm.
“You’re thirty minutes late?”
“You are…”
The blind date wasn’t Cheon Ihwa.
A cute woman wearing a tailored traditional dress that hugged her figure. Like Cheon Ihwa, she wore a bell, but hers was a necklace rather than a bracelet.
“Do you know me?”
She looked intrigued, while Chae Mujin stood in silence.
Of course, Chae Mujin knew her identity.
The Head of the Hunter Association of South Korea.
But an even greater name belonged to her: Korea’s First Sword. Undoubtedly the strongest Hunter in South Korea.
The black robes and black hat that hid her face—looking like a grim reaper herself—were the trademark of Korea’s First Sword.
The public believed Korea’s First Sword was male, but Chae Mujin knew the truth.
Korea’s First Sword’s true form was the woman standing before him, and only a handful of people in all of South Korea knew this fact.
‘I absolutely should not have known this.’
Of course, Chae Mujin hadn’t pretended by accident. When he first saw her, he was genuinely shocked, but he decided to act shamelessly.
“Aren’t you Cheon Ihwa’s younger sister?”
The eyes of Korea’s First Sword widened in surprise at his guess.
She withdrew her chin from her palm and straightened her posture, gesturing for him to sit.
Once Chae Mujin sat as instructed, Im Hyelin spoke with barely suppressed laughter.
“Why did you think I was Cheon Ihwa’s sister?”
“That bell with the Yin-Yang pattern—Cheon Ihwa has one too.”
“Cheon Ihwa’s Yin-Yang Bell is famous. Anyone can buy a knockoff as an accessory.”
“Counterfeit bells make noise with even the slightest movement. But the real Yin-Yang Bell makes no sound.”
Im Hyelin shook her head slightly to make her bell ring.
“It’s making noise though?”
“You made it ring on purpose.”
“Hmm, judging by that confident look… you must have observed Cheon Ihwa quite a lot?”
“Observation is a habit, they say, but I haven’t done it that much.”
“In any case, I’m not Cheon Ihwa’s younger sister. That wouldn’t make sense anyway. The chairman only has one daughter.”
“There could be a hidden daughter. In any case, it’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Chae Mujin.”
As Chae Mujin bowed slightly in greeting, Im Hyelin’s expression seemed to ask, “Where does this kind of guy even come from?”
“You didn’t hear the word ‘blind date’ on your way here?”
“I heard it loud and clear.”
“Then why are you dressed like that?”
“I wanted to show you the real me without pretense.”
This was a line Chae Mujin had prepared in advance. A line he’d picked from “Top 10 Things Men Say That Women Hate Most on Blind Dates.”
Having met with Im Hyelin, someone even more troublesome than Cheon Ihwa, Chae Mujin launched into a relentless series of attacks.
He brazenly took out his phone and started typing away, then spoke casually.
“Have you eaten?”
Normally, most women would leave their seats and walk out after this much—
But Im Hyelin answered as if to say, go on, try more.
“No.”
“I know a place with great beef bulgogi with a smoky flavor. How about it?”
“Haa…”
A deep sigh.
Chae Mujin braced himself.
‘If it ends with just one slap, I’ll count myself lucky.’
The Korea’s First Sword Im Hyelin that he knew was bold but placed great importance on propriety.
So no matter the reason she’d agreed to meet him, she should have felt insulted and left—
“I’d love to.”
It was a first. His relentless attacks had been rendered completely ineffective.
* * *
“When I was in the military.”
Chae Mujin didn’t give up. He brought up military stories, which women supposedly hated.
“Tell me more. The Special Task Force—that’s a place most people can’t get into.”
“My ex-girlfriend never wanted to hear about it.”
He’d even thrown in the kill shot about his ex-girlfriend, but—
“What did your ex-girlfriend look like? Do you have pictures? How long were you together? How long ago did you break up?”
Korea’s First Sword didn’t retreat; instead, she charged forward.
Her persistence made Chae Mujin’s head spin.
‘This is strange. The Korea’s First Sword I know isn’t like this.’
Strict, solemn, serious. A grim reaper herself.
Had he not returned to the past but fallen into another world instead? Is that why Korea’s First Sword had a different personality?
Chae Mujin wondered how much further he’d have to push before Im Hyelin disliked him enough to kill him without being disrespected.
Im Hyelin looked at him with a sidelong glance and smiled with her eyes.
‘Now I see why Ihwa fell for him. He’s got a peculiar charm.’
If Ihwa had seen the same attitude from him today, she’d almost certainly be interested.
The men around her fell into three categories.
Men who praised her as a goddess and fawned over her.
Rich men from conglomerates who thought they were good enough to date her.
Men who simply became mute in her presence.
Chae Mujin was an irregular who didn’t fit into any of these three categories.
‘But loving someone for being eccentric is like owning a pet.’
Pets don’t need to be competent. But a lover had to be.
Especially if he was to be the partner of Cheon Ihwa, the next Korea’s First Sword and future association chairman.
