I’ll Retire After Saving the World - Chapter 50

[ Chapter 50: Little Pig (1) ]

Crackle, crackle.

Dry twigs burned with a crackling sound. Watching the shimmering leaves being engulfed by the flames somehow brought a sense of peace.

“Kieek!”

If only there weren’t any nuisances.

Due to the embers flying around, the pixies couldn’t get close but still bared their teeth at me, screeching.

Ignoring them, I swung my sword. I didn’t put much magic into it since I didn’t intend to burn everything down. The sparks glittered, threatening the pixies, before falling to the ground. Small flames began to rise from there.

“The sword’s performance is really good…”

It wasn’t something I should feel wronged about, but I still felt a bit aggrieved.

With such a sword, clearing dungeons must have been a breeze for Yoo Ji-eun. Yet, she still took potions regularly.

… Complaining about potion costs might be too much, even for me. But Yoo Ji-eun did take exactly what she was allotted.

Shaking off thoughts of Yoo Ji-eun, I checked my surroundings. As the fire began to spread in earnest, the pixies’ agitation intensified.

I swung my sword once more.

“Kieeeek!”

As the flames grew stronger, the remaining pixies started to flee.

Once their momentum was broken, everything moved quickly. I gradually reduced the flames and swung my sword at the remaining ones.

Ah, just leave already.

“Kieek!”

The last hesitant ones freaked out and fled when sparks landed near their feet. Being creatures with a herd instinct, once the way was paved, they’d all follow the leader without further intervention.

After carefully confirming that no pixies remained around, I withdrew my magic. The blue embers quickly died down, leaving only lukewarm heat and acrid smoke.

I looked in the direction the pixies had fled. It coincided with the direction the kids were coming from. If it didn’t, I wouldn’t have done this in the first place. I had put a lot of thought into determining the direction.

“Guess it’s time for me to go too.”

I wanted to see how the kids would handle the rampaging pixie swarm. Besides, if anything dangerous happened, it would be a disaster.

I knew the kids’ abilities best. There were many of them, but as long as they remained calm and composed, there’d be no problem breaking through the pixie swarm.

I wasn’t sure how they’d fare in an unexpected situation without prior experience, but as long as one of them kept their wits about them, they would get through it fine.

Perhaps I was overestimating the kids.

* * *

“Hyun-wook!!”

“Oh Hyun-wook!!!”

In the midst of the battle, Oh Hyun-wook stood there like a stone statue.

It was a dungeon that had undergone culling, so there were only young pixies. But that didn’t mean it was okay to leave your neck exposed.

That idiot.

A piglet is still a piglet.

“Tsk.”

I clicked my tongue lightly. There was no need for any grand movements. Speed was all that mattered.

Putting strength in my legs, I stepped on a branch and leapt downwards. Whether it’s a spear or a sword, the way to handle a weapon meant for harming something is simple.

‘Just swing it with the intention to kill that bastard.’

An uncle’s voice whispered in my ear.

### Pig Oh Hyun-wook was also notoriously dirty in his fights. I had seen him a few times. His messy fighting style perfectly matched his nickname, “Pig.”

Unlike the current piglet. Someone once said that pigs are originally clean animals.

With the speed still attached to my body, I thrust my sword forward. Anything more would be overkill against pixies. Yoo Ji-eun’s sword pierced through the pixie’s head and stopped.

No matter what, it felt wrong to be catching such things with Yoo Ji-eun’s sword. I didn’t feel sorry for Yoo Ji-eun, but I did feel sorry for the sword. A sword like this should be slicing through something more significant.

I shook my head inwardly and looked at Oh Hyun-wook. His eyes were unfocused. His gaze slowly turned towards me but didn’t see me.

I frowned.

“Oh Hyun-wook.”

“…”

“Oh Hyun-wook?”

I struck down a charging pixie with my sword. This guy, he had lost his mind.

I had no choice but to use a more forceful method.

Slap.

“What are you spacing out for?”

I slapped Oh Hyun-wook on the cheek. I controlled my strength so it would sting just a bit.

