Something Keeps Appearing in My Subspace - Chapter 155

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

155. Treasure Vault (1)
The National Hunter Equipment Management Bureau.
That was the true name of what I called the Korean Hunter Association Treasure Vault. Though it hadn’t existed long, its scale was considerable.
When Korean Hunters didn’t use the weapons and artifacts they obtained from Gates, they sold them to the Association, or the Association itself participated in international auctions to acquire items.
Fundamentally, items ranging from D-rank to A-rank existed here. S-rank items were present too, but I had no idea what they were. The information hadn’t been disclosed.
‘The security is more rigorous than anywhere else.’
It was a place where people joked that security was maintained more strictly than Cheong Wa Dae itself. With items worth hundreds of billions of won gathered here, their combined value exceeded trillions of won.
Of course, considering the fact that Hunters exerted significant influence on national security, it was difficult to evaluate it purely by monetary value.
Military units were permanently stationed here, and Korean Hunters also took turns guarding it daily.
It was composed of at least B-rank Hunters, and like the standby teams for outbreak-type Gates, they came here to guard.
‘There had been cases of theft.’
Not in our country, but a Hunter Equipment Management Bureau in a European nation had been robbed before.
While there were attempted break-ins by petty thieves, there had been an attack by the Übermenschen.
As a result, 2 S-rank items and quite useful equipment below A-rank all fell into the hands of the Übermenschen.
Ordinary people had their access completely restricted, and even state-affiliated Hunters could only enter after submitting a request and scheduling a date.
“Wow, it must be because it was built not long ago. It’s so shiny and new.”
“All the latest security systems are installed here. I bet there’s a satellite monitoring just this area.”
This place was also located not far from the Hunter Association Vicinity.
The National Hunter Equipment Management Bureau and the Hunter Association together made this area what was called the Hunter District.
Since I had discussed this beforehand with Seo-ung, I was able to visit comfortably with my guild members.
Actually, visits had been possible even before.
‘It’s a kind of right that comes from having a contract with Korea.’
It wasn’t for nothing that various nations spent large sums purchasing quality items at international auctions.
The more items a nation possessed, the more it could appeal to Hunters.
Hunters could purchase or rent items owned by each nation after receiving permission.
Well, there had been no particular reason to visit before.
A Hunter’s rank wasn’t merely to indicate strength or provide tax benefits.
-Item purchases and rentals are only possible within the Hunter’s own rank tier
There were regulations for everything, and it made sense. An E-rank Hunter couldn’t rent B-rank equipment.
Moreover, the procedures themselves were quite complicated. Because these were state-owned items.
When a Hunter dies inside a Gate, the item disappears as well.
Therefore, the state verifies the Hunter team renting the item and the Gate they intend to enter before lending out the equipment.
‘It’s quite complicated.’
Because of this, Hunters below B-rank essentially couldn’t purchase or rent items.
Moreover, a certain minimum deposit had to be placed for rentals, and that process was extremely complicated.
“Welcome, members of the Dragon Guild. I’m Kim Ho-seok, in charge of your guidance.”
A staff member from the National Hunter Equipment Management Bureau and one Hunter from today’s standby team stood beside us.
It was standard procedure. Ordinary people might not be able to see if a Hunter was stealing.
“Thank you for your assistance.”
“Would you like to see the A-rank items first?”
Ah, there was one exception.
State-owned equipment could only be purchased or rented within one’s own rank, but that didn’t apply to us.
-Ah, the National Hunter Equipment Management Bureau? Of course it’s possible. S-rank is out of the question, but we can arrange for you to access up to A-rank items.
When I called Seo-ung, he told me they would grant me access to A-rank equipment.
It was a natural privilege afforded to us.
Normally, only Top-tier Guilds received such privileges, and we were now included in that category. In a way, it was only natural.
We were ranked first in the world, not just in our country, among similar power levels.
“Hmm.”
I pondered Kim Ho-seok’s suggestion for a moment. Should I start from lower ranks and work my way up, or begin with the higher grades?
Mister shrugged his shoulders.
“Let’s go straight for A-rank. No point wasting time.”
“Sure, why not.”
Since items Chun-bae knew about were more likely to be higher-grade, it made sense to start by looking at them first.
Besides, I’d been quite curious about them.
* * *
Perhaps because this was a space storing A-rank items, we had to pass through four layers of security before entering the inner chamber.
Along the way, there were spaces containing lower-rank items, but we couldn’t see them.
The items were displayed inside bulletproof glass cases, though even those were covered with special alloy plating during normal times.
“If this gets damaged, the entire building goes into lockdown.”
“The mana density here is incredibly high—does that factor into the security?”
I felt it the moment I stepped through the entrance. The density was extraordinarily high.
Even higher than the Training Facility, which was specifically designed with elevated mana density for cultivation purposes.
“Yes. When mana is compressed to such high density, even Hunters find it difficult to use their mana.”
“A countermeasure against Hunter intrusions, then.”
“Exactly. While there are Hunters stationed here, we have far more soldiers. Of course, it doesn’t completely prevent mana usage.”
A question suddenly occurred to me.
I wondered how these high-density mana devices actually functioned when they were supposed to resist mana erosion.
-It’s certainly not ideal. In fact, this is precisely what erosion desires.
‘Why is that?’
-Mana stones don’t emerge from Gates for no reason. Stones imbued with mana—their spread throughout the world is the same principle as mana itself spreading.
‘What? But we’ve already released quite a bit of it.’
