Something Keeps Appearing in My Subspace - Chapter 297

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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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297. Poison Trial (3)
“Ah, now I can breathe.”
I sat in the Subspace for a moment, meditating and expelling all the poison that had entered my body. Thanks to that, the mana from the Poison Fox’s heart remained at full capacity.
Once I’d purged all the poison, my mind felt remarkably clearer.
The poison emanating from the Poison Trial definitely seemed to affect the mind. …Or did it?
Most poisons, when they intoxicate you, cloud your thinking—so my initial assumption might have been wrong to begin with.
‘Thinking about it that way, Fist King really does seem like a madman.’
I could follow his reckless approach because I had the Subspace, but the fact that Fist King did it without hesitation or backup was genuinely impressive.
Though it was possible that even his sharp mind had become somewhat clouded by the poison, leading to that display.
Regardless, all I needed to do now was exit and hand the Poison Fox’s heart to Fist King.
First, I equipped a gas mask and items with detoxification effects—borrowed from the Russian side.
‘They’re essential if I’m going to give the Poison Fox’s heart to Fist King.’
I’d brought them just in case, and it turned out to be a wise decision.
“Fist King! Over here!”
I tossed the Poison Fox’s heart to Fist King. He tilted his head at me in confusion.
“Why the gas mask?”
“I can’t manage without it.”
Even now, wearing the gas mask and detoxification gear, it was harder than when I’d been using the Poison Fox’s heart.
“We’re almost there. I’ll handle the fighting for now. Start detoxifying yourself first.”
These foxes were incredibly fast. Truth be told, we were already behind by the time we reached the 60-meter mark.
It would be better if Fist King held his ground while I fought, having already detoxified myself.
“What are you talking about! I need to fight too.”
Fist King protested. I’d expected as much.
“They’re coming!”
“I know!”
Whether he sensed them or not, Fist King was already looking in the direction the enemies were approaching from. A warning was still necessary.
“They’re not actual foxes. They look like people.”
“Demihumans?”
“Probably.”
The approaching figures didn’t have the appearance of foxes. They were humanoid in shape, with fox-like ears protruding from their heads and tails attached to their bodies.
“How many exactly?”
“Nine for now.”
“Then we could make a bet on who catches more?”
Even in a situation like this, he’d say something like that. I ignored it appropriately and continued my briefing.
“They’re carrying things that look like throwing stars.”
The moment I spoke.
-Whoosh!
A faint sound cut through the air. In an environment so thick with Poison Fog, throwing stars would be deadly to ordinary people….
-Clang!
But not to me. I sensed everything through spatial awareness. The training with Shin Chang and the baseball-catching drills had made this level of response second nature.
“Huh?”
“You blocked it?”
The moment I deflected the hidden blade, a sharp voice cut through the Poison Fog. They sounded flustered.
“You can speak human language?”
“Indeed.”
I’d suspected as much since encountering the Fox Demihumans, but intelligent opponents demanded far greater caution.
Unlike mindless monsters, these creatures possessed cunning.
“Fight separately!”
“Understood!”
Both Fist King and I fought better when moving independently rather than coordinating—we simply worked that way.
“I won’t last long!”
Now that I’d claimed the Poison Fox’s heart, even with a gas mask or protective gear, the toxin would prove fatal to me.
Fist King, who possessed A-rank poison resistance, was already suffering; at C-rank, I had no hope of faring better.
“Don’t worry!”
I chose to trust Fist King. His complexion was already improving rapidly since receiving the Poison Fox’s heart.
Combined with A-rank poison resistance, the detoxification effect appeared to be compounding exponentially.
Fist King’s foot crashed into the earth—directly toward where the fox lurked. I dismissed that concern. My own situation demanded focus.
If things grew truly dire, I could always slip into the Subspace.
-Whoosh!
-Whoosh!
Hidden blades streaked toward me from three different angles. I opened the Subspace to intercept two, deflecting the third with my sword.
My counterattack came next.
-Crackle!
