Something Keeps Appearing in My Subspace - Chapter 125

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

125. Guild Conference (3)
Once my conversation with Liu Zhen ended, the hunters who had been watching us with keen interest quickly dispersed in different directions.
Wasn’t there usually some kind of networking after the conference? I turned to Seo Seung-yeon with a hint of confusion and asked directly.
“Is it always like this?”
“Usually? Well, everyone here is part of the vanguard, so they’re all rather guarded. Pride runs high. Unless someone approaches first, they mostly just talk among people they already know.”
“I see.”
“Still, it does seem more subdued than usual today. The more outgoing types usually mingle around, but I think the Australia situation is making people hesitant.”
That made sense. Hearing about Australia did cast a shadow over casual conversation. Everyone had things on their minds.
I already knew what was coming, but this was the first time these hunters were hearing about it.
Vanguard teams from each nation—if problems arose later, wouldn’t they be the ones most likely deployed to Australia?
Chun-bae had said I’d need to reach level 60 by my standards to capture the Catoblepas. And that wasn’t even soloing it.
By other hunters’ standards, it would take at least level 75 or higher. It was an enemy these vanguard teams couldn’t even estimate right now.
‘And there were countless other monsters sprawling across Australia.’
The atmosphere naturally grew heavy. Seo Seung-yeon shrugged.
“And usually, they meet separately.”
“Separately?”
“Because it’s risky to have important conversations in a place like this. Information could leak.”
Seo Seung-yeon glanced around the surroundings. True—in a foreign country, there was no telling what might be listening.
I didn’t sense any surveillance devices with my spatial awareness, but in reality, cameras were everywhere.
“When guilds with connections want to have candid conversations, they usually arrange to meet somewhere private. We’ve actually been getting a lot of contact requests because of this conference.”
“Really?”
“Of course. Han Hye came, after all. That’s why Mountain came too.”
So would I be meeting vanguard teams from other nations later? I pondered this internally, but Seo Seung-yeon continued.
“But Mountain blocked most of it. He said it might make Han Hye uncomfortable with the duel against Liu Zhen coming up.”
“Really? I’m fine with it.”
“I think he was just being annoying about it, honestly.”
At Seo Seung-yeon’s teasing remark, I let out a hollow laugh. Wait—was she joking?
Knowing Shin Chang’s personality, it was entirely possible he wasn’t.
“You’re not joking, are you?”
“Actually, I’m serious. He’s listening right now, so I just said it seemed that way.”
“…Ahem.”
I was whispering softly when I heard Shin Chang, sitting alone at a distance in the limousine, clear his throat.
He really had been listening. Well, with physical abilities on a different level than everyone else’s, of course he could.
“…It’s not particularly useful information.”
And he smoothly averted his gaze out the car window, even offering an excuse. At first glance, his expression seemed blank, but now that I understood his expressions somewhat, I could sense his embarrassment.
A member of the Dawn Light Guild sitting nearby smiled and nodded in agreement.
“He’s not wrong about that.”
“Right. Most of it is pointless anyway. They’re practically all thieves.”
“Thieves?”
“When you meet with them, it’s just information or item exchanges that weren’t reported to the Gate Countermeasures Committee… It’s hard to balance the value.”
“Ah, right. They’re just going to listen and not actually give us anything worthwhile. Same with items.”
The Dawn Light Guild member nodded in agreement.
“Yeah. It’s hard to find decent people. The ones who greeted us right after we came up are about the only ones we can really work with. Mutual aid?”
Hunters belong to their respective nations. They’re colleagues tasked with resolving the Gate crisis that has befallen Earth, but in another sense, they’re also competitors.
Even the advance teams receiving enormous funding and attention could act this way when their own interests were at stake.
“So what do we do now?”
Min-jae, who had been listening quietly, tilted his head and posed the question. It wasn’t even evening yet.
There was nothing particularly to do until the second day of the Guild Conference tomorrow.
“Rest.”
“Rest.”
“Just relax.”
The Dawn Light Guild members answered in unison.
“We’re always training normally, so we should rest when we get the chance like this. It’s awkward to spar or train here anyway.”
That made sense. The accommodation didn’t have much open space, and sparring outside would be inconvenient.