-It’s an unavoidable current. Even from our perspective, we cannot avoid using mana stones. We can only endure by utilizing them.
In any case, after hearing the staff member’s explanation, I understood that even if the Übermenschen tried to raid this place, it wouldn’t be easy.
‘First, they’d have to deal with the military forces and Hunters outside….’
Before reinforcements could arrive, they’d need to breach four layers of security, and the moment anything was touched, the building would lock down.
Then they’d have to break through that again to escape, all while operating in high-density mana that makes mana usage difficult. It would be far from simple.
“Actually, when Han Hye first learned Teleportation, we were quite concerned about it.”
“Me?”
“Couldn’t you simply bypass all these facilities?”
“Huh? I suppose you’re right?”
Maybe I’m too kind-hearted. I never even considered this angle. I’d thought about smuggling through the Subspace, but not this.
“Should we raid some other country’s vault?”
“Pardon?”
“I’m joking.”
Kim Ho-seok chuckled awkwardly for a moment before breaking into laughter.
“Even if you hide your appearance, everyone will know. It’s not just us who were worried about Hunter Han Hye.”
“Right. I’m the only one who can use spatial teleportation.”
There were mages who used blinks around ten meters, but they were incredibly rare.
Among vanguard-type hunters, I was the only one who could use spatial teleportation.
Moreover, while my mana density was high, it wasn’t so overwhelming that I couldn’t use leap skills. My mana stat was quite substantial after all.
Hmm. If I’d lived a different life and ended up joining the Übermenschen…
‘Wouldn’t that be the birth of a legendary villain?’
Seo Seung-yeon had warned me back then, and now I understood why the Übermenschen had been watching me.
As we continued our conversation, we arrived at the space where the A-rank items were stored.
“Feel free to look around.”
The moment Kim Ho-seok touched the device, all the barriers surrounding the items began descending.
The A-rank items were revealed.
“Everyone, please feel free to browse.”
I told the guild members to look freely. Even A-rank items were fascinating to see.
Besides, I needed to have a conversation with Chun-bae.
“Oh?”
“Wow, this is insane.”
The guild members let out small exclamations as they looked around.
I felt the same way. A-rank items were incredibly rare.
Our guild didn’t have many A-rank items to begin with. Neither did I.
Han Chul was the only one carrying a few, equipment he’d obtained back during his days as a vanguard scout.
‘The only A-rank item I’ve obtained so far is the Red Dragon’s bone, isn’t it?’
I had plenty of high-grade skills, but items seemed to have an odd lack of connection with us.
Of course, I’d obtained many B-rank items that were worth A-rank value.
‘Lee Shin-hee’s ring is like that too, and my Heavenly Sword performs at A-rank level or higher depending on the location.’
Regardless, A-rank items had different specifications from the start.
[Reverse Current Pauldrons (A-rank)]
-The pauldrons automatically use water magic to defend against enemy attacks.
-Increases mobility in water and enables weak-level underwater breathing.
[Snow Field Crystal (A-rank)]
-A ring that absorbs cold. Prevents the wearer from feeling cold above a certain threshold.
-Stamina, Mana +3
The Reverse Current Pauldrons had the same efficiency as wearing a protection amulet that activated passively just by equipping it.
Of course, it couldn’t block attacks beyond a certain level, but considering the increased water mobility and underwater breathing, it truly deserved to be called A-rank.
The Snow Field Crystal also had sufficient value as an A-rank item.
That means if it’s a certain level of cold or above in A-rank, it would provide at least A-rank cold resistance capabilities.
‘That could work if we rent it when entering the Snow Field Gate.’
Purchasing was difficult because while the specs were decent, the price tag certainly wasn’t.
Of course, after spending 200 billion at the international auction, I still had over 300 billion remaining.
Combined with the reward money from this raid and Yong-yong’s merchandise profits, the guild could spend around 400 billion if needed.
But it felt wasteful to spend it here. Unless it was equipment with a ‘Hidden’ property that Yong-yong had mentioned.
Water Pauldrons weren’t absolutely necessary either.
-I can see a few items I recognize, but there’s no need to spend large sums on them. The Bloodsucking Dagger looks decent enough, but it doesn’t suit Han Hye.
[Bloodsucking Dagger (A-rank)]
-Applies healing effect to the user when inflicting wounds on enemies.
-Agility +5
It was an A-rank item with a very straightforward description, and with the +5 agility stat and its performance, it deserved the A-rank rating.
But this too felt impractical to use after spending that much money.
“Hmm. I would’ve liked to have it, but it’s not worth paying that price. For difficult Gates, maybe we’d just pay a deposit to rent? But do we have any such Gates coming up right now?”
It was Chul-gi’s comment, and I agreed with him.
“Then we’ll move to the B-rank section.”
I’d certainly gotten my fill of eye candy. I was starting to worry my standards for items were getting too high.
Even in the B-rank section, I couldn’t find any items with hidden properties.
-Items with hidden properties don’t appear that easily. They’re harder to find than Gates themselves.
-I do know of a few, but the number isn’t that large. It’s honestly a search with low probability.
It was Chun-bae’s comment. Well, if Chun-bae knew about them and they appeared right away, would they really be hidden items?
[Lightning Tome (C-rank)]
Then in the C-rank section, I discovered a fairly decent item.
“Brother, would it be okay if we bought this?”
It was Min-jae’s request, and it seemed to fit perfectly with the Heart of the Sea and lightning magic combination I’d recently obtained.
Since it was a C-rank item and reasonably priced for a magic tome, I purchased it after consulting with the guild members.
The magic itself was C-rank, but that didn’t matter. Min-jae was a mage after all.
Hadn’t an E-rank Fireball produced results comparable to an A-rank Fireball?
“Thank you all so much!”
That’s when we entered the D-rank section, and Chun-bae, who had been quiet, finally spoke.
-Han Hye, just a moment.
‘Hm?’
-There’s something rarer here than I expected. It would suit you well too.

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