Something Keeps Appearing in My Subspace - Chapter 242

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

242. Ja-tan (3)
-Crack!
A bizarre sound emanated from Ja-tan’s head—like an enormous, solid boulder fracturing. A fissure split across Ja-tan’s skull.
The effect of Severance, now elevated to S-rank, felt as though it were cleaving space itself. I’d managed to land a proper blow on the head that had only left scratches on Eshirel.
“Grraaaagh-!”
Ja-tan shrieked in agony. The shockwave from that cry was violent enough to shake my body.
‘Did it work?’
I leaped backward to create distance. The worm-like creatures crawling across the carapace were pouring toward me.
-Crack, crack, crack!
Simultaneously, the skin on Ja-tan’s head began peeling away. Thick layers of shell fell away from where I’d unleashed Severance.
And beneath it, pale flesh was revealed. It resembled the worm-like creatures targeting me, though considerably larger.
‘Damn. So that’s why it was so hard.’
I hadn’t panicked without reason when I first struck Eshirel. The flame monster hadn’t been nearly this durable.
When I’d fought the flame monster, I’d seen inside its carapace. Countless worms were tangled together.
I hadn’t realized it then because I’d eliminated them all at once with Severance, but Ja-tan couldn’t be defeated by simply destroying one head.
In other words, Ja-tan’s head wasn’t fixed.
‘They’re just worms of the same size. Does one of those worms harden to serve as the head?’
My deduction was accurate. Among the worms that had emerged from the carapace, some possessed hardened shells.
I used Agility to roll away rapidly.
Back when I’d captured the flame monster, there had been dozens, hundreds of screams. Since Ja-tan resembled it, there were likely many similarities.
Ja-tan was probably not a single entity but rather a swarm of those worms gathered together.
‘At least that much.’
I tried to target the head with its cracked, thick shell, but Ja-tan retracted its head into the carapace.
“What happened?!”
Choi Chul-gi, riding on the Red Dragon, shouted.
“It failed!”
“Damn it…!”
“But I found the answer! Just like with the flame monster, I need to tear apart what’s inside!”
At this point, there was only one method. Just as I’d done with the flame monster, I had to burst all the worms inside.
The problem, however, was that the carapace was far too hard.
“Can you even scratch that carapace? It didn’t even get a mark!”
“That’s… something I’ll have to figure out now!”
I’d thrust Eshirel with full force and barely managed to scratch the head, not the carapace. Could I even split the shell?
I rolled my thoughts rapidly. No answer came immediately.
“I’ll be back in a moment!”
I’d poured every ounce of magical power into that last Severance, so resting was essential. I also needed time to think.
* * *
“You think Severance might be able to pierce the carapace?”
-Affirmative. However, since this monster’s abilities focus on hardness, it won’t be easy. The carapace appeared even thicker than the skin.
“I figured as much.”
True enough. Even the flame monster required multiple strikes with a hammer before it shattered. And I’d received considerable help then.
I’d prepared a B-rank large hammer in anticipation of Ja-tan, but it didn’t seem like it would deliver a decisive blow.
Even Esirel, which was close to S-rank as a sword itself, hadn’t produced sparks. I could distinctly feel the blade had sustained minor damage.
In any case, Chun-bae’s advice was straightforward.
“You have to pierce the same spot multiple times. It won’t be easy.”
It was similar to breaking a barrier, yet different. The immediate problem was the worms erupting from the holes in its carapace. There was no way to reduce their numbers.
Earlier, they’d been caught by Mister’s Dragon Scale Piercing Spear, but new heads sprouted forth in an instant.
Just looking at the flame monster, its carapace contained countless heads within. They’d regenerate while I was defending against multiple strikes.
In other words, I had to strike the same point while evading the continuous assault of worms.
“The problem is if this thing moves in the meantime.”
A defensive line had been established. If it moved on its legs, that created problems. With so many Gates open across Seoul right now, the moment it damaged defensive lines in other areas….
