I Just Subscribed and It’s the Best Hunter of All Time - Chapter 195

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

#Chapter 195.
But at that moment, the ground beneath them began to shake violently.
The Ancient Ruins were collapsing.
“Move faster.”
Jung Han-sung gritted his teeth against the pain coursing through his body and accelerated his pace.
I had to escape the Ancient Ruins as quickly as possible.
The entire Ancient Ruins groaned in agony.
Rummmmmble—!
Hearing that sound alone, it seemed miraculous that everything hadn’t already collapsed.
Those who had missed their window to enter. Those who had been prevented from entering. And those who had come merely to spectate—all of them watched the scene unfold.
They chattered amongst themselves as they observed the collapsing Ancient Ruins.
“If it’s collapsing, does that mean the dungeon’s been cleared?”
“Probably, right? It wouldn’t just collapse for no reason, would it?”
“Or maybe someone inside accidentally triggered a trap.”
Of course, they had no way of knowing what had transpired within.
And so they debated with serious expressions.
“If it’s been cleared, who would have claimed the treasure?”
“Surely Aegis, right? Even if Green Forest has been rising lately, they’re not exactly a Tower-tier guild in China, are they?”
“True. Besides, the top three guilds in China have been radio silent for some reason.”
Fundamentally, those gathered here shared the same sentiment as the internet outside—that Aegis would emerge victorious.
And for good reason.
Unless a Tower-tier guild had emerged from China, Green Forest was, strictly speaking, at the tail end of the first tier, or perhaps tier 1.5.
While the elite among their ranks were said to rival Tower-tier guilds, such individuals rarely involved themselves in ventures like this.
But then again, the same applied to Aegis.
“But Aegis wouldn’t have sent their absolute elite either, would they? So how would we know?”
“Come on, the pool is still different.”
“Green Forest is famous for having plenty of members!”
“Is that the same thing? Besides, Aegis has plenty of people too. They’re number one in the United States.”
“Is that so?”
“But who knows? Just because someone’s strong doesn’t mean they automatically get the treasure, right? This isn’t some survival game.”
“That’s true too.”
And so they continued their back-and-forth speculation about who had claimed the Ancient Ruins’ treasure.
The difference from the internet was that few here were discussing Jung Han-sung.
There were scarcely any Koreans among those gathered near the Ancient Ruins, and since he was an individual rather than a guild member, his notoriety was simply too low.
Rummmmmble—!
The Ancient Ruins shook violently once more with a deafening roar.
And then, a group of figures burst forth from the entrance.
Naturally, all eyes turned toward them. But the interest was short-lived.
“Small fry.”
“Yeah.”
Not a single notable figure had emerged from those who escaped.
Moreover, their gaunt complexions and bodies covered in wounds made it painfully obvious they had barely survived the ordeal.
Several more survivors appeared afterward, but few among them could be considered renowned.
Then, after some time had passed, figures everyone would recognize finally emerged.
“It’s the Green Forest Bandits!”
Indeed, the Green Forest Bandits Guild—one of the guilds that had seemed likely to gain something from these Ancient Ruins—had appeared.
Yet their expressions also seemed far from bright.
While one could excuse the look of those barely clinging to life, their faces were far too dark to suggest they had secured anything of value.
“Do you think they’re deliberately keeping quiet about it?”
“But their expressions seem too genuine for that, don’t they?”
The onlookers watched them with puzzled expressions.
Naturally, no one dared approach them directly to ask if they had obtained anything.
Asking such a question of those who had barely escaped death would not have been surprising if blades came flying in response.
In any case, after the Green Forest Bandits withdrew, there was a lull before two more guilds of some renown came pouring out.
Yet their expressions were little different from those of the Green Forest Bandits.
They too appeared to have barely escaped with their lives.
Thus, the spectators eagerly anticipated the arrival of those who had yet to emerge.
The Aegis Guild, specifically.
And approximately five minutes later, the figures everyone had been waiting for finally appeared.
“It’s the Aegis Guild!”
“Oh!”
All eyes turned toward the newly emerged Aegis Guild.
Even those who had returned alive from the Ancient Ruins focused their attention on Aegis.
Unlike themselves, who had obtained nothing, they were curious whether the Aegis Guild had secured anything.
Among those who had entered the Ancient Ruins, aside from themselves, only Aegis seemed capable of having obtained something.
“Did you obtain anything?”
At that moment, someone from the Green Forest Bandits stepped forward and posed the question.
As people reacted with surprise to such a direct inquiry, a sharp voice answered from the Aegis Guild side.
“No. We only found mediocre items at best.”
The one who answered was the leader of the Aegis Guild.
With those words, he held up a single sword, and the eyes of those watching gleamed.
The appearance of the blade itself seemed anything but ordinary.
Though he had called it mediocre, it appeared to be at least Epic-grade.
However, those with knowledge of items wore disappointed expressions.
An Epic-grade sword was certainly not without value, but it fell far short of what one would expect as a treasure from the Ancient Ruins.
Previous Ancient Ruins had yielded treasures known to possess effects of at least Legendary-grade or higher.
This was why the Aegis Guild member had described it as mediocre.
