Something Keeps Appearing in My Subspace - Chapter 296

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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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296. Gate of Poison Trial (2)
“What is this?”
Fist King tilted his head in confusion.
“The heart of the Poison Fox? I’ve never heard of it. What do you mean foxes are chasing us?”
It seemed a message had appeared before Fist King as well after entering together.
“I have one piece of equipment. It filters out poison and such….”
Since I was the one who caused the damage, I explained truthfully. Fist King nodded.
“So that’s why you were so resistant to poison? I thought you had A-rank poison resistance like me.”
Fist King grinned widely.
“Anyway, a real man should be able to endure poison through sheer willpower, right?”
“I’m sorry, what does that even….”
“Tsk, carrying around poison-filtering equipment like some weakling.”
I would have questioned any ordinary person about such insane talk, but given that this was someone who’d been steaming in Catoblepas poison, I couldn’t bring myself to respond easily.
Fist King chuckled.
“Anyway, because of your unmanly attitude, we have to catch those foxes, right?”
I wanted to protest, but my opponent was who they were. I simply sighed and nodded.
“Yes. It seems the foxes will be coming in swarms.”
“But what kind of foxes are at this level?”
“Well, since the item is the Poison Fox’s heart, they’re probably foxes with extreme toxins, aren’t they?”
So far, nothing had registered within my spatial awareness. They were probably approaching from far away to find this place.
“Hard to say without seeing anything.”
“They’ll probably attack from within the Poison Fog, but I’ll detect them with my spatial awareness.”
“Right. My ki sensing isn’t inferior, but yours will be more reliable.”
Fist King nodded.
“Which way should we go?”
The Gate’s message to simply endure as long as possible was remarkably simple, but precisely because of that, it felt somewhat unfamiliar.
Normally, Gates provided clear objectives.
“Let’s just head forward. There has to be something.”
Fist King said this while taking a deep breath.
“Huff! Phew! Cough!”
He continued coughing roughly without stopping. I didn’t need to ask what this madness was about.
He was raising his poison resistance level. And I immediately joined in on this madness.
“Huff! Phew! Hack!”
Since I had the Poison Fox’s heart, I could overcome all of this. But the Gate of Poison Trial wasn’t called that for nothing.
With Catoblepas, I don’t think I coughed like this. Was the nature of this poison different?
[The skill ‘Poison Resistance (D-rank)’ has increased in level.]
Regardless, the effect was certain. My poison resistance had leveled up not long after entering the Gate.
Still, I didn’t just charge forward blindly. Observing my surroundings was essential.
The white Poison Fog obscured my overall vision, but it felt like I’d entered a massive forest or mountain. There were trees and soil after all.
With some areas having slopes and others flat, I couldn’t determine exactly where I was.
“The ground’s all tainted with poison too.”
“The color’s strange, isn’t it?”
The soil wasn’t brown. It wasn’t green or purple either—it was a sickly black that screamed contamination. The ominous feeling was unmistakable; poison had definitely corrupted this place.
Yet grass and trees still grew here, which was remarkable. Were these all poison plants and poison trees?
Since it resembled a forest, I could sense insects through my spatial awareness, and I’d actually seen them with my own eyes.
“What happens if one of those things bites you?”
That’s when Fist King showed interest in the insects.
“Want to get bitten?”
“Huh?”
“If we’re raising poison resistance, we should do it properly.”
Though honestly, they looked far too grotesque for that. Their color was wrong too.
Of course, under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t have hesitated—I had the Poison Fox’s heart after all. But there was one scattered concern right now.
“We don’t know when those foxes will arrive, though?”
“When they come, they come. Wouldn’t it be better to do this now?”
Then Fist King offered a new perspective.
“This is about enduring for a long time, right? So the longer time passes, the stronger the poison will probably get?”
“Huh?”
That was actually a very sound point.
“From what I can tell, that fox thing will take some time to arrive. Whether it’s a beastman or an actual fox, I’m not sure, but foxes are basically synonymous with cunning, aren’t they?”