‘Looking at his past record, I can’t deny his accomplishments are remarkable. How did such a newcomer go unnoticed? It must be Cheon Mujon’s doing.’
First place on the Official Hunter Exam, beating even Cheon Ihwa.
The Temple of Light Raid on Yeong-jong Island, abandoned even by the state—a success.
A survivor of the Dungeon Drop and the primary architect of villain exposure.
And participation and success in the Alchemist Terymuer’s Laboratory boss raid.
All of this accomplished in just one month. These were impossible achievements and growth that not even Cheon Ihwa or anyone else had managed.
‘And as a Supporter at that.’
But now everyone who matters knows about Chae Mujin. He’d become so famous that Cheon Mujon could no longer hide him.
‘If only he wasn’t a Supporter…’
Cheon Mujon was likely keeping a close eye on him for the same reason. The weakest job class: Supporter.
But Chae Mujin was special. Different from other Supporters. And not just because his buffs were powerful, in Im Hyelin’s view.
“Hyelin. You look younger than me, so is it okay if I speak informally?”
Then Chae Mujin made a bold move—speaking informally first and seeking consent afterward.
Im Hyelin wasn’t bothered by this either. She felt that Chae Mujin genuinely saw her as younger.
‘Other people think I’m old for my age and treat me cautiously.’
Though Im Hyelin was actually quite old, her heart remained that of a girl.
However, she suppressed the pure affection she felt for Chae Mujin and answered coldly.
“I don’t like informal speech.”
“Don’t like it? I’ll die if I don’t speak informally to someone who looks younger than me. I guess we’re not meant for each other.”
Chae Mujin was trying to force an end to the blind date and leave.
Im Hyelin let out a helpless laugh at his absurdity.
This was a fake blind date. Its purpose was simply to determine whether Chae Mujin was the right match for Cheon Ihwa.
Chae Mujin probably didn’t know this, yet he was the one rejecting her? Normally, she should be the one doing the rejecting.
She’d even planned out how to end it that way.
“Hold it. I’m not done talking yet.”
He dared to leave without her permission? Her pride as Korea’s First Sword wouldn’t allow it.
But Chae Mujin pretended not to hear and picked up his pace to create distance.
‘Good. I wanted to test his abilities anyway.’
She closed the distance in an instant to grab his wrist and stop him, ready to teach this cocky kid a lesson—
Smack!
Chae Mujin swatted her hand away with the back of his hand.
‘What?’
Im Hyelin froze for a moment.
Even if it wasn’t done with full force and was a light movement, she was Korea’s First Sword.
An heir to the Original Sword Technique and an absolute master. Every single action of hers contained the subtleties of a thousand years of martial arts.
She hadn’t moved sloppily enough to be deflected reflexively.
Yet Chae Mujin had blocked her. This meant only one thing.
‘Chae Mujin. You’ve learned martial arts too?’
Im Hyelin’s eyes narrowed.
Chae Mujin barely held back a deep sigh.
‘Damn it, this is exactly why I didn’t want to meet her.’
Chae Mujin was extremely cautious about physical contact with Im Hyelin. If she laid hands on his body, she would definitely notice.
‘That I have the Ming Jing Zhi Shui Inner Force in my body.’
How could he explain this? Why did he possess the Ming Jing Zhi Shui Inner Force?
Without revealing that he was a regression returner, there was no way to convince her. And Chae Mujin had absolutely no intention of revealing that.
‘A secret is one of two things. Either nobody knows, or everybody does.’
Once revealed, secrets spread one way or another. It wasn’t a matter of loose or tight lips—it was the nature of the world.
Chae Mujin was determined to avoid any physical contact with Im Hyelin at all costs.
And Im Hyelin had the same thought.
“Want to test your skills?”
A dance began between Im Hyelin trying to grab his wrist and Chae Mujin evading.
* * *
Strength, speed, Inner Force, experience—Im Hyelin dominated in all of them. With even slight effort, Chae Mujin couldn’t stand against her.
But Im Hyelin had her pride too.
‘I’ll use just ten percent of my power.’
Chae Mujin evaded Im Hyelin’s outstretched hand by pulling his arm back sharply.
But Im Hyelin had never aimed for his wrist to begin with—her target was his ankle.
She grabbed his ankle from the inside and twisted, successfully throwing him down.
Im Hyelin honestly thought it was over.
Once you fall, your mobility is nearly gone, and humans are most vulnerable in that moment.
Whoosh!
But incredibly, Chae Mujin planted his hands on the ground as he fell, rolled, returned to his feet, and even kicked toward her in the process.
Im Hyelin naturally dodged the kick, but she couldn’t hide her surprise.
“Where did you learn techniques like that? That’s definitely not a move that just happens by accident!”
“Wait! Time out!”
“…?”
Im Hyelin actually stopped, curious about what Chae Mujin would say.
“I need to send one text message. It’s urgent.”
“Making a woman wait is a negative mark.”
