Something Keeps Appearing in My Subspace - Chapter 308
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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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308. Lucky Gate (2)
Markwon Valley had a narrow valley formation, and its entrance was not particularly wide. Still, as it was the Grand Duke’s territory, ornate stone statues lined both sides of the entrance.
In any case, blocking it presented no great difficulties. A long road stretched out in front of the entrance.
“So we just need to block this road, is that it?”
“That’s right.”
The number of enemies rushing toward them was greater than expected. Nereion was also a former Grand Duke. It seemed Creshan Grand Duke had prepared thoroughly.
—Whoooosh!
First, I opened a Subspace and summoned Yong-yong and Bone Dragon from within.
Since I hadn’t known what kind of Gate this would be, it was a strategy I’d arranged with the Guild members on the way. Nothing particularly inventive—just our usual approach.
Mister would ride Yong-yong and patrol the upper area, while our rear guard supported from atop Bone Dragon below.
I could block the entrance itself without any problems thanks to my Subspace, but Diluvian was here too.
“I’ll handle the upper area on my own.”
“Don’t worry about it.”
After exchanging words with Han Chul, I made eye contact with Mister. He nodded silently in acknowledgment.
We had coordinated on something separately.
‘Ride Yong-yong and draw aggro while checking out the interior a bit, would you?’
—So Nereion fights well, does he?
‘Yes. If it seems dangerous, give me a signal.’
The problem with this Gate was that we couldn’t see the battle inside Markwon Valley while we were outside.
My Space Sense currently reached 60 meters. It didn’t extend that far.
I had to infer the state of combat from sound alone, which was nearly impossible while fighting myself.
Still, we could fly, so it worked out.
‘Sending Red Dragon to the rear would be too conspicuous.’
We decided that Mister, riding Yong-yong, would circle around and peek discreetly. Of course, this carried some risk.
For instance, if Nereion was instantly killed the moment he encountered Creshan Grand Duke.
That is, if we assumed the Gate’s intention was to help regardless of Nereion’s own will…
It would mean immediate failure of the Gate subjugation. We’d have to use Escape Secretary and get out.
‘But surely that won’t happen.’
If it did, there was nothing to be done. I couldn’t go against Nereion’s wishes out of fear.
For now, I put it out of my mind. There were Demons rushing toward us.
“It’s not as large a force as I thought.”
“This isn’t a place riffraff can enter.”
According to Diluvian, these Demons nominally hadn’t come to ‘protect’ the Grand Duke.
They’d come to execute intruders who’d entered a domain granted only to the Grand Duke.
But since it was such a precious domain, even those coming to execute intruders needed a certain level of qualification.
“Even the weakest of them will be stronger than you’d think. Don’t let your guard down.”
“Like that Toljet last time?”
“Not quite to that level. Though there are a few who come close.”
Fair point. There wouldn’t be that many nobles. It was fortunate these weren’t all at Toljet’s level, but it still wouldn’t be easy.
An 81–85 level designated Gate. Hidden of the Hidden. This level of difficulty was expected.
‘Even without fighting the Grand Duke, the difficulty is significant.’
First, let’s deal with Nereion, the Grand Duke, and these Demons.
* * *
‘The pressure is different.’
Han Hye rolled her shoulders lightly as she watched the approaching enemies. Last time it had been just one noble, Toljet. This time was different. Those comparable to him had come, along with their subordinates.
Moreover, the Blessing of Demons had amplified them further, and the Demons were stronger than usual. The pressure was definitely greater than before.
‘I’m glad I invested in the Mind stat.’
Han Hye thought it was a good call to have the Guild members ride on the Dragon. Without that, it would have been quite difficult.
“Don’t get too close!”
She didn’t forget to warn them. They didn’t know what abilities the Demon Realm nobles possessed.
She had to avoid any problems that might arise from closing distance.
“Diluvian. It’s been a while.”
“I heard you turned to stone in that underground place.”
