I Just Subscribed and It’s the Best Hunter of All Time - Chapter 18

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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 18.
Blood erupted in all directions as the severed giant’s anguished screams pierced my eardrums.
For someone with a weak constitution, such a sight would shatter their will to fight in an instant.
But this giant was not so easily broken.
“In― gan―!”
As if seeking vengeance for his fallen comrade, the uninjured giant bellowed a savage cry and swung his massive arm toward me.
Yet regrettably, the giant’s attacks no longer posed any threat to me.
Whoosh―.
Rather than hastily evading, I simply stepped lightly as the arm hurtled toward me.
My body left afterimages in its wake, stretching and elongating before I materialized behind the giant.
It wasn’t merely a matter of moving quickly. I had read the flow of his attack and rode upon it.
Without releasing the rhythm I’d seized, I rotated my body and swung my blade.
Shhhhwack!
The giant’s back split open with a sickening crack.
“Gaaahhh! I’ll kill you! I’ll kill youuuu!”
The giant writhed in agony, yet swung his arm at me once more.
This time, I didn’t bother evading at all. I charged straight forward and unleashed my blade.
Crash-crash-crash-crash!
“Ugh!”
The giant convulsed in pain once again.
From his perspective, it appeared I’d swung my sword only once, yet dozens of wounds now covered his arm.
His entire limb, which had been a deep gray, was now drenched in crimson.
The disparity in our abilities was laid bare in a single moment.
Because of this, I stepped back and spoke instead of striking again.
“If you don’t wish to suffer further, kneel. Show your submission, and I’ll stop.”
But the giants, their spirits still unbroken, roared once more and charged toward me.
“Gwoooah!”
“It hurts! I’ll kill you, I swear I’ll kill you!”
I gazed at the two charging giants, my eyes gleaming with cold intensity.
‘Halfway measures won’t suffice.’
Stone giants were renowned for their stubbornness and combative nature.
I could certainly complete the mission by hacking their bodies to pieces, but I saw no reason to take the long way around.
“Kyaaahhh! When will this end!”
There was also Maria, screaming from a distance.
“Just wait a moment!”
“That’s what I’m saying! How much longer―! Kyah!”
I cleanly ignored Maria’s continued protests and turned my attention back ahead.
And I considered it.
‘Why not give it a try.’
I knew it well.
I knew it wouldn’t be perfect. I knew it was a reckless attempt.
But now, in this moment.
When my concentration was at its peak, I wanted to try it.
Beyond merely reading the flow and utilizing it—I wanted to create my own flow.
Whoosh—
I read the flow of the giants closing in before my very eyes.
The flow created by the intertwining of two beings was utterly chaotic.
Like watching a violent tempest bearing down upon me.
If I wished, I could ride such a tempest and rampage freely, but I wanted something more.
‘I’ll cut it.’
Cut through the flow, and moreover, impose my own flow upon it. With that resolve, the path revealed itself once more.
The moment my blade was about to move—
“Ugh….”
“Uhhh….”
The giants froze solid, their arms still outstretched.
Their normally grey faces had turned deathly pale, and cold sweat streamed down their foreheads.
Their instincts, not reason, were screaming a warning.
Death.
One more step forward and their necks would be severed clean off.
It was a warning that could not be ignored.
That was precisely why they had stopped mere inches from me.
“Hmm.”
Frozen in the posture of swinging my blade, I regarded the giants with cold eyes before withdrawing my sword.
Thud, thud!
Only then did the tension drain from the giants as they collapsed to the ground before hastily dropping to their knees.
“S-sorry!”
“We were wrong! Please don’t kill us!”
I spun the blade in my hand idly.
I didn’t know exactly what the giants had sensed, but I had never intended to kill them in the first place.
To be precise, I probably couldn’t have.
‘I was too hasty.’
My sword arm and shoulder tingled with numbness.
The price of attempting something beyond my permitted limits had come due.
If I hadn’t stopped myself, intoxicated by the blade….
‘It wouldn’t have ended at mere tingling.’
But there was no reason to mention such facts in the current situation.
I lifted my chin and issued a command to the giants.
“Call the other giants over there.”
“Understood!”
At that command, one of the giants sprang to his feet and called over the other two who were still pursuing Maria.
They exchanged bewildered glances but approached their companion with long, measured strides.
“Haa, haa. Is it… is it over?”
Maria, who had volunteered as bait, also returned and asked me.
I nodded.
“Yes. I just need to finish up.”