“Was the Ancient Ruins itself a bust?”
The man from the Green Forest Bandits who had stepped forward furrowed his brow as he spoke.
The Aegis Guild member hesitated briefly before opening his mouth to respond.
“No.”
“No?”
“Yeah. It seems like what we reached wasn’t a proper ending either. In fact, the collapse itself wasn’t caused by us.”
“There was a separate cause for the collapse?”
“That’s what I’m thinking. It seems like someone else touched something.”
Since everyone else could hear that conversation, they all wore puzzled expressions.
Meanwhile, a few of those who had entered the Ancient Ruins briefly recalled someone at that moment.
A man they had made contact with. And they looked toward the Ruins Entrance.
But no one emerged from the entrance anymore.
Crrrrrunch!
And right then, a tremendous sound erupted once more, and the Ancient Ruins began to collapse.
Those nearby hastily retreated, and before long, the Ancient Ruins crumbled completely, leaving only debris in its wake.
The survival rate for this Ancient Ruins expedition was less than approximately fifty percent.
* * *
“That was close.”
I turned back and spoke.
Far behind, the completely destroyed remains of the Ancient Ruins were visible.
Beside me was a small entrance leading to a Corridor.
But the Corridor beyond the entrance was completely collapsed and blocked, just like the Ancient Ruins.
In fact, the escape had been quite dangerous as the Corridor crumbled in real time.
Normally, a collapsing Corridor wouldn’t be particularly dangerous, but my physical condition was in terrible shape.
I was able to escape in time thanks to riding on Thunder Wolf’s back.
“Still, you managed to get out safely.”
Cho Cheon-woong spoke with a bright expression.
“Didn’t you also secure the Ancient Ruins’ treasure? That staff must be the treasure, right?”
His gaze was directed toward the staff in my hand.
It was Kaltar’s staff. After defeating him, it didn’t disappear, so I took it with me.
I looked at the staff and spoke.
“Hmm. For now, it seems to be at least Legendary grade.”
Unfortunately, no item description appeared, but judging from how Kaltar had used it back then, it seemed to be at least that level.
It could even be higher—perhaps a numbered staff.
I’ll need to get it appraised to know the details.
“Well, the biggest gain is something else entirely.”
I put the staff, which I’d been absentmindedly holding, into my inventory and looked at the back of my hand.
A mark still remained there.
A trace indicating that I had subjugated Kaltar’s soul.
The greatest gain from this Ancient Ruins expedition was obtaining Kaltar’s soul in perfect condition.
‘With a soul this powerful, its value would be astronomical.’
If I subjugated it and properly transformed it into a Spirit Servant?
I could command a mage of even higher caliber than myself as my subordinate.
Even if I failed to subjugate him, there were plenty of alternatives. I could grind his soul away and nurture another spirit servant, or seal him within an item instead.
The pattern flickered briefly, as if sensing Han-sung’s thoughts of treating himself like some mere object, but no voice emerged.
Apparently, he had no desire to exchange words with Han-sung.
But Han-sung paid it no mind and lifted his head once more.
“Let’s move for now. There’s nothing good about lingering here.”
“Yes.”
“Understood.”
Since they had emerged quite far from the Ruins Entrance, there were no people nearby, but once those gathered around the ruins began to disperse, they would inevitably encounter others.
Despising crowds as he did, Han-sung decided they should depart immediately.
Thus, Han-sung’s group not only exited through an entirely different corridor but left early enough that no one else noticed his presence at all.
Even those he had encountered within the Dungeon believed Han-sung had been unable to escape the Ruins.
Thanks to this, I was able to claim the Ruins’ treasures without a single rumor spreading.
“It’s certainly true that word of obtaining the Ruins’ treasures would do us no favors,” Maria said.
She summoned her own mount and spoke while riding alongside Thunder Wolf.
“In the early days, there weren’t many powerful individuals, so those who obtained the Ruins’ treasures faced little interference. But circumstances have changed dramatically now.”
“If word spreads that I’ve obtained these treasures, there will be quite a few who come to attack.”
“Indeed.”
Han-sung nodded in agreement.
Within The Tower, those possessing expensive items were frequently targeted for attack.
During the course of clearing The Tower, one could kill someone without leaving any trace.
But if it wasn’t merely expensive items—rather, treasures from the Ruins themselves?
They would likely come charging with eyes blazing.
They might even declare a Territory War.
“But then, shouldn’t we also carefully sell off the treasures we brought from the Storage?” Cho Cheon-woong asked with concern in his voice.
Han-sung answered simply.
“We can sell them gradually over time. There’s no rush anyway. And most of them are Epic grade or lower, so it’s fine.”
Since items don’t come with special tags, if we divide and sell them with proper intervals, no one will grow suspicious.
At this, Cho Cheon-woong nodded in understanding.
But as they continued their conversation and headed toward a nearby Futuristic City in the distance.
A group suddenly appeared ahead of them.
“Stop right there!” they shouted loudly the moment they spotted Han-sung’s party.
At this, Han-sung furrowed his brow in confusion and brought Thunder Wolf to a halt.
Then, as if they had been waiting for this moment, they drew their weapons and spoke.
“Drop everything you have and leave!”
Then, as if they had been waiting, they picked up their weapons and spoke.
“Drop everything you have and go!”

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