Something Keeps Appearing in My Subspace - Chapter 213
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
213. Garden of Mist (4)
[Dragon Guild Facing Difficulties in Monster Subjugation?]
[Garden of Mist Gate—Five Days of Complete Silence….]
While the Dragon Guild remained inside the Garden of Mist, Korea buzzed with speculation about the Gate.
The subjugation was taking longer than usual.
Of course, some Gates did require extended operations. There had been Gates with time limits approaching a month.
Yet people gossiped for two specific reasons.
First, the Dragon Guild rarely spent extended periods subjugating Gates.
Second, this Gate had a precedent—a hunter team had failed here before.
-Wait, the previous team failed in just four hours and the Gate opened, so five days means something’s wrong, right?
┗Yeah, looks like they’re in trouble
-What happens to us if the Dragon Guild falls?
┗Honestly, it won’t change much in our daily lives
┗Are you kidding? If a discharge-type Gate opens, the Dragon Guild is what we’re counting on
Such anxieties were commonplace, though. There had been plenty of worry when they entered the Trial Gate.
But five days, combined with the precedent of a previous hunter team’s failure, made the chatter louder than usual.
-Guys, wait a bit. Depending on the Gate’s characteristics, some require extra time after passing certain thresholds
┗Yeah, we don’t know yet
-If there’s a maze-like structure inside the garden and they’re navigating it, that could take a while
┗What maze? Don’t you know they have a Space Mage and a Red Dragon? They could fly on the dragon and break through any maze
┗That’s just an analogy. It depends on the Gate’s characteristics. Advance teams often take over a week
┗But the Dragon Guild rarely takes that long?
┗Is this guy an idiot? Even he said it’s rare. Maybe this is one of those rare cases
Of course, the Dragon Guild had no idea such discussions were happening outside the Gate and remained focused on enduring the poison.
.
.
.
[Skill ‘Poison Resistance (Rank E)’ has increased in level.]
[Skill ‘Poison Resistance (Rank E)’ has increased in level.]
I wasn’t sure what to call that enormous white mushroom, but honestly, I wanted to call it a lucky mushroom.
“I’ve leveled up twice.”
“Again?”
“It’s probably because my stamina is high, so I can endure longer.”
At my words, Mister closed his mouth with a slight smile.
“Maybe I should try enduring a bit longer too.”
“If it feels uncertain, it’s better to come out. I can push further because I have the Subspace, anyway.”
“True.”
This attempt to raise poison resistance had to be different from before. We’d all endured together and rotated the ring, but now I had to enter alone.
Without the ring, I’d be poisoned rapidly and my body would weaken in no time.
I had the Subspace to push myself to more extreme limits, but the others had to wear the ring at a safer threshold.
I’d considered other methods too. After all, we could check each other’s condition through the Cooperation Ring.
-What if we knocked someone completely unconscious and had Han Hye pull the ring off?
But we tried it once or twice and stopped immediately. Since we needed to rotate who wore it, doing that would have wasted time instead.
Once someone put on the ring to recover their senses, the others had nothing to do. After that, we used it in rotation with proper intervals.
Of course, with five of us sharing it, there was inevitably downtime. We used that for training.
Min-jae used magic while the Mister, Han Chul, Lee Shin-hee, and I crossed swords.
“Phew. You’ve certainly grown stronger.”
It had been quite a while since I’d crossed blades with Lee Shin-hee. She’d once asked me to teach her swordplay.
After that, we’d practiced occasionally, but I switched instructors once Han Chul arrived.
I figured she’d learn better from Han Chul, who focused on defense, rather than from me with my swift-strike style.
This was the first time in a long while, and her progress was impressive. Her defensive swordplay had become quite solid.
“Brother! I leveled up too!”
“Good work. Come rest for a bit.”
Regardless, since our main objective was raising poison resistance, we needed to concentrate more when approaching the Lucky Mushroom.
I’d provoked it several times, but it showed no signs of attacking us while moving.