With those words, I turned back to the giants and lifted my sword slightly, whereupon they prostrated themselves flat on the ground once more.
“We, we show our submission!”
“What are you doing? Does your head hurt?”
The other two giants, unaware of the situation’s turn, wore confused expressions, but the two giants who had suffered at my hands paid them no mind and continued speaking.
“You are a great warrior!”
“That’s right! A great warrior! We pay you our respects!”
“We shall spread your greatness to all other giants! Every giant will pay you their respects!”
It seemed these words came not from mere self-preservation, but from genuine conviction.
Immediately after, messages began cascading before me.
[You have completed the objective of Floor 15, Hidden Floor ‘Land of Giants’.]
[You receive ten intermediate mana stones as a reward.]
[You have perfectly subjugated the rock giants.]
[An additional reward is granted for this outstanding Achievement!]
[You receive the Mask of Reverie!]
Messages appeared before Maria at the same moment, and she spoke with an excited expression.
“Wow! The rewards are really amazing!”
“Are they?”
“Yes! Five intermediate mana stones and the Crystal of the Earth itself! That’s incredible!”
Despite having already spent 200 million won on the commission, Maria was genuinely delighted.
Was she simply happy that decent rewards had come through? It was a way of thinking I couldn’t quite understand.
Meanwhile, I realized the rewards had been distributed differently between us.
‘Were they given proportionally based on contribution?’
Judging by the fact that the number of intermediate mana stones differed by a factor of two, that seemed to be the case.
As for the Mask of Reverie, I had no idea what it was.
I had no intention of asking Maria about it.
“Let’s head back for now.”
“Ah, yes!”
Since the rock giants were still ahead of us, Maria simply nodded without protest.
Just before we departed.
Maria spoke urgently.
“I’ll contact you again!”
“I don’t plan to take on any commissions for a while.”
“No, that’s not it!”
“Still, if you come across any useful information, please let me know.”
I said this to Maria, whose face had flushed in embarrassment, and immediately returned to my Unique Space.
Maria stared blankly at the spot where I had vanished, then clenched her fists tightly.
“No, what on earth… what is…”
For a moment, fury surged to the tips of her hair, but then the image of my earlier form flashed through her mind.
The way I had utterly dominated the stone giants. As that memory surfaced, her anger melted away like snow.
In its place bloomed something far more potent: greed.
‘That swordsmanship. Even being conservative, it’s definitely at least B-rank, no—A-rank or higher.’
Honestly, even seeing it with her own eyes, she couldn’t believe it. Such exquisite swordsmanship at these lower floors?
Most Hunters currently stationed above the 100th floor possessed primary skills that were merely B-rank.
Only one person in the Guild wielded an A-rank skill. S-rank skills hadn’t even been properly confirmed to exist yet.
Yet I already possessed swordsmanship so extraordinary that its exact rank defied assessment.
‘A true monster beyond classification.’
Maria’s eyes traced the space where I had stood.
Marcus, the Guild Master of Aegis and her father, earned the title “Iron Wall,” but those in the industry knew him by another name.
A talent collector.
Whenever he spotted exceptional talent, he would quite literally go mad with desire to pursue it.
And Maria had inherited that blood from her father. Very richly indeed.
“I’ll scout him no matter what. No matter what!”
Maria clenched her fists with renewed determination.
“That dangerous human left?”
“Yeah. He’s gone.”
“That human strong?”
“No!”
The moment she heard the giants’ conversation, she hurriedly fled The Tower.
* * *
Upon returning, the first thing I did was assess my physical condition. Then I exhaled a long, weary sigh.
‘It’s a mess again.’
For starters, my sword arm and shoulder throbbed with considerable pain.
The price of attempting techniques beyond my current limits.
But even setting that aside, I couldn’t claim my body was in good shape.
It wasn’t from wounds sustained during combat—the reason was simple.
‘My body can’t keep up with my techniques.’
Though the battle hadn’t lasted long, my body couldn’t match the level of techniques I’d deployed.
In truth, this was a chronic problem for me.
A side effect of my technical growth outpacing my physical conditioning.
“I should probably postpone the next lesson for a while.”
I muttered while massaging my tingling shoulder.
Attending lectures in this state would surely exhaust me within hours, just like last time.
With only two opportunities remaining, I decided it was better to first build up my stamina properly to maximize their value.
Fortunately, I already had a method in mind.
As I briefly organized my thoughts and lifted my head, Baek-seol, who had been waiting, trotted over and asked.
