S-Rank is My Side Character - Chapter 36

“You’re going to go to Gunshin with Rude?! Are you crazy?!”

“Ow! Auntie!! It hurts!”

A loud smacking sound echoed throughout the guildmaster’s office in Seongjeon.

As Kang Ihyeon groaned while rubbing his back, Kang Sujin frowned deeply, waving her reddened hand in the air.

“Shut up! Do you have any sense at all? You’re currently ranked 2nd in Korea. If you leave too, are you saying we should just watch as that Baek Jangmi takes all the high-level gates?! How many gates did we already have to hand over to Baek Jangmi last week because of the infestation-type?!”

“B-but! But oww, Auntie!!”

As Kang Sujin pulled out a back massager from under the drawer, Kang Ihyeon quickly backed away while rubbing his back.

Seeing Kang Sujin who seemed to have lost her reason in anger, Kang Ihyeon’s ‘Max Level Social Skills’ rapidly activated.

“A-Auntie! But it’s Gunshin we’re talking about. Gunshin! You know?! Would you really be okay with sending Rude there alone to that den of snakes? Huh? Did Lady Rose not give any warnings during the regular meeting?!”

Kang Sujin’s arm briefly paused at the last words. Rolling her eyes, Kang Sujin lowered her arm and rested her hand on her chin.

“Come to think of it…”

Kang Sujin recalled the scene from the meeting again. It was because of the name of the card that Baek Jangmi had suddenly mentioned.

‘The Hermit Reversed.’

The Hermit Reversed. Among the tarot cards, it was the card signifying ‘secrets being revealed’. Like Kang Sujin, Baek Jangmi never spoke carelessly.

“Indeed, to send Rude alone to Gunshin…”

He was strong, definitely strong, but immature when it came to controlling his emotions or hiding his thoughts.

To the point where it seemed all of Rude’s secrets, even those Kang Sujin didn’t know, would be completely exposed to Gunshin after going to the Northern region.

Kang Sujin looked at her nephew in front of her. The child resembled the grandfather she so despised, quick-witted as he was.

“Ihyeon.”

“Yes.”

Sujin looked at Ihyeon with serious eyes. Ihyeon nodded his head and stood up, dusting himself off. Kang Sujin let out a deep sigh and spoke.

“I’ll allow you to go with him and shorten the time limit to 4 days. But in exchange, never let Rude get completely exposed to those Gunshin bastards, down to his family registry.”

“Yes!”

Kang Sujin sat back in her chair with a frown. She spoke to Kang Ihyeon with her arms crossed.

“Show them that Seongjeon is not to be taken lightly. Both to Rude, and to Gunshin.”

With Kang Sujin’s final words, Kang Ihyeon bowed deeply and left the guildmaster’s office.

“…Ah, geez. Saying things like that when it’s already an uphill battle.”

Still, at his constellation’s words that it turned out well, Kang Ihyeon made a sensitive expression and roughly swept his bangs up as he took out his cell phone.

On the screen was a promotional video for the ‘Gunshin’ guild. The reliable public enterprise managing the Northern region of Korea.

As a silver-haired man fleetingly appeared at the end of the promotional video, Kang Ihyeon paused the video.

“If it’s an S-rank, it can only be this person…”

Jeong Suho, the S-rank hunter ranked 6th in the country, belonging to the ‘Gunshin’ guild. The best archer.

His other name was ‘The Blue Bullet’, and his nickname was ‘Korea’s Northern Guardian’.

And his most famous nickname was ‘Two Gods’.

As the lowest ranked among the mere 6 S-ranks in the country, he was often looked down upon, but the reality was different.

Rank did not necessarily equate to combat power.

The core of gates was not ‘extermination’ but ‘rescuing people’, so ranking was not limited to combat power but closer to a measure of ‘versatility’.

The common point of the current top 3 S-ranks in Korea was that they were all ‘hunters who could clear gates without severely injuring people’.

Killing and destroying was simple, but saving and preserving was too difficult.

Rank 1, the ‘Black Illusion’ Rude, was an all-rounder who could perfectly handle almost any situation alone with his precise illusion techniques, overwhelming mental strength to materialize them, and various other abilities, whether it be combat, restoration, or rescue.

Kang Ihyeon, rank 2, could simultaneously use swordsman and healer skills, and could also use the powers of various archangels.

Therefore, it was possible for him to fight and heal people at the same time by himself.

Perhaps it was thanks to the diversity of the 72 demons that Min Jaeyun commanded that he was able to reach rank 3 as well.

Even when he had not received combat training, the fact that he endured inside the infested school without a single casualty until the rescue team arrived proved he was one of the top five capable individuals in the country.

But Jeong Suho had none of that. Jeong Suho possessed only one thing. ‘Overwhelming force and combat leadership’.

And… the fact that he received the title of 6th in the country with only that one thing meant his force was unrivaled.

That was why, in addition to ‘The Blue Bullet’, he was given the separate title of ‘Two Gods’.

It went well with the tendencies of the ‘Gunshin’ guild, so Jeong Suho was regarded as the person who best demonstrated the symbiosis between guild and hunter.

If Kang Ihyeon was the face of Seongjeon, Jeong Suho was the face of Gunshin.

‘But to think he was high school classmates with Nari…’

After learning that ‘Jeong Suho’ was a high school classmate, he readily joined Nari’s army without hesitation.

[Your constellation, the Rod of Sanctification, asks if it’s because Jeong Suho is too strong.]

