Something Keeps Appearing in My Subspace - Chapter 274

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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274. Liu Zhen
“It’s been a while.”
Liu Zhen greeted me with a smile. Our eyes had already met as I approached.
Yet he wore a peculiar expression, gauging the attention of those around us. It was likely because of the Chinese Hunters.
Though this place was safer than mainland China, it wasn’t entirely beyond the reach of the Chinese Government’s gaze.
Indeed, the eyes watching me were filled with wariness.
“….”
I had significant trouble with China. Among them, there might be a Hunter who came to kill me that day.
And given that I’d come here in such circumstances, it was a natural reaction.
‘Though it’s absurd.’
I was the one-sided victim, so my arrival here shouldn’t warrant such scrutiny.
Or perhaps they thought I’d come to mock them.
“I’m truly delighted. I’d embrace you if I could….”
Liu Zhen whispered softly.
“?”
That was something I’d have to decline. Hadn’t some strange person just clung to me moments ago? I suddenly felt profound gratitude toward the Chinese Hunters around us.
But setting that aside—why had this bastard suddenly become so familiar?
“You’ve changed a lot.”
We’d spoken on the phone last time, but originally, we weren’t the sort to have this kind of conversation.
With Liu Zhen, there had been misunderstandings because of China, and we’d resolved them to some degree.
Of course, in that process, we’d helped each other. I saved him, and he saved me.
Beyond that, there was nothing that would have drawn us closer emotionally.
“There’s been a lot. You’ve changed quite a bit yourself, haven’t you?”
Liu Zhen smiled wryly.
“Changed? I’d say I’ve become incredibly stronger.”
“It’s been some time. This is the first time since we met in China back then.”
I answered while being mindful of my surroundings. There was no need to mention that I’d spoken with Liu Zhen.
“If you don’t mind, I’d like to talk for a moment.”
With Chinese Hunters present, I was thinking of stepping away. Liu Zhen glanced back slightly.
“Is it because of Lei Chuang?”
“No. It’s about swordsmanship.”
“Swordsmanship?”
“Back then, I won, but I rarely see someone who wields a blade better than you. I’ve had some concerns recently.”
Since the reason didn’t matter, I flattered Liu Zhen slightly. With S-rank swordsmanship, it wasn’t entirely inaccurate anyway.
“There were some issues, but that person acted on their own. Strictly speaking, it’s not our problem, is it?”
Perhaps thanks to my words, the gazes of the Chinese Hunters watching me seemed to soften somewhat.
“That’s all there is to it.”
Liu Zhen nodded. There were Chinese Hunters concerned about him, but it didn’t become a major issue.
.
.
.
“You’ve become quite smooth-tongued, haven’t you?”
It was what Liu Zhen said the moment we left the Chinese hunters’ territory.
“Have I?”
“Well, I’ve only seen you briefly, but you certainly know how to lie naturally.”
Liu Zhen shrugged his shoulders.
“Anyway, what’s this about?”
“I wanted to thank you first.”
“Ah, that incident from before?”
“Yes. I survived because of you.”
This was genuine. Even knowing about the conspiracy, I couldn’t have handled something of that scale alone.
Despite preparing based on Liu Zhen’s advice, a dangerous situation had still unfolded.
“It’s nothing. You helped me too, after all.”
That said, this fellow’s manner of speech had aged considerably since then. He’d always been into that martial arts style, but it had gotten worse.
“And it was helpful to me as well.”
“Lei Chuang?”
“Yes. I was able to deal with that vicious demon.”
Liu Zhen, having said that, looked up with determination toward the distant sky.
“The problem is there are still many demons I need to catch.”
“Are you really going to do it?”
“Catch demons?”
Liu Zhen, who had dressed up his coup d’état quite elaborately, let out a quiet laugh.
“Of course.”
“It’ll be difficult.”
“It’s an expected path.”
“Was coming to Australia your idea?”
“Yes. I suggested it.”
“Why?”
It was a question I’d harbored before. Currently, I understood that the hunters who had split off toward Lei Chuang’s faction in China were causing quite a bit of conflict.
From Liu Zhen’s perspective, letting their conflict intensify was beneficial.
“There are many sympathizers besides me.”
“?”
It was a somewhat abrupt statement.
“It’s not easy to speak freely in a constrained place. Recruiting new allies is difficult too.”
“Surely not here?”
“Most hunters, unlike me, haven’t noticed the schemes of these vicious demons, but when they face dangerous reality in a place like this, their thinking changes.”
So this was his recruitment ground?
“Of course, there are other intentions included as well.”
Liu Zhen said I had changed considerably, but the one who had changed the most wasn’t me—it was him.
