Something Keeps Appearing in My Subspace - Chapter 293

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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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293. Kerimantal Crater (4)
Perhaps that’s what a Dragon Heart from an Ancient Fire Dragon felt like. Even just holding it, the heat transferred through my palm. Despite my flame resistance, an ordinary person would surely suffer severe burns from merely touching it.
Feeling that warmth, I carefully placed it in my mouth.
Truth be told, I’d harbored some concern. Since dragons were so massive, wouldn’t their hearts be proportionally enormous?
If it wouldn’t fit entirely in my mouth, would I need to cut it into pieces? Such thoughts had occupied my mind.
—Gulp.
However, the Dragon Heart itself wasn’t large at all. It felt more like condensed essence.
Strictly speaking, it wasn’t the heart itself. A Dragon Heart was extracted from within the dragon’s heart.
In other words, there existed another core nested inside the heart. When I first saw the heart, my reaction had been, ‘Eat this? Really?’
That was a natural response, given the dragon’s heart had been larger than my head.
“Haaah….”
The Dragon Heart traveled down my esophagus. That’s when it suddenly began to dissolve.
The round, crystalline essence transformed into liquid within my throat, flowing downward. I vividly felt the intense heat and the overwhelming power saturated with mana.
[You have consumed a Dragon Heart (S-rank).]
[Strength, Agility, and Spirit each increase by 5.]
[Stamina increases by 20. Mana increases by 40.]
Messages cascaded before me in rapid succession.
“…!?”
I couldn’t even manage an exclamation. All I felt was shock and bewilderment.
‘Wait, wait. I didn’t misread that, did I?’
The increases to Strength, Agility, and Spirit fell within comprehensible ranges. When I’d applied dragon blood before, hadn’t the total stat increase been around 20?
Even the Stamina increase of 20 was a number I could nod at. Wasn’t this an S-rank elixir, after all—a Dragon Heart?
But….
Mana 40?
This transcended madness.
In terms of levels alone, that was equivalent to 13 levels. With just the stats I’d received, I could be considered to have surpassed level 90.
And my Mana stat before consuming the Dragon Heart had been 115. Now an additional 40 was being added? This wasn’t merely a matter of increased mana quantity.
The difference between 10 and 20 mana was fundamentally different from the difference between 110 and 120. At some point, increases became exponentially harder to achieve. Therefore, receiving such a massive mana boost all at once was nearly unbelievable.
[The skill ‘Blaze (S-rank)’ has increased in level.]
[The skill ‘Flame Resistance (A-rank)’ has increased in grade.]
But it didn’t end there. Perhaps because it came from an Ancient Fire Dragon, my fire-related skills experienced both level and grade increases. It had been quite some time since Blaze had leveled up.
More importantly, Flame Resistance had increased in grade. It had been A-rank level 9, but now S-rank? Wouldn’t this mean I’d become completely immune to fire?
Immediately after, an overwhelming sense of exhilaration surged through me. All thanks to the Dragon Heart.
I could genuinely feel an enormous amount of mana coursing through my body. To describe the sensation: my body felt as though it might burst. In both the best and worst ways possible.
“Ugh!”
A sharp pain caused my body to involuntarily bend at a 90-degree angle.
“Hey, are you okay?”
“Han Hye, are you alright?”
I raised a hand to immediately prevent them from approaching. It was due to Chun-bae’s urgent warning.
—Focus. Pure mana is forcibly restructuring your body’s mana circuits. You must concentrate on this moment.
Isn’t it similar to circulating inner energy in martial arts novels?
In reality, the mana flooding my body was bursting through my narrow pathways, forcing its way outward.
Even the mana circuits that Chun-bae had expanded for me were insufficient. The essence of the Ancient Fire Dragon surged through my body without restraint.
I closed my eyes and concentrated according to Chun-bae’s guidance. It felt like quite a long time had passed.
“Phew.”
“Thank goodness. You recovered so quickly.”
“Quickly?”
“It took about 30 seconds?”
“What?”
What was that? Had the pain made me lose track of time? It felt like I’d been at it for about 20 minutes, but apparently far less time had actually passed.
“What happened?”
In any case, it was the Dragon Heart. All the guild members were curious about my impressions after consuming an S-rank elixir.