For now, I needed to minimize my movements. I was already controlling my breathing carefully. Any escalation would prove catastrophic.
First, I ignited the surrounding Poison Fog with Scorching Flame. Visibility wasn’t the concern—neutralizing the toxin was.
“Shriek!”
“F-Fire!”
Panicked cries erupted. Were they vulnerable to flame? Seizing the moment, I set their tails ablaze with Scorching Flame.
“Kyaaah!”
“Fire! Fire! Extinguish it!”
Screams pierced the air, followed by a sharp crack—something shattered. Then my Scorching Flame vanished.
Instead, a fresh wave of Poison Fog erupted from their direction. They’d somehow extinguished the flames.
‘A toxin bomb of some kind?’
Poison-wielding Fox Demihumans—ordinary fox demihumans typically employed sorcery, didn’t they?
Regardless, I’d confirmed their weakness to fire. I deployed a flame talisman to amplify the blaze.
-Roaring inferno!
With 155 in magical power from consuming the Red Dragon’s heart, Scorching Flame erupted across all directions.
I drove back the Poison Fog entirely, wreathing the foxes in walls of flame.
“Eek!”
The foxes appeared genuinely panicked now. I sensed the moment to press my advantage had arrived.
-Whoosh!
I activated Leap and immediately swung Essirel. Just before the blade touched the fox’s body, it vanished with a pop.
‘A clone technique?’
I pinpointed it instantly with my spatial sense. I leaped again and swung my sword, wanting to confirm if it could be used twice.
“Wait, wait! Spare me!”
That’s when my blade stopped. A Fox Demihuman had thrown both hands up in surrender.
“You want me to spare you?”
“Please spare me!”
“Everyone stop! Stop! These are people we can’t handle!”
At the same moment, a sharp cry echoed from the other side. Through my spatial sense, I could see one fox caught in Fist King’s grip.
“What is this.”
I was bewildered. They said they’d be chasing us, yet the battle ended in less than five minutes from start to finish.
* * *
“So it’s a draw?”
“Huh?”
“We each caught one.”
At Fist King’s words, I let out a hollow laugh.
“Let’s call it a draw.”
In any case, nine foxes were kneeling before us.
“Hey, lower your hands.”
Ah, they were kneeling with both hands thrust skyward. As if in repentance.
“These brats got away.”
It was all Fist King’s doing.
“Where are the adults? They’re enjoying the hot spring.”
We were soaking in the Poison Hot Spring again. I was wearing the Poison Fox’s heart once more.
“I don’t think they’re quite adults yet.”
“Is that so?”
“And these Fox Demihumans don’t live very long, do they? Are there no nine-tailed fox legends in Russia?”
“So? How old are you all?”
The foxes answered cautiously.
“I’m 120 years old.”
“154 years old.”
“172 years old.”
“172 years? That’s a short answer?”
“172 years old!”
“Ugh, what old geezers…”
At Fist King’s words, the foxes bristled.
“We’re young!”
“Young? We’re not even 50 yet.”
I couldn’t stay silent at Fist King’s remark, now barely in his early forties.
“But I didn’t even reach 30 degrees, so why would I be there….”
“Ahem.”
It wasn’t important, so let’s move past it.
“So, what is this thing you’re all looking for?”
“Huh?”
“The heart of Poison Fox. You came here to find that, didn’t you?”
“Y, yes, that’s right.”
To be honest, the Fox Demihumans weren’t cute-looking. Seeing fur sprouting sparsely across their skin, I’d say it was more unsettling than anything.
It wasn’t just ears and tails with fur attached to human skin. Real foxes were easily twenty thousand times cuter.
“What’s the reason?”
“If, if we consume it, we can actually become a true Poison Fox.”
“A true Poison Fox?”
“A fox that has lived for ten thousand years while cultivating poison techniques. Our lifespan is only around a thousand years, so that’s impossible….”
I understood the feeling. It was like a Drake catching the scent of a dragon heart—something that could turn them into a dragon if they only obtained it.