Chae Mujin quickly sent a text to Lee Minji before speaking.
“If you want to spar, let’s set rules.”
“Rules? Like no hitting vital points?”
“Ten seconds. If I can last ten seconds, you let me go.”
“Am I that much of a turn-off?”
“A woman who throws a punch without warning isn’t my type.”
“I wasn’t trying to hit you… Fine. Ten seconds.”
Before her words finished, Im Hyelin closed the distance to him in the blink of an eye.
Wind swept past belatedly, her hair fluttering.
A light technique approaching teleportation speed—the Yixing Huanwei.
Im Hyelin planned to subdue Chae Mujin in just one second and break his nose—
Pop!
But Chae Mujin also used the Yixing Huanwei in response. And backward, not forward.
“…!”
While much slower than Im Hyelin’s Yixing Huanwei and only three steps away, he moved half a beat faster than her, successfully creating distance.
Im Hyelin’s hand cut through empty air. But she changed her trajectory and targeted his ankle again.
This was psychological warfare of the highest order. Repeating a technique that had already been countered went against all common sense.
Would he evade differently, or respond the same way?
Chae Mujin chose the latter. He let his ankle be grabbed, and Im Hyelin pulled him.
Now if Chae Mujin planted his wrists on the ground and spun, the exact same situation would occur. That was when Im Hyelin was aiming to strike.
‘Intercept the kick and slam him down.’
That’s when Chae Mujin would be finished.
But Chae Mujin didn’t act as she expected. Instead of planting his wrists, he simply rolled backward onto his shoulders.
Then he picked up a pebble from the ground.
Im Hyelin was astounded.
“You deliberately fell and this is all you do? Pick up a pebble?”
And then he just threw it—an utterly meaningless attack compared to the skill he’d shown before.
‘Wait, that doesn’t look like just a pebble…’
By the time she noticed something was off, it was too late.
Beep-beep-beep!
What she thought was a pebble exploded with a bang and a brilliant flash.
Even an absolute master’s vision and hearing would be momentarily paralyzed by a sudden Flash Grenade detonating in front of their face.
‘But you’d be affected too, Chae Mujin.’
The Flash Grenade had detonated at point-blank range. A distance where even covering your eyes and ears wouldn’t help. Im Hyelin’s Inner Force barrier would restore her vision in one second, but Chae Mujin’s wouldn’t.
Power gathered in Im Hyelin’s fists.
‘Is this guy insane? Who brings a Flash Grenade to a blind date?’
This lunatic was the one Cheon Ihwa liked.
‘As his senior, I can’t just stand by and watch.’
The moment her vision returned—
“Huh?”
Chae Mujin was gone.
“He hid his vision with the Flash Grenade and used a teleportation skill.”
Most Hunters think: if you have teleportation, just use it to escape. Problem solved.
But that showed ignorance of the world of true masters. A Mana-sensitive Hunter can track where a teleportation spell was cast by the Mana residue left in space.
An absolute master like Im Hyelin could go even further—she could nullify teleportation entirely or even follow the caster.
Yet Chae Mujin had clearly used the Flash Grenade knowing this.
“The Flash Grenade scrambled my Mana. Now I can’t tell where he went.”
The Flash Grenade’s real purpose wasn’t to obscure vision—it was to conceal the destination of teleportation.
South Korea’s strongest Hunter had lost a sub-100 level Supporter right before her eyes.
But rather than anger, Im Hyelin felt only admiration.
“If you’d thrown the Flash Grenade recklessly, I would’ve swatted it away. But you pretended to pick up a pebble, confusing me.”
If this was all planned, it was the kind of idea anyone might come up with.
But just now, this wasn’t an agreed-upon sparring match between them. It was a genuine, shocking mental game that had erupted suddenly.
In that brief moment, Chae Mujin had conceived an escape plan and executed it flawlessly.
“Now I understand why Cheon Mujon keeps such a close eye on him. He’s a new type of Supporter this world has never seen.”
Im Hyelin realized the truth. Cheon Mujon hadn’t sent her to determine if Chae Mujin was worthy of Cheon Ihwa.
“He wanted to show me Chae Mujin’s value.”
That scheming friend was always concealing his true intentions and trying to manipulate others if they weren’t careful.
But she didn’t feel particularly upset about it.
“He must have decided he couldn’t nurture such talent alone.”
Cheon Mujon had kept Chae Mujin’s accomplishments hidden. Avoiding media exposure as much as possible.
But now it was impossible. The Dungeon Drop survival and heroics became the spark, and the Alchemist Terymuer’s Laboratory boss raid blew it wide open.
That’s why he’d brought her into this. Only then could he protect Chae Mujin from overseas scouts.
“I’ll protect Chae Mujin as you wish… but you think I have no ambitions?”
Im Hyelin began preparing hastily.
Cheon Mujon was using Cheon Ihwa as bait to hook Chae Mujin.
Then she needed to prepare cards at least equal to Cheon Ihwa’s, if not better.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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