The ones approaching from the front let out a low chuckle. Diluvian didn’t respond. He simply gripped his spear tighter.
“So Nereion’s in the back.”
“The outcome is obvious.”
“What can we do? Creshan Grand Duke isn’t careless like Nereion.”
“Shut your mouth.”
Only after Nereion was mentioned did Diluvian speak.
“Still clinging to that pride of yours, I see.”
“Wait. I think I’ve been in a situation like this before.”
“Back then? I remember. Overwhelming Mana pressed down on us, but this isn’t anywhere near that level. Not even close.”
The Demons hurled scorn at one who had once climbed high but fallen far.
Han Hye didn’t much care for the sight of it. Toljet, after all, had been a traitor himself—a bat who’d turned his coat.
“Do we need a long explanation?”
“Hm?”
Diluvian tilted his head at Han Hye’s words.
“You didn’t strike me as the type to drag things out with talk.”
There was no need to indulge them—that was what she meant. From Diluvian’s perspective, he’d only been trying to buy time for Nereion, but at Han Hye’s remark, even he couldn’t help but let out a dry laugh.
“True. No need for that.”
“Then let’s be swift about it.”
The moment their conversation ended, both of them kicked off the ground. The Demon nobles were the ones caught off guard.
Opening with an attack from a mere handful against overwhelming numbers went against all common sense.
Han Hye didn’t use Leap. The first strike after announcing the start of battle wasn’t his role.
Instead, the Dragon Guild hovering above moved into action.
-Crash!
The Dragon Scale Piercing Spear, which had been charging ever since the enemy came into view, came plummeting down.
-Bang!
A surprise attack from the sky. Mana Protective Barriers flared up simultaneously to block the spear.
But that wasn’t the end. The moment those barriers fell, Seo Min-jae’s magic came crashing through.
Against such opponents, no opening went undefended. A protective barrier of Mana formed at once.
It didn’t matter. Seo Min-jae’s Lightning Magic wasn’t aimed directly at them.
“Is he insane?”
The lightning struck a stretch of road some distance from where the Demons were positioned. But that wasn’t where it ended.
-Crack-crack-crack!
Seo Min-jae had already laid down water along the road entrance long before the enemy arrived.
The lightning flowed along a current of water drawn from the Heart of the Sea.
Of course, he wasn’t trying to deal a serious blow with this alone. The aim was momentary paralysis or drawing the enemy’s attention elsewhere.
That’s when Han Hye made his move.
-Whoosh!
Using Leap, he burrowed into the heart of the enemy formation. It was time for his S-rank Armor and the Oath of the Sky.
He could use it five times a day, but now was the moment. A protective barrier materialized around Han Hye.
-Clang!
Those who tried to counterattack immediately had their strikes nullified by the barrier. In that same instant, Han Hye detonated the shield itself.
-Boom!
He’d used it once during training, but this was his first time in actual combat.
The destructive power was considerable, but whether it would be effective enough was unpredictable.
‘It works.’
And work it did—for the Demon nobles, at least. Han Hye appeared suddenly above their heads.
He’d struck precisely where their defenses crumbled.
“Ugh!”
As the Demons were sent reeling by the shockwave, Han Hye unleashed Severance in all directions.
An attack that ignored direction entirely, focused only on raw destructive power and volume.
-Slice! Slice!
A sickening sound of things being cut erupted in sequence, and then came Han Hye’s favored combo—Intense Heat.
-Whoosh!
Flames seized hold of the disoriented Demons. Each tried to resist with Mana, but the Intense Heat wasn’t all.
-Crash!
-Boom!
Above, the Dragon Scale Piercing Spear and magic rained down again, and Diluvian descended into the chaos, landing among the enemy ranks.
“Argh!”
Several enemies fell at once from the sudden ambush. Han Hye smirked. Despite their numerical disadvantage, the situation wasn’t bad at all.
The battlefield had dissolved into chaos—a melee where numbers lost their advantage in the midst of such confusion.
