Blacksmithing Is Child’s Play for a Dark Mage - Chapter 16

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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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Episode 16
‘No. This isn’t the time to worry about that.’
First, the demon.
I had to deal with the Clown Demon one way or another.
With that thought, I fixed my gaze ahead.
The contractor was dead, so it would soon vanish, but I had a narrow window.
If it attacked me in that time, I could die.
“Hee-hee-hya-hya-hya! Coming to the surface and seeing something fun! Since you’ve entertained me, I’ll let you live! But that’s not all. Go on, take this!”
The demon thrust out a finger.
Flash!
Light tore through Tae’s shoulder.
The pain was severe enough that Tae gritted his teeth.
With two fingers already broken, the ache from that alone was unbearable—and now this new wound.
That was when it happened.
-You have acquired the Demonic Mark.
-Demon Affinity has increased.
-Demon Magic Power has increased.
A Demonic Mark?
Since Tae aspired to be a Black Mage, he knew what a Demonic Mark was.
It was a kind of symbol that a demon gave to a human it favored.
With it, one received preferential treatment when summoning that particular demon.
And the more marks one accumulated, the more beloved by demons one became.
Setting aside whether that was a good thing or not.
The fact remained that his power as a Black Mage had increased.
“Hee-hee-hya-hya! If you’re ever in peril or crave knowledge of joy, call upon me! Then farewell to you!”
The Clown Demon scattered like smoke and vanished with those words.
Tae let out a sigh at the sight.
The undead were annihilated. The Black Mage was dead. The demon had withdrawn.
“Filthy clown….”
But Aste seemed displeased with it all. I could see his teeth grinding.
‘This one knows that Clown Demon from before, clearly enough…. But he won’t tell me, naturally.’
“Calm down. We’re alive, aren’t we?”
“Hmph! You are my contractor. Yet to bear the mark of that thing….”
“It was beyond my control. Or would you rather have blocked it?”
“That wasn’t an attack, so I was forbidden from intercepting it by our contract.”
“Well, the contract is what it is. I can’t help it. If you really hate it, I’ll erase it later once my Realm as a Black Mage grows higher.”
If my Realm as a Black Mage advanced far enough, I could erase this mark.
“Is that truly so?”
“Yes. If you hate it, I’ll remove it.”
Demons are possessive creatures.
Even if I never erased it later, it was better to say this much for now.
“Hmph. Then that is acceptable.”
Only now did Aste seem satisfied.
“Let’s gather the spoils first.”
Bearing the pain from my broken fingers, I moved forward.
And I managed to collect quite a respectable haul of loot.
* * *
“The sun! Oh! The sun!”
Tae.
When he emerged from the Sewers.
The sun was shining.
Tae struck the signature pose of a game character from his past life—’Praise the Sun.’
This was nothing less than a tribute to the noble sun.
Of course, Aste looked at him as if he were mad.
“Indeed, Master! Executing ‘Praise the Sun’ at such a moment! That Dialogue is nothing but admirable!”
Dialogue chattered away excitedly.
“Contractor. I believe now is not the time for such antics.”
Aste was right.
There were quite a few people gathered at the Sewers entrance.
“A survivor!”
“Have I gone insane? Why would anyone stand like that……?”
“Go look!”
There were about thirty of them. They chattered all at once before their leader—a man who looked to be in command—sent his subordinates forward.
As Tae relaxed his stance and observed, he saw that half were mercenaries and the other half were soldiers bearing unified armor.
‘City soldiers here? Ah, I see. It’s because of the Major Purification.’
Tae guessed internally why they were here.
The soldiers advanced with their spears, while the mercenaries at their side drew their weapons as well.
“I am Tae, a failed mercenary of the Black Trident Guild!”
Tae immediately threw himself flat on his face and shouted out his identity at the top of his lungs.
* * *
“It is the truth.”
Tae had to endure a long interrogation. It was only natural—he was the first survivor to crawl out of those Sewers.
His life and health meant nothing to the city’s dignitaries; they refused to treat him and instead proceeded to interrogate him.
Of course, Tae screamed about his pain and writhed until he finally received treatment for his broken fingers.
He had managed to obtain and drink a Healing Potion!
Black Mages carried a penalty for their power—they couldn’t receive aid from clerics—so he resorted to using a Healing Potion.
Truth be told, since he had learned Life Force Absorption Black Magic from Aste, he wouldn’t have needed the potion if there had been any living creature nearby.
“Haa…… May I leave now?”
“You will wait further.”
Tae looked at the two people sitting before him.
One was a middle-aged man with a pinched expression. The other was a woman in her thirties with an impassive face.
The middle-aged man was a knight with a solid build, and the woman was at least a Third-Class Mage.
There was nothing complicated about how he could guess her Class.
It was because of the Truth Discerning Magic she wielded.
A Third-Class spell that determined whether the target was speaking truthfully or lying.