Instead, it released even more potent toxins—exactly what we wanted. So from day two onward, we deliberately stimulated it periodically.
Of course, we weren’t just sitting idle. Plant-type monsters had come our way since the first provocation.
“They’re not coming anymore.”
However, once we’d eliminated all the plant monsters infested by the mushroom within this garden, enemies stopped arriving at some point.
Just a repetitive cycle of getting poisoned and detoxifying all day long.
To be honest, it would’ve been a lie to say I wasn’t bored. Wasn’t it just the same day repeating? And under quite uncomfortable circumstances at that.
With poisonous mist full of mushroom spores on all sides, even eating felt unpleasant.
“We just have to endure it.”
“Right. We have to endure it.”
But who are we, after all?
Professional hunters with unwavering resolve. Leaving in a situation like this just because we’re bored would be abandoning our duty as hunters.
Of course, the discomfort persisted. Even after washing, spores immediately clung to our bodies.
On top of that, we had to wake up periodically during sleep to monitor our poisoning status.
[The skill ‘Poison Resistance (Grade E)’ has advanced in rank.]
[The skill ‘Poison Resistance (Grade D)’ has increased in level.]
But the results were undeniable. The rank itself had risen, not just the level. Over the past five days, everyone in our guild had acquired a Grade D Poison Resistance skill.
Moreover, we’d solidified the skill levels properly. My own Poison Resistance had reached level five.
It was thanks to continuously provoking the Lucky Mushroom and drawing out its toxins.
Though the rank itself was low at Grade D, this alone would make a significant difference going forward.
“This should give us peace of mind.”
“Even if we’re hit with extreme poison, we’ll have time to rotate the ring.”
We’d essentially extended the golden hour for poison exposure. Still, there were limits.
After five days of this, we’d reached a plateau where skill level gains were slowing.
“It seems I’m not gaining anymore.”
Since Han Chul, who already had the Poison Resistance skill, had hit his plateau, we’d all stopped at the same point, allowing us to recognize the limits of our growth.
“Let’s head out.”
“Yes. With D-rank Poison Resistance at level 5, we’ve definitely squeezed out the full benefit.”
The next problem was how to dispose of this Lucky Mushroom, but honestly, I didn’t deliberate much over it.
Mister charged the Dragon Scale Piercer to full power, Min-jae prepared his magic, and I naturally went with Incinerate.
-BOOM!
-BANG!
-WHOOSH!
The fully charged Dragon Scale Piercer pierced through the center of the Lucky Mushroom, and Min-jae’s magic set it ablaze.
The rest fell to my Incinerate. I even pulled out a flame talisman and used it at full power.
I’d thought about cutting off a piece to take for research, but I didn’t.
After all, you see it in movies—someone brings back the wrong thing from space and causes problems.
‘If this thing spreads wrong on Earth, it’ll be quite a headache.’
Since it was a mushroom, there were no agonized screams. However, mana surged violently from its body, filling the entire surroundings with poisonous fog.
This was far more potent than the poison we’d encountered when we first touched it.
“Huh? Fever time?”
“Isn’t this the final burning chance?”
At Mister’s words, my eyes widened too.
“Breathe! Breathe! Deep breaths!”
And we inhaled the poisonous fog the mushroom released right up until it burned away completely.
Since it was poison released at death, even with the Poison Resistance skill leveled up, the effect was quite noticeable.
[The skill ‘Poison Resistance (D-rank)’ has increased in level.]
Indeed, it was the final burning chance. Mister chuckled.
“That’s the stuff!”
In any case, once the Lucky Mushroom was completely burned away, the mist began to gradually fade.
There was a massive mycelial network underground, but it didn’t become a problem.
Whether it was powered by the Lucky Mushroom’s enormous mana or not, it began crumbling from beneath the mushroom shortly after.
And the mist soon disappeared entirely.
[Gate ‘Garden of Mist’ has been cleared.]