S-rank elixirs were truly precious—superior even to S-rank equipment.
Even A-rank elixirs were worth their weight in gold, so naturally everyone was curious about the Dragon Heart.
“Strength, agility, and stamina each increased by 5. Health increased by 20.”
“Wow, wow. S-rank elixirs really are different.”
“So that’s 35 total? Wait, what about mana?”
The startled guild members’ eyes widened when they realized I hadn’t mentioned mana yet.
“Mana increased by 40.”
“What?”
“What!?”
“Pardon?”
“40.”
“….”
Everyone fell silent. At first they looked skeptical, but seeing that I didn’t seem to be lying, their expressions grew serious.
“Really 40? Does that even make sense?”
“Haha….”
Going forward, I’d have fewer worries when using Blaze. Maybe I wouldn’t need to rest twice in the Subspace anymore—perhaps just once would suffice.
Thus, this Gate yielded the harvest I’d anticipated. Of course, I hadn’t expected my stats to rise this much.
[Deformed Gate ‘Ancient Fire Dragon’ subjugation complete.]
[You have gained experience.]
[You have leveled up.]
* * *
[Space Mage Han Hye stands shoulder to shoulder with Choin!]
[Han Hye, who has even caught up in level—how far can she go?]
After subjugating the Ancient Fire Dragon Gate, I had finally reached the same level as Choin.
Thanks to that, the baseless term “pure highest level” that had briefly appeared over this short period completely vanished.
Well, we were only similar for a moment. I heard Choin is entering a Gate again tomorrow anyway. Still, it shouldn’t take more than 3 weeks for me to completely overtake him. Our growth rates are simply different.
As I’ve said before, I don’t place much significance on this.
[Lv78 Sovereign of Void, Han Hye]
Strength: 107(+5)
Agility: 107(+5)(+5, +1)
Stamina: 123(+20)(+1)
Spirit: 101(+5)
Mana: 155(+40)(+1)
Bonus Points: 16
Skills: Subspace(S-rank) lv6, Blaze(S-rank) lv8, Severance(S-rank) lv7, Leap(A-rank) lv7, Flame Resistance(S-rank) lv6, Domain(A-rank) lv4, Iron Wing Sword Technique(A-rank) lv5, Interpretation(B-rank) lv1, Swift(C-rank) lv8, Cold Resistance(C-rank) lv4, Poison Resistance(D-rank) lv6
This was my status window after consuming the Red Dragon’s heart. Just seeing this filled me with satisfaction. What did level matter anyway?
Especially my mana stat, which had always been chronically insufficient, made me smile every time I looked at it.
That wasn’t all. The Red Dragon’s heart forcibly restructured my mana circuits, improving my efficiency even further.
The time I’d been forced to spend inside Subspace would decrease significantly.
‘Blaze rose too. Though Flame Resistance dropped.’
Perhaps because it had advanced from A-rank to S-rank, my Flame Resistance skill level had decreased slightly.
Of course, this was a necessary step forward. It had been the same when I was at A-rank level 9…
Now that I was S-rank, even if someone used something like Blaze against me, I doubted it would deal much damage.
After all, I’d felt considerable heat from the Ancient Fire Dragon’s breath itself.
“Then I’ll be going.”
“All right.”
During this rest period, I’d decided to make a brief trip to Russia. I needed to meet with Fist King and deliver some news I’d heard from Choin.
I’d discussed this with Choin beforehand, asking if it would be okay to give Russia a heads-up as well.
-Fist King? That brute?
At first, I was a bit worried. It seemed like neither Choin nor Fist King particularly liked each other.
But unexpectedly, he nodded coolly.
-If that guy said he’d keep a secret with his own mouth, he’ll keep it.
He seemed to have genuine trust in that regard. I said goodbye to my guild members and to Mister as well.
Though it was just a brief trip, problems could arise while I was away.
“Keep up your training.”
“Of course. The martial arts tournament isn’t far off.”
Shin Chang’s martial arts tournament had been scheduled. Despite it being moved up from the original date, Mister’s expression remained relaxed.
It was only natural—he already possessed an S-rank spear. Yet he said he was preparing diligently.
-When you have a goal to work toward, it becomes fun again.