Regardless of direction, he’d become quite mature. Back then, he’d seemed like a naive child.
“There’s another way.”
“Another way?”
Truth be told, I hadn’t come to find Liu Zhen for just one reason.
“I don’t know if you’ve heard, but I’m recruiting for the Dragon 2nd Team.”
“I’ve heard.”
Liu Zhen’s expression stiffened slightly. He must have anticipated what I’d say next.
“If you come, I can make a place for you.”
Liu Zhen—a Chinese hunter who’d tried to kill me—yet I trusted this man.
Foolishly obsessed with martial arts as he was, it only meant he was that pure of heart.
I’d never felt like he was truly evil. The fact that he’d spared my life proved that.
Two S-rank swordsmen on top of Dong-hyuk? The 2nd Team’s growth would be explosive.
There would be many obstacles in extracting Liu Zhen, but if both agreed, there might be a way.
Frankly, China’s situation wasn’t particularly stable either, so they might not be able to respond.
“I’m grateful. I thought you’d hate hearing this.”
“Hate hearing it?”
“I thought I’d waver.”
Liu Zhen smiled with a hint of melancholy. His rigid expression softened slightly.
Of course, staging a second coup in China wouldn’t be easy.
“I appreciate the words, but I can’t do it. I have to protect my homeland and the martial arts world.”
Liu Zhen gazed at the distant sky. It was unfortunate, but there was nothing to be done. I couldn’t force someone who refused.
“Understood. I respect that.”
“Then draw your sword.”
Liu Zhen laughed.
“I’m watching from afar. Since you called me for the sword, I should at least make a show of it, shouldn’t I?”
“Fair enough.”
A brief sparring match—I welcomed it too.
But the problem arose before we could cross blades.
“Han Hye!”
“Liu Zhen!”
Chinese hunters and our guild members called out to us simultaneously.
“The Übermenschen are attacking!”
My expression and Liu Zhen’s both hardened. These insane bastards…
I’d heard things had been quiet, but apparently that wasn’t the case.
‘The Australia situation is something the entire world shares.’
They must have aimed for right after the Australia subjugation ended. Once the Australia problem was resolved, there’d be nothing holding them back.
Moreover, the Advance Team hunters were here, and it wasn’t hard to predict they’d be raising toasts in celebration. They’d seized that opening.
“Where are they?”
I pulled out one of the few remaining Subspace coordinate tokens from my inventory. My immediate plan was to tear it open and return to secure Min-seok’s safety first.
Mister hurriedly stopped me.
“It’s not us.”
“Pardon?”
“The urgent matter is over there.”
I pointed toward the Chinese contingent. Liu Zhen and the Chinese hunters were engaged in serious conversation.
“The Übermenschen have attacked China.”
A thought immediately surfaced in my mind.
‘A false flag operation?’
Contrary to China’s excuses, I knew for certain that the Übermenschen and China had joined hands. Liu Zhen had proven it.
So this could be a staged incident designed to completely wash away that stigma under cover of the current chaos.
‘Or perhaps….’
I studied Liu Zhen. He was the one who had actively advocated for China’s subjugation of Australia.
China, having suffered tremendous losses in the previous incident, had dispatched its high-level hunters to this place.
“Liu Zhen.”
“An urgent matter has come up. We’ll have to postpone our match.”
He spoke with a rather stern expression. Still, I needed confirmation.
“Just to be sure—you didn’t call them here, did you?”
Liu Zhen tilted his head, showing slight discomfort.
“That’s impossible. I don’t make deals with heretics.”
Fair enough. Liu Zhen, who had provided them with information, wouldn’t do such a thing. So it was either a false flag or a betrayal by the Übermenschen.
Either way, it was clear that Liu Zhen was genuinely angry.
“I need to go. The odds of arriving in time are slim, but I can’t just sit idle.”
“Go. I wish you fortune.”
Liu Zhen cupped his fist in salute toward me. I didn’t know exactly how it was done, but I roughly mimicked the gesture in return. He let out a quiet laugh.
As he turned away, his silhouette seemed somehow larger.
Suddenly, I found myself hoping that Liu Zhen would succeed. Perhaps he could manage it.
The Übermenschen and the erosion of magical power are not easy opponents. I dislike China, but their strength is undeniable.
If Liu Zhen succeeds, he could become a reliable ally.
Of course, it won’t happen easily or quickly.
* * *
Though the Übermenschen’s attack was directed solely at China, it was only natural that the hunters hastily returned home.
Even if the terrorist attack in China was occurring on a considerable scale, there was no way to predict what might happen next or when.