“We’re in the middle of a raid. Aren’t you going to pull yourself together?”

My voice turned cold without realizing it. If this weren’t a test, the raid team would have been annihilated. No, if I hadn’t intervened, Oh Hyun-wook would have been seriously injured at least, and the other kids would have fallen apart watching that.

After I went through the trouble of saving him in Myeong-dong….

“…”

“Oh Hyun-wook?”

But even then, Oh Hyun-wook couldn’t regain his composure.

Annoyance gave way to worry.

“…Wook.”

No, seriously, what’s going on!

Oh Hyun-wook covered his mouth. Seeing him about to vomit, I quickly stepped back.

“Ooooh….”

Seriously, he was a handful.

The piglet had been like this too. After drinking heavily, he would vomit as soon as he entered the dungeon.

It seemed a pig is a pig, whether it’s a piglet or a grown pig.

I sighed and protected the defenseless Oh Hyun-wook. Seeing me by Oh Hyun-wook’s side, the kids looked relieved and dealt with the pixies.

With Oh Hyun-wook suddenly rendered combat ineffective, the other kids moved around busily. Seo Han-seong was doing his best, but this was no longer a raid but a desperate struggle to fend off the pixies.

I had no choice but to speak up.

“Choi Jin-woo, shield. Lee Seung-yeon, 11 o’clock direction. Han Eun-young, stick with Yoo Hye-eun. Seo Han-seong, watch out for the 8 o’clock direction. Park Seo-hyun, prepare the shield, 3, 2, 1, now. Regain your positions.”

Only then did the kids’ movements become organized.

From the middle onwards, they seemed to regain their composure, holding their positions and blocking the pixies without my instructions.

… I never imagined it would turn out like this.

Did I do something great? I merely set fire to the back of the dungeon to drive the monsters.

This wasn’t something I did out of spite for the kids. It was a method officially included in the training manual distributed by the management bureau to guilds. It was to teach them how to handle unexpected situations. If I thought the kids couldn’t handle it, I wouldn’t have done it. I don’t assign impossible tasks.

### Look at them now. Once their positions were set, they were fighting well. It looked like there were many pixies because they were startled by the smoke and running around, but in reality, there were just over a hundred. And even then, they didn’t need to be dealt with all at once. Many of them would flee, so all they had to do was hold their ground until they passed. After that, handling the dungeon core would be the end of it.

And yet, they collapsed so easily?

“…”

“Uweeek…”

I looked at Oh Hyun-wook, who was vomiting his guts out.

The reason for this outcome was obvious. It was because of this guy.

From the moment we entered the dungeon, Oh Hyun-wook naturally took the lead in giving instructions. The kids followed without question. This was partly because Oh Hyun-wook had been acting as their leader during regular training.

The success of a raid depends greatly on having a competent leader. But relying solely on the leader for everything is not acceptable.

Therefore,

“You all failed.”

Standing atop the pixies’ corpses, I spoke firmly.

* * *

“Yes… I’ve confirmed the raid completion. Who destroyed the dungeon core?”

When Kim So-jeong asked, the kids exchanged glances before pointing at one person. Seo Han-seong gulped.

“I-I did.”

“You did? You’re Seo Han-seong, right? From Guild Manri… Yes, I understand. As for the raid report…”

“I’ll write it.”

“The teacher will?”

“Yes. Is that a problem?”

“No. If we’re being technical, you are the one in charge, so there’s no issue.”

Kim So-jeong spoke cheerfully.

“Still, it’s impressive that the kids managed to complete the raid on their own.”

Kim So-jeong, meeting the kids for the first time, didn’t notice anything amiss, but Hong Seok-young and Kim Chae-min were different. They looked at me and the kids with skeptical eyes, unable to ask outright because of Kim So-jeong’s presence.

“I’ve always thought it would be good to have a school like this. Though there are many who disapprove… If we start accumulating achievements like this, people’s perceptions will change.”

“I hope so.”

“With Hong Seok-young Hunter around, it may take time, but failure is not an option.”