[You have gained experience.]
[You have leveled up.]
I didn’t discover the hidden reward. Perhaps something was concealed somewhere in the mist-filled garden.
However, I felt no regret about it.
Including the level-up during combat, I’d gained 2 levels. More importantly, it was the Poison Resistance.
I’d elevated a skill that didn’t exist before to D-rank and raised its level to 6. All guild members did the same.
‘Considering the Cold Resistance I obtained early on is still only level 4.’
You could say this was a reward worthy of a hidden objective.
.
.
.
“We’re out! We made it!”
“The Dragon Guild survived!”
The moment we stepped out of the Gate, I couldn’t help but be taken aback. Normally, there was cheering when we emerged.
But this time, the roar of the crowd was several times louder than usual.
Moreover, while there were typically many people at the Gate entrance, there were usually far fewer when we exited.
How could people wait indefinitely when they had no idea when we’d come out?
“What is this….”
This time, there was an enormous crowd. I noticed that a separate space had been set up for people to bow or pray.
Glancing over, I saw a sign that read “Wishing for the safe return of the Dragon Guild.”
“What’s going on here?”
I wasn’t the only one bewildered. Among the Association Staff rushing over, I could hear people’s voices.
“Wow, look at their condition. They must have had a rough time.”
“Did they fight nonstop for five days?”
Only then could we understand why all this had happened.
“You were in there for quite a while, weren’t you?”
“Right? Since the other team’s subjugation failed just hours ago, people must have been paying close attention.”
When the Hunter Association staff asked what had happened, I simply told them we’d returned without major injuries.
After that, reporters approached.
“Hunter Han Hye! You spent quite a long time in the Gate! Since this is unusual, many people were worried—was it that difficult of a Gate?”
“Ah, well… I was in there for a while to raise my poison resistance?”
“Pardon?”
Only now did I realize that all the repeated poisoning and detoxification must have accumulated considerable fatigue.
I’d answered without thinking much about it, but seeing the reporters’ flustered expressions, I immediately knew I’d made a mistake.
* * *
[Why did the Dragon Guild stay in the Gate so long?]
[Repeatedly poisoning and detoxifying to raise poison resistance skill level… The Dragon Guild’s obsession!]
-Are these guys not insane?
-They repeated poison → detoxification for five days just to level up a skill? Is this something humans would do?
┗The Dragon Guild, these crazy bastards lol
-I guess you have to go that far to break the world record and level up simultaneously
-You guys don’t seem to know, but most hunters would do the same in that situation?
┗Seems like you’re the one who doesn’t know;; Even if you do it a little, you wouldn’t repeat it for five days lol
┗For real, I heard it was a place full of toxic fog—five days of repetition doesn’t make sense
┗The guys below are hunters who couldn’t even get C-rank, right? That’s why you can’t do it
-Masochist Princess lol
┗What’s a masochist princess?
┗Someone called Han Hye the master of her own space before
┗lololol Masochist Dragon← this is hilarious too
In truth, most veteran hunters would have done the same thing if the circumstances aligned.
However, it was only natural that such actions would become a major topic of conversation among ordinary people.
“Sigh.”
However, what truly concerned me was something else entirely. Mazo Princess? I disliked the “Mazo” part, but setting that aside—a princess, no less.
I hadn’t hidden my occupation without reason, yet someone’s crude jokes were gradually seeping through.
Well, Mister seemed to be pretending not to know even though he did. There had been instances where he’d been caught before. He was naturally playful by nature, but perhaps he was restraining himself because the jokes directed at me had gotten out of hand.
I desperately hoped this wouldn’t become a meme.
-Han Hye, the schedule for the second-tier Gold Ticket has been confirmed.
The singularity occurred at that moment. It was the instant the second-tier Gold Ticket schedule was announced.
“…As I thought, was it this?”
The Ring of Conspiracy deepened in color. It seemed the Übermenschen were targeting the day of the second-tier Gold Ticket.
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————