Our combat information could leak out.
“Get plenty of rest. Recovery is important too. The Dragon Guild probably pushed themselves harder to get here.”
I nodded as well. Our guild rarely had rest days except right after clearing a Gate.
I had my match against Liu Zhen tomorrow evening, but the guild members deserved a good two or three days of rest.
* * *
The second day of the Guild Conference arrived. Last evening, I’d spent time chatting with the Dawn Light Guild members before turning in early.
Han Chul had been diligently doing bodyweight exercises in his room. I didn’t stop him. He was still in rehabilitation.
In any case, the second day of the Guild Conference was an information exchange forum where advance teams from each nation discussed unusual phenomena observed in recent Gates.
Various discussions took place, but nothing particularly noteworthy emerged. Everyone was keeping their important information close to the chest.
“They say it used to be very productive, but these days people just hide things. It’s lost a lot of meaning.”
This was a change that came about as stability returned following the Gate crisis. Whether to call it positive or negative was unclear.
You could say things had become more comfortable, but conversely, it also meant the bonds between nations had weakened.
“We encountered a new type of swarm monster. It was a plant-type creature, but what appeared to be different individuals were actually all parts of a single organism sprouting from one root.”
That said, there wasn’t only useless information shared.
In truth, it was mostly the hunter superpowers with top-tier advance teams who kept information hidden.
They were in direct competition with other nations and industries.
It’s awkward to say, but Korea wasn’t exempt from this either.
The truth is, I was doing the same thing—keeping information about Chun-bae and Subspace to myself.
“We encountered a troll that uses magic. A troll sorcerer, and this crazy bastard… my apologies. It used blood magic, with blood as the medium.”
“Taking advantage of its rapid regeneration?”
“Yes. It was quite troublesome. Even when we cauterized its wounds with precise flame magic, it would inflict wounds on itself…”
“With an opponent like that, your best bet would be to eliminate it in a single decisive strike.”
After such discussions concluded, the Guild Conference ended. To be honest, I began to understand why the top-tier S-rank hunters didn’t attend.
Unlike the old days, there wasn’t much substance to it. Information like this could just be heard secondhand anyway.
Separately from that, after the conference ended, a peculiar tension hung in the air. It was because of me and Liu Zhen.
Most of the hunters looked at us with interest, their gazes alternating between the two of us.
The outcome would be decided in two or three hours. Liu Zhen appeared composed, and so did I.
There was a brief time gap between the Guild Conference and the banquet, so the hunters returned to their accommodations to change clothes.
‘It seems there’s a specific dress code for the conference and the banquet.’
While foreign hunters wore flashy outfits, I simply came in the same black suit I’d worn during the conference.
Lee Shin-hee and Seo Seung-yeon wore restrained dresses.
“Oh, you look so beautiful.”
“No, you look more beautiful, Seung-yeon.”
“Come on, there’s a different elegance about you, isn’t there? Don’t you think so, Han Hye?”
“Huh? You both look wonderful.”
I answered the sudden question, and Seo Seung-yeon’s eyes widened as she elbowed her colleague beside her.
“What’s that? You need to compliment us more. Right?”
“That’s right. Y-o-u, l-o-o-k, s-o, b-e-a-u-t-i-f-u-l.”
Han Soo from the Saebyeok Guild spoke mechanically with a playful expression.
“Of course, Shin-hee is truly beautiful.”
At those words, Seo Seung-yeon pinched Han Soo’s side hard.
“Ow! Sorry.”
Han Soo apologized quickly, but Seo Seung-yeon glared and didn’t release her pinching hand.
“Say it again.”
“I’m joking, just joking. You’re beautiful. I mean it. Look, everyone’s staring.”
“They’re not looking at me—they’re looking at Han Hye because of that formal suit.”
That was certainly true. Everyone was looking at me with surprised eyes. It was because of the clothes.
Liu Zhen had come in hunter gear with a sword at his side. When I entered, he tilted his head with a startled expression.
Well, I could change anytime, so I simply dressed appropriately for the occasion.
Everyone else was wearing formal attire, so wouldn’t it be odd to wear hunter gear? Like Liu Zhen over there.
* * *
Floor 214.