Especially when Han Hye could feel the enemy positions clearly through his Space Sense.
He’d already accounted for Diluvian’s build and spear, so the chance of accident dwindled to near zero.
-Whoosh!
When the surviving Demons began to regroup at a distance from Diluvian, Han Hye used Leap again.
-Bang!
He’d decided to use all but two of his five daily barrier uses here, saving them for his battle with the Grand Duke—so he spared nothing.
With chaos sown once more among the freshly regrouped Demons, the battle never grew difficult.
‘Easier than I thought.’
Of course, that wasn’t the end of it. Diluvian drew closer to Han Hye and whispered.
“The counts still remain.”
In other words, those swept up in this chaotic melee were small fry. Not ordinary small fry, mind you, but the main threats were still intact.
“Are they staying put?”
“Yes. They’re probably measuring our level right now.”
Han Hye smiled at Diluvian’s words.
“All the better.”
Ever since her battle with Fist King’s phantom, Han Hye’s mind remained unsettled.
Hadn’t she been contemplating how to reduce the proportion of Imperial foundational swordsmanship woven into the Iron Wing Fighting Sword and explore a new direction instead?
She’d gained insight fighting Toljet before, which allowed her to obtain the Iron Wing Fighting Sword.
If these were counts of the same caliber as Toljet, they would certainly prove invaluable to her current deliberations.
“Let’s finish these quickly and have a proper match.”
Diluvian’s smile widened at Han Hye’s words.
“Right. We should. Brings back old memories for me too.”
* * *
‘That should be most of them cleaned up.’
She’d swept away a considerable force in the chaos of battle. The tactical pattern resembled her previous engagements, so it felt familiar.
Charging into the enemy’s midst, using Severance and Intense Heat to throw masses of foes into disarray.
She’d added the step of detonating protective barriers on top of that. Simple as it seemed, the effect was quite potent.
Leaping and unleashing Severance and Intense Heat in all directions had always worked well, but stronger enemies demanded additional countermeasures.
‘Most don’t just rush into enemy lines without thought.’
But when a barrier detonates? The moment it’s added to the equation, beyond the simple explosion comes a shockwave that drives enemies back hard.
Added to the chaos, their defense falters for a crucial moment. It meant Severance and Intense Heat’s effects doubled against them.
In any case, enemy numbers had thinned considerably because of it. Still, the task wasn’t finished.
The counts Diluvian mentioned remained standing.
‘Disgusting creatures. Their subordinates are all dying, yet…….’
They kept their focus on defense, continuously observing only my fighting style.
At least now I could engage in a proper discussion about advancing the Iron Wing Fighting Sword.
‘Hmm.’
One thing troubled me: Diluvian’s condition. Was it from the forced march with Nereion?
Despite his confident words about old memories returning, his state looked far from ideal.
He appeared exhausted in body, and bore various wounds. It seemed he’d lost considerable strength from remaining as stone for so long.
These creatures had even noted that the past Diluvian was different.
‘Can’t be helped.’
I’d have to pull one and a half times my weight.
Finishing these creatures quickly was the priority. After that, I’d watch the battle between Nereion and the Grand Duke and decide whether to assist.
Not bad. If Diluvian were in perfect condition…….
When we went to help Nereion, something was bound to block us. I’d been thinking we might have to fight allies.
“Hye!”
It was then that Uncle’s voice came from above.
I glanced up and shook my head instead of replying.
-If things are going badly, shake your head.
-If I need to come help right away, clench your fist tight.
The signal we’d arranged before.
The vigor of the head shake seemed unusually strong……. Nereion must be getting pushed back hard.
‘I can’t go right now.’
If I left these ones behind, the Entrance would be breached anyway.
‘I need to end this fast.’
As regrettable as it was to put the Iron Wing Fighting Sword’s training on hold, I’d dispatch these creatures as quickly as possible and head to help Nereion.
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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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