If Tae were around Fourth-Class as a Mage, he could interfere with this spell, but there was no chance of that.
He was merely a Black Mage who had just reached Level 2.
The two of them left the room after that.
And shortly after.
A soldier entered and led Tae away.
He was then thrown into a Prison cell that had a bed and a toilet, with a small water channel running through it.
This Prison was one you could stay in if you paid some coin—the kind where minor offenders (particularly those whose families had money) were held.
Tae wasn’t a criminal, which was why he received such accommodation.
“Tsk. This really…….”
Because of that, now neither Aste nor Dialogue were with him. All his equipment had been confiscated, and he’d been ordered to unsummon the demon.
Yet.
He didn’t think it was so bad.
After all, he’d managed to wheedle an expensive Healing Potion out of them through sheer persistence.
Healing Potions were far too valuable an item for a failed mercenary like him to obtain.
Thump.
Tae lay down on the bed and summoned the system window.
“Might as well do this now…….”
What he needed to do.
It was to acquire two skills!
One Confirmed Skill Book.
And one Level gained in his Black Mage Class.
With these two, he could obtain skills.
“First the Level Up reward…… Come on…… Show yourself!”
-You have acquired a Level Up Reward Skill.
-You have obtained [Black Heart].
[Skill: Black Heart]
Grade: Regression
Type: Passive
A heart that evolved through adaptation to Black Magic power.
It accumulates Black Magic power more rapidly, increases the potency of Black Magic, and grants resistance to Black Magic attacks.
However, it becomes slightly vulnerable to Holy-type attacks.
Effect: Black Magic potency increased by 20%.
Effect: Black Magic power recovery increased by 20%.
Effect: Holy-type damage received increased by 10%.
An excellent skill had appeared!
There was a slight penalty, but this was an excellent skill overall.
A passive that increased both recovery and power by twenty percent!
“I’m already getting good drops from the start!”
Tae’s mood brightened considerably.
Well, it was only natural—such a fine skill had appeared.
Black Mages didn’t gain spells from leveling up in the first place. Spells had to be obtained entirely from external sources.
Whether learned directly from someone else, stolen by watching a demon like Aste use them, or acquired through books—that was the only way.
Which made skills obtained this way absolutely vital for Tae, who possessed the Hunter System.
“Next I should use the Confirmed Skill Book… but what should I choose?”
Tae lay still for a moment, arms crossed, thinking.
The only skill tree he knew well was the Madman’s Engineer.
He didn’t know Black Mage skills at all, and while he had some familiarity with Warrior abilities, he had no interest in acquiring those…
“No. Wait. What if I did take a Warrior skill?”
Tae reconsidered.
A Confirmed Skill Book.
With this, he could even acquire an S-Rank skill, since it granted him exactly the skill he desired.
Among Warrior-class skills, one of the most renowned was something called Adamantine Body.
A skill that hardened the body until it became as impervious as Superman’s!
Famous as a passive defensive skill that prevented injury from ordinary attacks.
If he wanted, he could obtain such a skill.
Of course, acquiring an S-Rank Madman’s Engineer skill was also possible.
So what skill should he obtain right now, in this moment?
What was the best choice?
“All right. I’ve decided.”
He needed a skill that suited a Black Mage best.
A skill that could push his survival ability to the absolute limit!
And that skill was…
“Immortal Life Heart. This one.”
—Skill [Immortal Life Heart] has been acquired.
Tae had obtained a skill that would make him virtually impossible to kill.
[Skill: Immortal Life Heart]
Rank: Legendary
Type: Passive
A heart that holds immortal life.
A heart forever brimming with vitality, one that rejects death itself.
So long as the heart remains intact, the entire body regenerates rapidly.
Even if the head is destroyed, recovery is possible within ten minutes if the heart is unharmed.
Function: Transcendent Regeneration
Function: Immunity to Status Ailments affecting the body
“This is it!”
Tae laughed.
Transcendent regeneration!
This meant even severed limbs would regrow anew.
Beyond that, immunity to status ailments was formidable—poisons and diseases would no longer affect him.
With such powerful regeneration, poison and sickness could never harm his body anyway.
But that wasn’t all.
That alone wasn’t why he’d chosen it.
Blood and life force were among the materials Black Mages used.
With an Immortal Life Heart, Tae’s own blood would be the finest Black Magic material imaginable.
Difficult to find materials?
He himself would become the material!
Moreover.
Blood wasn’t used solely as a Black Magic ingredient.
When the Madman’s Engineer crafted various items, using blood as a material produced superior results!
Especially.
When wielding something like the Twisted Bone Spear of Finger Sacrifice that he’d used before—the synergy would be perfect.
Even if he broke a few fingers, they’d heal in no time!
Being a Black Mage is way easier than being a blacksmith.
Author |
Automaton G
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Samyang C&C Co., Ltd.
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Editorial Department
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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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