The banquet hall was wider than Floor 216. Among the dining areas, there was a small training ground.
“We extend our deepest gratitude to all the hunters who participated in this Guild Conference held in China…”
The banquet didn’t start with sword clashing. The opening remarks finished and the dining began.
The food was served buffet-style rather than as courses.
I thought courses might be served given the scale of the event, but apparently it had been buffet-style from the start since the conference’s purpose was cultural exchange and networking.
Even though it was buffet-style, the food was prepared at the national level, so it was said to be exceptionally excellent.
“Are you going to eat?”
As I stood to get food, Lee Shin-hee followed and asked.
“Yes. Why?”
“You don’t know what they might have done to it.”
“Come on, it’s buffet-style, not courses. Surely they wouldn’t do that.”
If the food appeared on its own, that would be one thing, but it didn’t. All the other hunters were eating anyway.
“Liu Zhen isn’t eating though?”
Lee Shin-hee gestured with her chin. Looking over, Liu Zhen stood with his arms crossed, regarding me with an incredulous expression.
“Doesn’t seem to have much appetite.”
“You’re quite composed.”
“Well, everyone else will eat and then spar, so sitting idle would be strange, wouldn’t it?”
Now that I thought about it, the other hunters were watching me fill my plate with curious eyes. Perhaps they found it odd that I was so calm before the match.
Just then, a foreign hunter approached me and asked something. It was in English, but without an interpreter present, I couldn’t understand it directly.
“He’s asking if you’ll be alright.”
Lee Shin-hee translated for me instead.
“Yeah. I’m fine.”
When I answered confidently, the other hunter grinned widely.
“He says he’s rooting for you.”
Then he said something to Lee Shin-hee, seemingly asking if she had time.
Lee Shin-hee shook her head, and the hunter withdrew with a disappointed expression.
As I continued filling my plate, I noticed wine and champagne bottles at the far end of the table.
“Should I have a drink?”
“What? Alcohol? Now?”
Lee Shin-hee was startled.
“It’s a banquet, after all.”
“Even so, wouldn’t that be too provocative?”
I suppose so.
True. They’re already glaring at me for eating, so if I drank on top of that, wouldn’t it cause an uproar?
“I could provoke them, but it wouldn’t be proper etiquette.”
Other people’s opinions mattered too. It was a shame.
I rarely drank normally, so I felt a slight pull toward it at an opportunity like this. Lee Shin-hee smiled slightly.
“Let’s drink together after the match.”
“Shall we?”
My mind was at ease, but I kept my meal light. Eating too much would hinder my movements.
Just enough to fill my stomach.
After clearing my plate and sitting quietly for a moment, Liu Zhen, as if he’d been waiting, headed straight toward me.
“Should we start now?”
Unlike before, a Hunter Association interpreter was also present at the table, so there were no communication issues.
“Sounds good.”
“You’re going to do it in those clothes?”
“No. Wait a moment.”
Whoosh.
I entered the Subspace right before their eyes. I left the Subspace open intentionally.
There was no need to officially confirm that time doesn’t flow inside.
When I emerged after changing, Liu Zhen’s expression looked slightly uncomfortable.
I wondered why, but it seemed to be because I’d made him wait openly in front of everyone.
Had I inadvertently touched a nerve?
“Ready?”
“Yes.”
“Let’s go.”
We hadn’t formally announced the start of the match with fanfare, but everyone’s eyes were on us, and the area naturally fell silent.
The training grounds were right next door, so we walked over quickly. Liu Zhen drew his sword, and I retrieved the Heavenly Sword from the Subspace.
‘This cool, weighty sensation….’
At the same time, I felt my physical abilities surge. I’d thought it before, but I had no confidence I could lose.
Suddenly, Liu Zhen’s sword came into view.
It was known to be among the finest of A-rank blades. Even compared to the Heavenly Sword, its appearance seemed fundamentally different.
“Hmm.”
A sudden clever idea struck me, so I raised my hand briefly and called for the interpreter to relay a message to Liu Zhen.
“Want to make a wager?”
“A wager?”
“Your sword on the line.”
I thought that if I was going to lose in this match and receive a lesson, it would be even better to gain something from it.

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