An unthinkable catastrophe could unfold.
“Wait.”
Then, a brilliant idea struck me.
The thick head I’d shattered earlier was made of material similar to its legs. It felt even thicker, but….
“If I keep going, I could break them too, right?”
Its legs were thicker than I’d imagined. Thicker than the support pillars of the Han River bridge. But if they were like the head, I could destroy them.
Even if those legs were thick worms, it didn’t matter. There probably weren’t many worms that thick inside its carapace.
First, I should eliminate its mobility. It was slower than the flame monster, but striking a stationary carapace would be easier than hitting one that was moving.
Let me destroy its legs first, then figure out the rest.
“You ready!”
After sufficient rest, I headed back out. Instead of Esirel, I carried the large hammer.
“Are we going with the original plan to smash the carapace! Think it’ll work?”
Plan B, for when targeting the head failed, wasn’t anything special. It was the same as when I faced the flame monster—destroy the carapace.
However, back then I’d only focused on Ja-tan, so I hadn’t considered this process.
“Yes! It’s possible. But there’s one additional step!”
“What is it!”
“Immobilizing that thing!”
I briefly explained the plan to Mister.
“I’m going to smash all its legs, so keep drawing its attention!”
“Understood! I’ll relay it to Min-jae!”
“I’m targeting the front left leg! Starting with that one!”
It would’ve been nice if other hunters could attack the worms too, but with so many monsters pouring out of the Gate….
For now, we had no choice but to handle it ourselves.
Mister drew its attention while Min-jae’s magic flew forward. The first target was the front left leg.
The Dragon Scale Piercing Spear and magic poured toward its left worms.
-Whoosh!
I ran alongside it, twisting my waist as I swung the combat hammer. And when the momentum from acceleration concentrated entirely at the hammer’s head….
I activated Leap.
-Crash!
A heavy sound reverberated across the Han River. My fingertips tingled—no, my entire body did. The shockwave had transmitted through me.
The effect was somewhat ambiguous. Perhaps the leg was thicker than the head, since it didn’t crack. That’s fine. I could try again.
—Crack!
—Boom!
On my second attempt, I managed to gouge the creature’s leg.
Still, the hammer created a larger fissure than a sword would have. Unlike before, the soft flesh beneath was now visible.
Indeed, beneath the carapace lay pale, worm-like soft tissue. I unleashed Segmentation at full power toward the cracked section.
One strike wasn’t quite enough; I needed two applications of Segmentation. The effect was decisive.
—Crunch!
Blood sprayed in all directions from the creature’s flesh. Then I ignited the wound with a flame talisman.
The reason I was only now using Incineration was simple: the creature’s carapace and skin were far too thick.
‘Even if Incineration burns through mana itself… breaking through is faster.’
The soft tissue was a different matter, though. Of course, I couldn’t burn it all away.
“Screeeee—!”
In any case, the strategy succeeded. The creature’s left leg buckled, and its body crashed to the ground with a heavy thud.
Min-jae and Mister knocked away the heads targeting me. I leaped back swiftly to create distance.
Rather than using Incineration to further burn the fissures between the legs, it was better to retreat and recover.
I needed to cripple two more legs before the creature could move properly.
“I’ll be back!”
And I immediately dove into the Subspace. This way, we managed to destroy three more legs. How long I spent in the Subspace recharging mana remained unclear.
I’d been doing other things and hadn’t kept precise track of time. Still, I suspected I’d been there for around two days.
‘That’s fine.’
In fact, that process had greatly reduced my tension. For the others, it was continuous combat, but…
For me, it was intermittent. And I was finally dealing proper damage to this creature that had once left me helpless.
“So now we just need to break the carapace?”
“Yes.”
And now was the moment.
Ja-tan, its legs shattered, couldn’t move and remained stationary. Dozens of worm-like appendages still writhed, but…
The creature was now nothing more than an immobilized tank.