“That’s true.”
“So before the poison gets worse and the fox arrives, we should try various things to raise poison resistance. That’s what I’m saying.”
This guy. I already knew it, but he’s genuinely brilliant. Behind the name Fist King and those unassuming muscles lies a sharp, calculating mind.
“But what if the foxes arrive early?”
“Then we just fight, that’s all.”
“True. Long-term, you’re right, Fist King.”
Whether they arrive early or late doesn’t matter. What matters is raising poison resistance as much as possible before then.
Suddenly, a mischievous impulse struck me.
“But wouldn’t eating it whole be better than just getting bitten?”
“Huh?”
Fist King made a strange noise.
“I’m not very manly, so getting bitten by poison is fine, but I don’t think I could eat it. But you’re a man among men, so…”
As I flattered him while laying the trap, Fist King hesitated for a moment.
“Hey man. No matter what, why would you eat an insect?”
“That Bear Grylls guy who survives in the wild eats everything, doesn’t he? Even raw?”
“Man.”
Fist King’s expression turned serious.
“Tsk, so even you don’t have that level of manliness, Fist King?”
At my final provocation, Fist King squeezed his eyes shut.
“No! It’s not that I can’t eat it!”
“Is that so?”
“….”
Still, Fist King wasn’t foolish enough to fall for my provocation. Truly a clever middle-aged man.
“I apologize for earlier. Let’s call it even.”
“You should have said so from the start.”
Getting bitten by the insects was simple enough. They weren’t quite at the level of true monsters.
“Ow!”
I simply placed one on my palm and tapped it lightly—and it bit.
“Ouch, this isn’t just a sting, is it?”
The problem was that both Fist King’s and my bitten hands were beginning to turn black.
Of course, the effect was undeniably potent.
[Skill ‘Poison Resistance (Grade D)’ has increased in rank.]
Fist King’s eyes gleamed—his skill level had risen as well.
“One more?”
“Care to wager?”
“No, thinking about it—you’re just relying on gear, aren’t you?”
He had a point. Unlike Fist King, my hand was healing at a remarkable speed.
“Would you like to borrow some equipment, Fist King?”
“Me?”
“If you remove the poison and get bitten again, the speed doubles.”
“…Hmm.”
After a moment’s consideration, Fist King suddenly adopted a solemn expression.
“A true man like myself doesn’t rely on the power of tools.”
…This guy?
* * *
Fist King was right. The fox that pursued the Poison Fox’s heart rarely showed itself.
Thanks to that, we could dedicate ourselves to grinding Poison Resistance.
[Skill ‘Poison Resistance (Grade D)’ has increased in level.]
[Skill ‘Poison Resistance (Grade D)’ has increased in level.]
Poison Resistance rose to Grade D, and the level dropped, but it didn’t matter. The level was rising in real time.
The problem lay elsewhere. Both Fist King and I looked like people on the verge of death.
“Heh, look at the state of us.”
“You’re not looking much better yourself, Fist King.”
Our skin had turned dark from repeated poisoning and detoxification, and our cheeks had hollowed out.
“But I’ve lost all sensation in my fingers.”
“Can you still fight?”
“I can fight. The question is whether I can fight well.”
“Would you like to borrow some equipment?”
“A man wearing gear? How absurd.”
Tsk. He was still at it—almost amusing. Honestly, I couldn’t lend it to him for long anyway.
I was growing here, but my Poison Resistance was still only Grade C.
Even Fist King, who’s S-rank, can barely handle it. If someone were C-rank, they wouldn’t last long at all. I need to level up quickly.
If Fist King truly couldn’t fight, he wouldn’t be complaining like that.
“By the way, is it just us here? I haven’t encountered anyone else.”
“I’m not sure. This place is so vast that there could be others somewhere?”
Since I hadn’t told Fist King about Chun-bae yet, there was nothing I could say.
We’d said we were waiting for other Awakeners, so both Fist King and I kept our eyes peeled at all times.
“I hope we run into some Übermenschen.”