I was glad Mister had developed a genuine interest in spear techniques. He was attending meetings regularly too. I considered it a positive cycle.
Heading to the airport, I naturally brought no luggage. I had Subspace, after all.
I hadn’t traveled abroad much, but I found it incredibly convenient at times like this. Gates were a given, of course.
Information about a hunter of my caliber leaving the country could be misused, so I moved discreetly.
-I’ll send a private jet for you.
When I said I was going, Russia offered to send a private jet, but our Hunter Association refused absolutely. They insisted I take a plane they’d arranged, even if Russia was an allied nation.
It was a matter of diplomatic protocol.
Even after arriving in Russia, I moved as covertly as possible. I took a separate car from the airport and didn’t encounter anyone.
That’s how I managed to meet Fist King at a Training Facility prepared in a certain location.
“You’re here!”
“I had to come at least once.”
Despite having seen Fist King just recently, he greeted me with a beaming smile.
“What if we actually save that Choin bastard? We should’ve just left him as he was.”
“We have to save him.”
But something about Fist King’s expression seemed impatient. I was wondering why when he immediately opened his mouth.
“Have you warmed up your body?”
“Pardon?”
“What? You must’ve warmed up on the plane, right? You came all the way to Russia.”
Fist King chuckled.
“Back in Australia, I noticed your movements had become lighter, so you must’ve made some progress. Right?”
This man….
He seemed so reserved back in Australia, but was he holding back because that mission was so important?
“I did make progress, but I haven’t warmed up my body yet.”
“What!?”
Fist King furrowed his brows.
“You should’ve naturally warmed up before coming. I’ve already finished warming up and I’m ready.”
“Naturally?”
Just as I was about to lose my patience, a thought occurred to me.
“Does Shin Chang warm up his body on the plane?”
“Of course. Why are you asking something so obvious?”
These crazy people.
Warming up on a plane? I let out an involuntary laugh and decided to bring up what I needed to discuss first. But before that, there was something I needed to confirm.
“Is there any surveillance here?”
“There’s something fairly important I need to discuss.”
Fist King snickered.
“You think there would be?”
“No. Just checking.”
My spatial sense hadn’t picked up anything suspicious. And Russia wouldn’t treat Fist King that way either.
The moment they got caught trying to surveil Fist King, it would be obvious that all hell would break loose, regardless of which country was involved.
“What’s this about?”
Perhaps because I’d brought up surveillance, Fist King asked with a serious expression.
I explained everything I’d heard from Choin from the beginning, step by step. As the story progressed, Fist King’s brows drew closer together.
“Hmm.”
“Ah, surely not….”
His expression was somewhat ambiguous. There was an uncomfortable glint in his eyes—as if he believed it but didn’t want to.
“The United States? Considering the first generation suddenly disappeared, it’s quite a plausible story.”
Yet his reaction was quite impressive.
“So that’s why you couldn’t make a move back then because of the Übermenschen leader?”
“Yes.”
“That could be the case. I misunderstood.”
I’ve always believed that true maturity lies in acknowledging one’s own mistakes and reflecting upon them. In that sense, Fist King was truly mature.
I also reflect on how I once harbored negative thoughts about Choin alongside him.
“It’s quite shocking. That the Übermenschen leader was on the American side. And the ability transfer itself. I’d anticipated it to some degree, but…”
“Is that so?”
“Not the American side—I meant the one behind. There was someone using the unusual skill of a missing Hunter. I wasn’t certain, though.”
It seemed Russia had harbored suspicions about this as well.
“They must have been drawing Hunters from China, and if we dig deeper, India is likely involved too.”
India? As I tilted my head in confusion, Fist King continued.
“There have been frequent reports of missing Awakened there as well. Usually, they’re buried immediately, though.”
With such a large population, it’s plausible.
“We need to wipe them all out, but they keep scurrying away like rats.”
“Exactly.”
“Anyway, thanks for the information. You wanted it kept secret, right?”
“Yes.”
“Don’t worry about that.”
When someone like Fist King says such things, who could be more trustworthy? I smiled and nodded in agreement.
“Is that all?”
“Yes.”
Fist King rose from his seat.
“Then warm up quickly.”
Ah, so that was the real purpose all along?

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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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