At this point, I could simply hammer it with Segmentation and rest in the Subspace as needed.
“It’s less impressive than I thought.”
“The memories from eleven years ago must have been too vivid.”
Perhaps because the situation had improved, I could converse with Mister more comfortably.
“Where should we aim? The center of the carapace?”
“Since we only need to crack it open and the inside is just worms anyway, wouldn’t the side or back be better?”
“How about there, on the left?”
“Sounds good.”
* * *
We began targeting one section using Min-jae’s magic focused entirely on destructive power, Mister’s Dragon Scale Piercing Spear, and my Segmentation.
—Boom!
-Boom!
-Crack!
To be honest, Mister’s Dragon Scale Piercing Spear and Min-jae’s magic had little effect.
‘Just how incredibly hard is this thing?’
However, Severance, which had risen to S-rank, showed a reaction. It was a skill that gave the sensation of dividing space itself.
Small scratches had begun appearing on the creature’s carapace.
It seemed I’d made the right choice using the skill rank upgrade token on Severance. If I hadn’t, I wouldn’t have been able to push it this hard or even leave a mark on its carapace.
Eliminating it with Blazing Inferno wasn’t easy either.
‘It would have taken far too long.’
While testing during the carapace destruction, Severance’s cutting speed was faster than the melting rate.
It was a skill with enormous mana consumption. The creature’s resistance was also considerable.
Of course, the matchup itself favored me. It was a creature focused on defense rather than offense. Its massive size made even walking a disaster, and there were many parasitic worms, but…
Beyond that, it had no other means of attack. As for me, I could rest in the Subspace and return with infinite stamina.
“A bit more and it should split?”
Now the cracks in the carapace were visible even from a distance. I felt the end was near.
That’s when the anomaly occurred.
“Huh?”
A violent surge of mana rippled outward from the creature.
-Whoosh!
I could tell immediately what it was. I’d even experienced it once before.
“…Second Awakening?”
“Is this even possible?”
“This is insane…”
Mister and Min-jae stared at Ja-tan with disbelieving eyes. I did the same.
During the last discharge-type Gate, Grendel, who had been chasing me, underwent Second Awakening. It became incredibly fast and dangerous, but I survived with Seo Seung-yeon’s help.
Actually, I hadn’t sensed anything strange back then. Second Awakening was extremely rare, and monsters undergoing Second Awakening was even rarer, but it wasn’t unheard of.
But now, I had a different thought. This happened to me again? And with Ja-tan?
‘That insane God of Play…’
It was far more likely that someone had orchestrated this. Wasn’t there someone already watching me with interest?
Perhaps that Grendel back then was also a scheme by the God of Play.
“Hurry…!”
Ja-tan’s body began to glow. A flash of mana. I had to finish it before it changed any further.
Mister hastily launched the Dragon Scale Piercing Spear, Min-jae’s magic poured down, and my Severance drove into the carapace.
-Crack!
Thus, I managed to create one small fissure. However, I didn’t have much mana left now…
I was about to extract the remaining flames from the flame talisman to use them.
-Roaaarrr!
A tremendous wave of force erupted from Ja-tan’s body. The Second Awakening was complete.
Against the attack flooding my spatial perception, I had no choice but to desperately leap away.
“Damn it…”
“This is insane.”
And so, seeing Ja-tan once more, we could only stand in shock.
The worms covering its shell were no longer white. Thick skin had sprouted across what had been a pale body.
Which meant all the worms had become as hard and rigid as the legs and head from before.
Min-jae spoke, trembling violently.
“H-how are we supposed to break through that?”
Yet one thing remained visible to my eyes.
“The cracks.”
“What?”
“The cracks I made earlier are still there.”
I couldn’t strike those hardened heads down as easily as before, but our efforts hadn’t been entirely erased.
There was still one path to breakthrough.

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