“Are you alright?” she asked.
Han-sung smiled in response.
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
“But your wounds….”
“Hm? Oh, this is just from when I was experimenting with a different technique. Other than being a bit tired, I’m perfectly fine.”
Despite Han-sung’s words, the worry lingering in Baek-seol’s eyes didn’t completely fade, but she quickly changed the subject.
“You have every right to be tired! You subdued those rock giants, after all! That’s truly a remarkable Achievement! I doubt any other climber has accomplished such an Achievement as quickly as you have!”
“Haha, thanks.”
It felt a bit like she was laying it on thick, but I didn’t offer any modest deflections about luck.
This time, I hadn’t relied solely on my subscription abilities—I’d accomplished it through my own genuine strength.
Of course, that didn’t mean I was rejecting my abilities or thinking I’d stop relying on subscription powers going forward.
I simply wanted to confirm how far I could go with my own strength alone.
“Right. I should check my rewards.”
After finishing my physical assessment, I approached the desk and retrieved the rewards that had entered my inventory.
“Wow! Ten intermediate mana stones!”
The intermediate mana stones that came as the objective completion reward were large in size and contained considerable mana.
They were premium quality among intermediate grades.
‘In terms of subscription credits, that’s ten Silver Tickets!’
I couldn’t pour all of this directly into subscriptions, but it was still worthwhile to have taken the risk and accepted Maria’s request.
Though I did receive separate compensation from Maria as well.
In any case, the true highlight of this reward was something else.
I retrieved the special reward that had been dormant in my inventory.
“What is that?” Baek-seol asked.
“It’s a special reward I received this time—it’s called the Mask of False Dreams. Oh, the description is appearing.”
The moment I held the white mask in my hand, I confirmed the message that had come to mind.
[Mask of False Dreams]
[Grade: Unique]
[Distorts the wearer’s physique, voice, scent, and aura—all of it.]
[Applies to all except those who possess divinity, and cannot be penetrated by any mystery or magic.]
“Oh!”
Upon reading the description, I let out a quiet exclamation of admiration.
The word “Unique” was plainly written in the grade section.
I explained the item to Baek-seol, who was wearing a curious expression.
She then responded with admiration.
“Wow, that’s an incredible artifact!”
“Right? But….”
I scratched my chin.
“It would be awkward to use outside.”
A mask itself was inherently conspicuous to wear around in public.
Though if I searched for practical applications, there were certainly ways to use it.
“Ah, but there’s actually a perfect place for that.”
“Where?”
“The Neutral Zone.”
“That’s right!”
Baek-seol nodded at my words and responded.
“Because you can enter the Neutral Zone now!”
“Exactly. I’ve cleared Floor 15.”
The Neutral Zone was a place accessible from Floor 15 onwards, where tower climbers from all over the world gathered, along with those who resided within The Tower itself.
In other words, it was a small city within The Tower.
As it happened, I had business in the Neutral Zone. There was a way to strengthen my body in a short period of time located there.
Baek-seol then spoke while wagging her tail.
“You’ll stand out anywhere, Master, so it’ll be quite useful!”
“Hmm, well, that’s not necessarily true, but…”
I recalled Maria and let out a soft chuckle.
“It would certainly make things less tiresome if I use it.”
“Exactly!”
I toyed with Mephisto’s mask while muttering to myself.
“In that case, I should clean up all the unnecessary items in the Neutral Zone while I’m at it.”
Items could be disposed of outside, and I’d already entrusted some to the Awaker Association for disposal.
But there was no need to dispose of everything only outside.
Some items held greater value inside The Tower than outside it.
“It wouldn’t be bad to spend magic stones generously and buy a Gold Ticket outright.”
I stroked my chin thoughtfully.
If I disposed of my current items decently, buying a Gold Ticket wouldn’t be impossible.
However, what bothered me was that despite trying various part-time jobs, I’d never seriously bought and sold items before.
At best, I’d only sold gift sets at a mart during holidays.
‘I could ask the Awaker Association to handle the sales for me.’
But that didn’t appeal to me.
If I relied on the Awaker Association from the start, it could become a habit.
Besides, I had an ability perfectly suited for this situation.
An ability that let me accomplish something I’d never done before as expertly as a professional, or even better.
‘The subscription window.’
I immediately opened the subscription window in the air. Then my gaze stopped at one particular channel.
The channel’s name was this:
[Mephisto’s Infallible Rhetoric]
I grinned wickedly.
“Shall I make some serious magic stones?”

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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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