However, for something like that, these creatures were far too weak. The God of Play wouldn’t have deployed them without reason.
‘Or is it? Does he acknowledge me enough to just hand them over?’
It was too early to jump to conclusions.
And as expected….
“The older sisters will come.”
“Older sisters?”
“This is just the entrance. There are young ones like us here….”
That’s when Fist King’s eyes lit up.
“If it’s an entrance, what kind of entrance?”
“Huh? It’s the entrance to Poison Fox Valley.”
“Poison Fox Valley? Then the poison is weak here right now?”
“That’s right?”
Fist King turned to look at me, and I could tell what he was about to say.
“Han Hye.”
“Yes?”
“I need to raise my poison resistance to S-rank before I leave here.”
“S-rank?”
“No lie—I think my rank will go up soon. You know how resistance-type skills level up, right?”
S-rank poison resistance.
It didn’t sound like a bad idea.
“All of you, get up.”
The foxes stood up. Their hands remained raised high toward the sky.
“Put your hands down.”
“Th, thank you…!”
“Guide us.”
“Where to?”
“Deep into Poison Fox Valley.”
“Uh, won’t the older sisters get angry?”
“At us? At you?”
The fox tilted her head in confusion.
“Both?”
“Then either get hit by me first and guide us, then get hit again later. Or don’t get hit by me, guide us, and get hit later. Choose.”
The fox gulped hard as she stared at Fist King’s overwhelming fists.
“I’ll guide you!”
* * *
“This one! This one’s poison is strong.”
Hiring the Fox Demihumans living in Poison Fox Valley as guides had been the right call a hundred times over.
They even caught and brought us the venomous creatures and animals that passed by.
“Ugh, my body’s tingling.”
The effect was undeniable. The toxicity felt far stronger than from the venomous creatures I’d faced before.
At first, I’d been somewhat wary of them. They could’ve brought genuinely potent poison and backstabbed us.
“No way, he survived that?”
“Is that even possible for a human? Even if that Flame Demon had the heart of the Poison Fox…”
But I could see the will to fight draining from them as they watched Fist King’s overwhelming performance. They feared me too, calling me the Flame Demon.
Both Fist King and I had our own countermeasures in place, and we enjoyed their guidance.
“This one tastes better when roasted over fire…”
“Yeah? Try it.”
“Me?”
“Who else? Me?”
“I’ll do it!”
How should I put it.
It felt like I was sightseeing with Fist King and servants. Of course, the servants had tried to kill us, and this place was saturated with poison.
But what was strange was that the foxes seemed comfortable with this servant role.
“Well, the older sisters order us to do it, so we have to…”
When I asked why, it turned out they all had their reasons. It seemed the hierarchy was quite strict in this poison fox world.
“It tastes good.”
“Right?”
“See? I roasted it well, right? I’m really good at this.”
“Huh, but my tongue’s getting numb.”
“Normally, only we or two of us eat this, and then both die from it!”
That seemed about right. Watching dark circles form in real-time under Fist King’s eyes.
My Poison Fox heart was also humming as it worked.
[The skill ‘Poison Resistance (Grade C)’ has increased in level.]
The effect was genuinely certain. Even though we’d only just arrived, messages about poison resistance kept appearing.
If we went deeper, Fist King might actually reach Grade S. I seemed like I’d reach Grade A.
“F-from here on, the older sisters appear.”
The place the Fox Demihumans described had a distinctly different atmosphere. The poison fog seemed noticeably thicker here.
Had I entered this area at the beginning of the Gate, I would have suffered considerably.
But now, with my poison resistance rank and level increased, it felt similar to the early stages of the Gate.
Fist King asked the Fox Demihumans a question.
“Is there anything like a famous spot around here?”
“Pardon?”
“You said this is the Poison Fox Valley. Isn’t there something like that hot spring we saw at the entrance earlier?”
“Oh! Yes, there is!”
The Fox Demihuman nodded.
“It’s deeper in than here, and there’s a hot spring that only the older sisters use!”
Fist King grinned widely.
“Lead us there.”

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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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