‘No, that’s not it…’

It wasn’t that he quickly followed Nari because Jeong Suho was strong. It was just… He was… He was…

[Your constellation, the Rod of Sanctification, shrugs and says if you grew up seeing Jeong Suho’s face, of course you wouldn’t stand out to him.]

“Stop it… This is depressing…”

It was because he was too handsome…

Yes! Jeong Suho was legendary in another sense as well. Because he was too handsome! Now was the era of hunters as entertainers too.

Each hunter had different popular fan bases.

Especially among women, both Kang Ihyeon, the refreshing prince-like style who was kind to everyone, and Rude, with his mysterious and slightly dangerous but irresistible charm, were very popular, but…

The one with overwhelming popularity among women in their 20s was Jeong Suho!

Silver hair that was said to be like moonlight, blunt blue eyes. Reticent personality.

The title of Two Gods, and due to mainly being active in the Northern region, he even developed a mystique from the limited information.

With those various factors, Jeong Suho simultaneously embodied being mysterious, fatal, strong yet delicate, and allowing room for imagination…

In other words, he enjoyed the utmost popularity among women… Of course, he himself showed absolutely no reaction to that fact, and even that was a lovable point…

“And it didn’t seem like they were just ordinary high school classmates.”

If they were just ordinary high school classmates, there would be no reason to avoid this much.

Nari was currently hiding himself thoroughly under the name ‘Rude’.

If they were ‘ordinary’ classmates, they would not even think that Rude could be Nari and just overlook it.

But if he was still worried like this…

Kang Ihyeon bit his lip. Sighing heavily, he made an anxious expression.

“Just what kind of relationship did they have…”

[This is the timeline separator]

Inside the cafe where music was playing. Because Mom, Dad, and the adults were talking about important things, Nari was exiled to the next table with only the large mont blanc that Dad had sliced for him.

Together with a tiny boy his age.

The tiny boy in front was only fiddling with a toy gun model.

He just kept taking out and putting back in the model prop, while the young Nari stared blankly ahead.

“You’re going to live with us now?”

“Huh? Uh, yeah… Just until I graduate elementary school…”

“With me? Always? All the time?”

“Um… Yeah.”

The boy squeezed the gun tightly again, as if gauging Nari’s mood. Mom had said he was a friend brought from the orphanage.

That he would use Nari’s empty room next door.

“Still, it’s okay. I absolutely won’t bother you, and I’ll stay put, put nicely in the room. And also…”

He looked like he would burst into tears at the slightest touch. Nari sighed and stabbed the mont blanc deeply with a fork and handed it to him.

“Eat.”

“Me… Me? No, I’m fine, I really won’t bother you…”

“Eat! You’re my friend now!”

When Nari threw a fit, the boy in front of him ate the mont blanc with a gulp.

Seeing that, Nari stabbed another mont blanc deeply with the fork. The boy, who had been mumbling, swallowed the mont blanc with a gulp.

“What’s your name?”

“I’m… Jeong Suho.”

“Listen well, Jeong Suho. I hate gloomy friends like this. You’re in the room next to mine. Then you have to come to my room all the time to play real combat and dolls with me. Will you play if you cry like this?”

“I… I actually prefer hunter play over dolls…”

Tears welled up in young Suho’s eyes. Nari grinned at the sight.

“Then let’s play hunter. I actually like that better too. But it needs two people, so I couldn’t do it until now.”

Only then did Jeong Suho wipe his tears and nod, saying “Okay!”

The screen gradually filled with white noise and static, and soon photos followed.

Photos from sports days in kindergarten, photos of walking home hand in hand as elementary school students, always being present at birthday celebrations.

With a beep, the Lord of Chaos turned off the screen where the photos were being displayed with the remote control.

They were suddenly in the lobby of the deep world. He made a “ha” expression and said,

“Well, in summary, you were almost like half family?”

“I lived independently after entering middle school. But still… They took good care of me. After Mom died, I practically lived at their house.”

“But you went and had no contact? Oh my…”

They were friends, almost like family, and at times something more than that.

But didn’t Nari’s family also betray Nari? The sound of teeth grinding could be heard.

“That bastard is the same as Dad…”

The relationship that was no different from family was the same. In reality, because they were not family on the family register, it was even more impossible to demand responsibility.

So Nari gradually learned to distrust others after he left for Gunshin. Since then, Nari trusted no one but his own constellation.

“Well, you should still be grateful to your friend Jeong Suho. At least he allowed us to meet. This elder brother is happy.”

“Are you joking right now? I was really struggling back then, you know?”

Seeing Nari grumbling, the Lord of Chaos stroked his chin. Shrugging, he smiled as usual.

“But you’re okay now, right?”

“…Still, I’m not confident I won’t be furious if I see him again. Who wouldn’t be?!”

As Nari looked at him sullenly, the Lord of Chaos approached and put his arm around his shoulder, unperturbed by Nari’s expression.

The Lord of Chaos spoke leisurely.

“Nari, you need to look closely into your heart. Sometimes people get angry for completely different reasons and vent their frustration on the target that happens to catch their eye.”

“What other reason would I have to be angry? I was living a peaceful life with him, except for the army.”

“Well, you can get angry by yourself even if you don’t do anything. For example, when it’s the season for those wicked hormones to play tricks.”

Snap, the Lord of Chaos snapped his fingers. A calendar appeared on the wall of the ruins.

Nari’s eyes grew wide as he realized something from the Lord of Chaos’s words. And he abruptly stood up.

“Oh no.”

“You realized now?”

The day of departure for Gunshin. That day… was circled in bright red.

Nari covered his mouth with both hands, looking horrified. The Lord of Chaos shook his head.

“Your period is coming soon.”