“Oh my, do you hold me in such high regard, Inspector?”

“Anyway, you’re a representative Hunter of South Korea. You need to live up to that reputation.”

Hong Seok-young laughed heartily.

“So, Inspector, do you have more business at the school?”

“Are you trying to get rid of me?”

“Oh no, how could I chase you away, Inspector? It’s just that the kids look very tired.”

“Well, it was their first raid… I won’t keep them any longer. Let the students rest well for today. Teacher Woo Hee-jae, I’m counting on you for the report.”

“Yes, I’ll send it via email.”

I smiled amicably and bid Kim So-jeong farewell. Hong Seok-young waved his hand with a sly grin, and Kim Chae-min gave a small nod.

“…”

Peace lasted only until then.

I turned to the kids with a serious expression. Sensing the tense atmosphere, Hong Seok-young, who was about to approach me, stopped in his tracks.

I spoke bluntly.

“The dungeon raid was a failure.”

“What?”

“I’ll explain in detail later.”

I looked at Oh Hyun-wook, who was pale and trembling.

Hong Seok-young dismissed Park Seo-hyun’s wandering as just a minor style change that hunters naturally go through. Kim Chae-min had a sensitive personality for a mage, but since he only taught the magic class, there was an undeniable distance between him and the other kids.

There was only him.

The only person who could turn a piglet into a human.

“Oh Hyun-wook.”

His shoulders flinched greatly.

“You know why I called you, right?”

“……”

His clenched fist trembled.

For a moment, I worried he might hit me. Fortunately, Oh Hyun-wook instead answered in a barely audible voice.

“……Yes.”

I ignored the kids who quieted down, watching me nervously. I also pretended not to notice Hong Seok-young fidgeting anxiously like a dog needing to pee.

“Get in the car. We’ll talk later.”

We didn’t return to the school. The car ride was deathly silent, and Hong Seok-young drove more gently than usual.

The car stopped at the parking lot where we usually dropped off the kids.

“Um…”

“See you tomorrow. I’ll let you know the grading results then.”

“My, my score…”

“Honestly, I don’t think the score matters, but… at least you should know what the problems are.”

I paused briefly and looked at the kids. They all looked dirty, but luckily, none of them were injured.

“Even that seems meaningless. There are problems from one to ten.”

“……”

“Alright, dismissed.”

Their trudging backs were no different from those of defeated soldiers.

I clicked my tongue and looked inside the car. Oh Hyun-wook hadn’t gotten out and remained seated.

“Aren’t you going?”

“……”

“Oh Hyun-wook?”

No response.

After a moment of hesitation, I tapped Hong Seok-young and Kim Chae-min, who were sitting in the driver and passenger seats.

“Get out.”

“Yes? Why?”

“I need to talk to him.”

Sensing the unusual atmosphere from earlier, the two quietly got out of the car.

After closing the door, I sat facing Oh Hyun-wook.

“Alright. Start talking.”

“……”

“I gave you plenty of time to think.”

“……”

Oh Hyun-wook hung his head low and didn’t answer.

Again, ignoring my words. This piglet, seriously… Was it wrong of me to hope to raise him into a proper human being? Is a pig always a pig, even when young?

Tap. Tap.

“…Oh Hyun-wook?”

Something was falling beneath him. Droplets formed on the back of Oh Hyun-wook’s hands, which were placed on his knees.

I massaged the stiff back of my neck. If it wasn’t inside the car, I could have sworn it was raining.

“I can’t take this anymore, seriously.”

“……Sob.”

“Oh Hyun-wook. Don’t cry.”

Do kids these days think everything gets resolved if they cry? What is this? First Park Seo-hyun, now him?

Still, I couldn’t bring myself to scold a crying child, so I adjusted my tone.

“…I’m not trying to scold you. It’s better to fix problems quickly if there are any. So, tell me why you did it.”

“I shouldn’t be a hunter.”

Oh Hyun-wook interrupted me with a trembling voice.

Why is he doing this to me?