I Just Subscribed and It’s the Best Hunter of All Time - Chapter 105
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
#Episode 105.
It had been a long time since I heard from Maria.
After we’d made our contract and discussed the details last time, she’d been silent ever since.
I answered the call immediately.
―Hello?
Maria’s voice came through, and I responded right away.
“What’s going on?”
―I’m calling to report on our progress.
Maria didn’t drag out the conversation either, getting straight to the point.
―I’m currently on Floor 39. I’m planning to challenge Floor 40 tomorrow. So, would it be possible to meet in the Neutral Zone tomorrow?
“You’re coming straight to my Territory?”
―Yes. It’s easier to enter through an invitation from the Neutral Zone.
“Fine. Let’s meet in the Neutral Zone then.”
We quickly settled on an exact time and location.
―Then, I’ll see you tomorrow.
“Yeah.”
The call ended quickly.
While I had my phone in hand, I scrolled through to see if there were any other messages.
But nothing particularly caught my attention—just the periodic messages from Baek Jin-woo.
‘I should wash up and rest a bit before heading out.’
I set my phone down and headed to the bathroom.
I’d rinsed off before returning, but the discomfort lingered.
Still, after a thorough wash with warm water, I felt somewhat better.
I threw all my worn clothes into the washing machine, started it, changed into fresh clothes, and sprawled out on the living room sofa.
A few hours later.
I opened my eyes abruptly and looked around.
Only then did I realize I’d fallen asleep sitting on the sofa.
“I must have accumulated quite a bit of fatigue.”
I muttered while scratching my chin.
I’d intended to rest briefly before leaving, but I’d ended up sleeping deeply.
For most people, it would’ve been just a nap, but for me, four or five hours of sleep was practically a full night’s rest.
I decided I should eat something now that I was up and headed to the kitchen.
But then.
Ding!
A message arrived.
I picked up my phone and checked—it was another message from Baek Jin-woo.
However, the content was somewhat different from usual.
―I’m contacting you with some unfortunate information.
The message began with a rather serious tone, containing unexpected news.
―There are rumors that people from China are searching for the location of your Territory. Apparently, there’s a reward just for discovering where it is….
While I didn’t have extremely detailed information, what I could see was enough to understand the situation.
‘They’re targeting my Territory.’
It wasn’t particularly surprising.
After all, there had been quite a few similar cases in the past.
‘Mainly, they target promising prospects.’
It was a form of ladder-kicking—sabotaging those on the rise.
China was especially passionate about such matters, and when incidents within The Tower were discussed, China was mentioned most frequently.
Attacking territories within Unclaimed Territory was practically routine.
It wasn’t even considered a major problem. After all, wars in Unclaimed Territory happened all the time.
But sudden attacks on floors requiring cooperation, or pushing climbers into danger by any means necessary—those happened quite often too.
‘Of course, the Association and Government deny it.’
Usually, they either covered it up completely without leaving evidence, or if caught, they claimed it was merely an individual’s transgression.
And truthfully, while China was most notorious, there was considerable suspicion that other nations engaged in similar activities.
They simply did it less frequently or more carefully, so they rarely got caught.
“Well, I’m probably not the only one being targeted.”
I set down my phone.
I’d anticipated this from the moment I decided not to join any specific Guild or Association.
Those not belonging to particular organizations were far easier targets.
So I didn’t suddenly become fearful of that reality.
I’d been prepared from the start.
As for my Territory, while they say it’s being hunted, they probably won’t find it anytime soon.
Unclaimed Territory is absurdly vast.
Of course, nothing is absolute.
Even though it had no connection to power struggles on Earth, I’d already been attacked once.
Baek Jin-woo said the Association could intervene if I wanted, but I didn’t bother responding.
‘In the end, to overcome these various dangers, I need to become stronger.’
If I grew stronger and my Territory grew stronger, then even if someone threatened us, we could overcome it.
“Alright. Let me just eat and head back.”
I hadn’t planned to rest long anyway, but now I thought I should eat quickly and return.
So I took out something simple from the refrigerator, warmed it up, and immediately returned to my Territory.
* * *
My Territory was peaceful.
There had been a battle just days ago, yet judging from people’s expressions, nothing had happened.
When I mentioned this thought, Cheon-ung, sitting beside me, answered simply.
“It’s probably because the battle itself ended in our overwhelming victory.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. The enemies who came to our side only self-destructed and shook the barrier, and you swept away all of them on the other side, didn’t you?”
Now that I heard it, that was indeed the case.
From the perspective of the villagers who participated in the battle, everything was over before they knew it.
Rather, those who felt pride in the village seemed more numerous, having achieved such an overwhelming victory.
“That’s a relief. Anyway, when are you leaving?”
I turned to Cheon-ung and asked.
The territory that had originally belonged to Bargenthor had become my secondary stronghold. For now, I’d entrusted its management to Cheon-ung.
“Ah, I’ll be heading out soon. I’m just resting a bit before I depart.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes, sir. Don’t worry. I’ll manage it well!”
Cheon-ung spoke with confidence.
I nodded at his demeanor.
If I’d judged him on our first meeting, I might have doubted him, but after hearing from Baek-seol, it turned out he wasn’t entirely without talent for managing people.
While his work could be a bit rough around the edges, he possessed an inherent charisma that allowed him to command respect.
Besides, there was no one else available to take over the village’s management right now anyway.
I had Maria in mind for the future, but she’d need time to adjust once she arrived.
“Take this with you when you go.”
I then retrieved something from my inventory and handed it to Cheon-ung.
It was a ring.
“What is this?”
“A communication artifact. Within The Tower, it works anywhere and anytime except during mission operations. You charge it by placing a mana stone against it.”