“You’d capture them right away?”
“Of course. Want to bet on who catches more?”
“But wouldn’t there be only 2 of them?”
“Could be 4, right?”
True, the Third World is vast enough that we could consider ourselves lucky to have encountered two Gates.
Honestly, I don’t know the answer either. This Gate could belong only to us, or there could be others.
“Hm?”
As we walked, I’d been catching every insect I saw and alternating between poisoning and detoxification.
“What is that?”
“A hot spring? No, a Poison Hot Spring?”
It was indeed a hot spring. Like a natural hot spring in the mountains, there was a steaming pool of water.
The reason we felt uneasy was because of the water’s color. The dark blue liquid looked distinctly ominous.
“This…”
“What kind of smell is…”
Moreover, a peculiar stench pricked at my nostrils so sharply it actually stung.
That’s when Fist King looked at me.
“Who can last longer?”
“Pardon?”
“Just looking at your expression, I can tell I’ll obviously last longer.”
I genuinely admired how he could deliver such a brazen line with such a composed expression.
But I was tempted too.
When you’re around someone who exudes this kind of masculine confidence, you naturally get influenced by it.
There’s even a saying that men become fools when they gather together, isn’t there?
I could feel myself changing after spending just a short time with Fist King.
“Shall we go in?”
“Hm?”
“Into the water. Right now.”
Fist King, who’d made the suggestion first, seemed slightly taken aback, but he didn’t mind.
“Then as the ‘real’ man here, I’ll go in first.”
Fist King didn’t say something like “What are you talking about!”
-Splash!
Instead, he simply threw himself into the Poison Hot Spring. Fist King was truly intelligent, but it seemed his physical pride had overcome his reason.
I should check on Fist King’s condition and see if he’s alright—but that would be something I shouldn’t do for the sake of the one who entered first.
—Splash!
I dove forcefully into the Poison Hot Spring.
“Ptui, damn it…!”
Fist King cursed.
“What’s wrong?”
“It splashed in my mouth.”
“We’re going to get poisoned anyway, so what’s the difference…?”
“Want me to give you a taste too?”
“My apologies.”
After submerging myself up to my neck, I paused to assess the situation.
“But is this really a Poison Hot Spring? Maybe it’s just the color?”
“That’s true. I don’t feel anything unusual.”
Aside from the initial sting in my nose, my body showed no signs of—
That’s when it happened.
“Huh?”
“Wait?”
“My body’s becoming numb?”
“Same here.”
Hmm. This seems dangerous.
“Maybe we should get out.”
But the moment I said that, Fist King’s expression hardened.
“If you want to leave, then leave.”
“Pardon?”
“I think I can endure this for a bit longer.”
This man really…
“I was only concerned about you, sir. Your complexion has looked worse than mine since earlier.”
“Is there a mirror?”
“I think you’re the one who should be looking in a mirror, sir.”
While we continued this childish bickering, my body was in a genuinely serious condition.
—Hum, hum!
The Poison Fox’s heart continued activating. In truth, we were doing something insane.
Fundamentally, the Gate of Poison Trial has intense Poison Fog.
Even Fist King, who possessed A-rank poison resistance, was coughing, and I, who carried the Poison Fox’s heart, was coughing too.
And on top of that, we’d captured poison insects and forcibly contracted poisoning… and now we’d entered the Poison Hot Spring?
‘Wait.’
What if this foolish idea wasn’t just something two men came up with together?
What if the poison was making us lose our minds?
“Huh?”
It was while I was thinking such thoughts.
Something caught in my spatial awareness.
“It seems the foxes have arrived.”
“What!?”
Fist King startled in alarm.
“Now!?”
“Yes.”
Fist King bolted out of the hot spring in a panic.
“That thing—the Poison Fox’s kidney or heart, whatever it is. Hand it over.”
“One moment.”
-Whoosh!
First, I opened the Subspace. After all, everything I could accomplish was thanks to having the Subspace.
“I’ll go detoxify myself first.”

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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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