Departure didn’t take long to arrange. A celebration party for the successful subjugation of Australia had been planned, but the Übermenschen’s terrorism fell within expected parameters.
From the start, everything had been set up so the hunters could leave at any moment.
“Damn it. I was hoping to go back to Australia once more.”
At the airport, Fist King expressed deep regret.
“Australia?”
“You know that poison Catoblepas created? I was planning to build up my resistance there, like you did.”
“….”
“I even coordinated with the Association President to have a helicopter ready.”
I was momentarily at a loss for words because it was absurd. In truth, I had been planning to follow Fist King’s example.
-Hmm. Not a bad idea.
I had the heart of the Thousand-Poison Fox, so there was nothing holding me back. Even Shin Chang, who had been watching from a distance, had come closer.
-Brother, are you insane right now? You’re injured.
Seo Seung-yeon covered Shin Chang’s eyes as he stared intensely at the Fist King. The reason I couldn’t do it myself was because the helicopter arrived immediately.
With injured people present and a helicopter already here, I couldn’t exactly say “I’ll leave in a bit”—I had no choice but to go right away.
“Wait, you were actually planning to go back there?”
But I hadn’t thought about going back and doing anything else. The Fist King chuckled.
“Why wouldn’t you take a free skill level increase?”
“You’re not looking well right now, are you?”
Unlike me, who had the Thousand-Poison Fox’s heart, the Fist King had withstood the Catoblepas’s poison using only his own toxin resistance.
What was certain was that it had been an S-rank poison. The Fist King’s complexion had deteriorated.
“I’m fine. I won’t die.”
….
The Fist King was truly the Fist King. Such insane thinking that surpassed even me—it was rare to find someone like that.
“Well, maybe it’ll be neutralized by next time.”
“That’s probably right.”
An S-rank poison wouldn’t linger for a thousand years.
“See you next time.”
That’s how we parted with the Fist King, and we boarded the airplane as well. Min-jae expressed deep regret about this part.
Han Chul fell asleep as soon as he sat down, so I asked Lee Shin-hee, who was still awake.
“What’s wrong with him?”
“He was flirting earlier.”
“Flirting?”
“With someone who looked like a hunter from Italy.”
Min-jae opened his mouth as if he’d heard the conversation.
“France.”
“Didn’t you have a girlfriend?”
“We broke up.”
“Why this time?”
The last time I’d heard about it in passing, he’d said she was a nice person and they were doing well together.
Did he have a bit of a dating history like Choin too?
“We didn’t have enough time together. She was a good person though.”
It was a reasonable explanation. Hunters usually just train, but we train pretty intensely. Everyone trains hard voluntarily.
There’s barely any gap between Gate entries, and before and after entering, there’s no energy left for dating or anything else. If the other person is an office worker, it becomes even harder to meet.
“Hunters like us need to date hunters like us.”
It was advice from Lee Shin-hee, who usually didn’t say much.
“Right?”
And then she looks at me.
“That’s right.”
I agreed with the sentiment. You needed someone who could understand each other. Even among hunters, everyone was different.
“I guess so.”
Min-jae nodded in agreement.
“Why not ask Seung-yeon to introduce you?”
“My sister? Hmm.”
“Why not?”
“She lives for the joy of insulting me to her friends.”
That would make me a bit uncomfortable, wouldn’t it?
“Anyway, don’t you date, hyung?”
“Me? I don’t know.”
It was true that I’d gained a bit of breathing room after capturing Ja-tan. I’d repaid my parents’ direct enemy, after all.
But it wasn’t over yet. I hated monsters. This mana corruption too.
The mana corruption I despised wasn’t some ordinary thing. Did I really have the luxury to be distracted?
I shrugged, and Min-jae changed the subject.
“What about Shin-hee?”
“Me?”
True to his easygoing nature, Min-jae had already dropped formalities with Lee Shin-hee long ago.
“You’re currently….”
“No!”
Lee Shin-hee shouted in a way unlike her usual self.
“I’m not dating anyone.”
“Why did you suddenly shout….”
“Because you’re saying something ridiculous.”
It was a bit odd. Lee Shin-hee seemed to realize it too, clearing her throat and turning her gaze toward the window.
[Space Mage Han Hye, Australia Subjugation Battle Footage Released]
The Australia Subjugation Battle was revealed to the world just as we were experiencing that awkward atmosphere on the airplane.
Naturally, the internet erupted. The magazine that published Hunter rankings updated them in real time.
—Cool….
I’d drunk champagne and was tired too, but I fell asleep quickly on the plane, so I had no way of knowing what happened then.
I felt the impact of it all when we arrived at Incheon Airport.

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