“Oh, isn’t something like this expensive?”
“It’s not cheap. But it was necessary to have one.”
I’d purchased them all at once—one for myself, one for Baek-seol, one for Cheon-ung, and one for Maria who would be joining soon—which had cost me a fair amount.
But the performance was solid, and it was essential for operating a territory.
Besides, considering my income, the price wasn’t that burdensome.
“Rest a bit before you go, then.”
“Yes! Understood!”
I left Cheon-ung’s spirited response behind and headed toward my cottage.
Opening the door and stepping inside, the well-organized interior came into view.
Since I occasionally trained inside, the space contained only the essential furniture.
Yet among those furnishings, one thing stood out conspicuously.
It was an egg.
“Hmm.”
I brought over a chair and sat before it, stroking my chin thoughtfully.
“Onyx, what kind of egg could this possibly be?”
―Isn’t that already the fifth time you’ve asked that, master?
“I’m curious enough to ask that many times.”
I’d obtained this egg as a reward previously. Unfortunately, when I checked its information, it only displayed “???’s Egg.” Naturally, there was no detailed description either.
I’d shown it to Baek-seol and others, but no one knew its identity.
So for now, I kept it at home, placed on a large cushion with a warm, plush blanket, and even set out a luminous stone that emitted gentle heat.
And every time I visited the territory, I checked on it periodically, but so far there were no signs of it hatching.
“At least it’s alive, right?”
―Yes. I can sense that clearly. A strong vitality emanates from within.
“I see. But since you’re a snake too, couldn’t you incubate eggs?”
―…Are you serious right now?
“No, just joking.”
Faced with Onyx’s contemptuous tone, Jung Han-sung started to say something but simply laughed and claimed it was a joke.
Onyx then flicked his tongue with a sharp hiss and withdrew his head into his armor.
Jung Han-sung pretended not to notice and leaned back against the chair’s backrest.
It wasn’t that he wanted to rest again—there was one more thing he needed to verify.
‘The subscription window.’
Upon activating the ability, a subscription window unfolded before him.
Jung Han-sung scrolled through the channels he’d bookmarked, then his gaze fixed on one in particular.
[Sage Arsella’s Bestiary of Illusory Creatures]
He’d discovered it while searching for channels that might help identify the egg’s nature.
‘But it feels wasteful to subscribe to a channel just to confirm the identity of this one egg.’
Jung Han-sung stroked his chin again.
If there were other matters where this channel’s knowledge could be useful, he’d subscribe immediately. Besides, there was no guarantee the egg’s information would even be in that channel.
After deliberating briefly, Jung Han-sung deferred the subscription and moved to another tab.
In truth, what he’d originally wanted to check was something different—’membership’.
“I’ve been wanting to try this feature too….”
This membership function had appeared after his subscription ability was upgraded last time.
Simply put, by subscribing to a specific channel’s membership, he could receive subscription discounts or membership perks….
He’d tested other features once each, but he’d never actually used this membership feature yet.
It had been difficult to decide which transcendent’s membership to join.
However, he’d now narrowed the candidates down to three.
‘Arthur, Heavenly Demon, and the Owner of Necronomicon.’
These three transcendents formed the foundation of who Jung Han-sung was today.
From Arthur, he’d learned basic combat methods and swordsmanship. From Heavenly Demon, though the instruction was brief, he’d learned much about the realm of martial arts.
As for the Owner of Necronomicon, there was no need to elaborate. The necromancy he currently used was almost entirely learned through them.
“Hmm.”
Deliberating over this membership would likely lead to endless procrastination, so Jung Han-sung decided he needed to make a decision right now.
Thus, Jung Han-sung first recalled the membership’s most significant characteristic.
‘Membership consumes magical stones periodically until it’s cancelled….’
He could cancel it later if it became unnecessary, but for his first channel, he wanted to commit for the long term.
Yet as he thought about it, his heart quickly leaned toward one option.
“What I need most right now is ultimately the Owner of Necronomicon’s channel, isn’t it?”
He’d subscribe to Arthur’s channel eventually, but he had no immediate plans to do so.
Arthur had told him to return once he’d grown sufficiently strong.
The same applied to Heavenly Demon’s channel. He hadn’t yet fully digested the teachings he’d received, so there was no reason to subscribe immediately.
On the other hand, he continued to feel a sense of incompleteness regarding necromancy. He’d even subscribed to the channel intermittently before.
There were two membership slots available, but the reason he wanted to choose only one was simple.
‘Subscribing to another channel alongside necromancy right now would be overreaching.’
Membership required periodic payments, so there was no need to join immediately.
As for the remaining slot, it would be better to wait until I had fully internalized the Shadowless Divine Thief’s abilities before deciding.
“All right. I’ve made my decision.”
After deliberating, I muttered those words, and Onyx—who had buried his head inside his armor—peeked back out.
―Which one?
It seemed he couldn’t contain his curiosity.
I suppressed the urge to laugh and opened my mouth.
“Owner of Necronomicon. It’s the area where I feel most lacking in necromancy.”
―A solid choice.
Onyx also voiced his agreement with my decision. Once I’d committed to it, everything else fell into place effortlessly.
I immediately navigated to the membership tab, found the Owner of Necronomicon, and pressed join.
[Do you wish to join the membership of ‘Owner of Necronomicon’?]
“Yes.”
I retrieved a magic stone from my inventory and confirmed. The magic stone I’d placed down transformed into light and vanished, then another message appeared.
[You have successfully joined the membership of ‘Owner of Necronomicon’]
[As a membership benefit, you receive ‘Finger Bone of the Deceased’]
At the same time, a black finger bone dropped onto my palm with a soft tap.
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————