The Game of a Legendary Genius Dark Mage - Chapter 181

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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 181
181
0.
The undead assaults came relentlessly.
Whenever there was a lull, they would surge forward and attack anew.
The members of Assassination Unit 3 stationed here were woefully insufficient in number.
Thus, the return of Nuartein, who had gone to report to the Royal Palace, was desperately needed.
Reinforcements were equally vital.
Yet the atmosphere within the Royal Palace was not conducive to dispatching aid.
All unit commanders of the Assassination Unit had been urgently summoned to the palace.
And The King, the absolute ruler of the Basilica, gazed down upon them with his expression twisted in displeasure, his tongue flicking with visible irritation.
It was understandable.
In the midst of preparing for war with Ninyaru, this calamity had struck without warning.
Not only were they suffering troop losses, but procuring supplies had become difficult as well.
Those responsible for supplies from outside could not reach the palace due to the undead.
Nothing was proceeding smoothly.
Moreover, even the formidable City Wall had been reduced to tatters by successive undead assaults.
There was no reason his mood should be anything but foul.
“….”
“”….””
As the Black Snake King remained utterly silent,
no one within the hall dared to make a sound.
The tension stretched taut as a drawn bowstring.
From within that silence, The King gestured with a nod, as if commanding someone to speak.
Nuartein bowed his head before that jutting chin.
Called upon to report.
“…Yes. Currently, a vast undead army has descended upon us and is assaulting the City Wall. Judging that the troops stationed atop the wall alone would be insufficient, our unit members have stepped forward to defend, but we find ourselves overwhelmed and require reinforcements.”
Nuartein’s report contained no mention of the critical fact that the enemy had withdrawn their forces upon their arrival.
Unfortunately, only Nuartein and Sibren in this chamber knew that truth.
No one else was aware of it.
“Undead, you say.”
At The King’s hissing voice,
the commander of Assassination Unit 1—a Spider Humanoid whose body bristled with violet venomous fur—muttered under his breath.
“Hmm. Did Ninyaru send them?”
The question was, in essence, directed at Sibren, who had recently returned from Ninyaru.
Yet Sibren did not answer that inquiry.
As if he had seen no such thing in Ninyaru.
At that response, The King too nodded slowly.
If matters stood thus, the identity of the culprit remained unknown.
But.
“The timing aligns rather conveniently.”
The King spoke indirectly about the existence of a spy.
Sibren should have tensed at those words.
Yet he remained perfectly composed and still.
The King studied Sibren with narrowed eyes.
Sibren had been meticulously cultivated as an assassin, stripped of all emotion.
If he had been compromised, then so be it—but Sibren would never betray him.
Betrayal itself required emotion: the fear of death, greed, and such.
How could Sibren, whose emotions had been thoroughly excised, ever betray?
It was impossible.
Though the King had lost much because of this.
But he would never know it.
“We postpone war with Ninyaru.”
“But, Your Majesty…”
“Whoever this arrogant wretch is—or wretches, plural—they are certainly sinister creatures seeking to invade my domain. Even if you fall short compared to me, you should be capable of handling those undead bastards.”
These undead were certainly not naturally occurring.
Moreover, they had not entertained even the slightest notion that their opponent might be a foreigner.
To generate such quantities of undead and lead legions in repeated attacks?
It had to be some sinister Dark Mage or Lich.
This was the Labyrinth Gap, after all.
It would be strange if anyone at all could not enter here.
I wish to move myself, an absolute being.
Yet if I move…
‘That lazy wretch will certainly move.’
The Black Snake King.
If he moves, that lazy one in Ninyaru will undoubtedly move as well.
Had they not made such an agreement?
Neither would venture beyond their own city nor exercise power outside it.
Should either violate this, the other would interpret it as consent for war.
Though the pact was ancient, it endured for a simple reason.
‘I fear his movement.’
The Black Snake King still feared the White Lion.
Because the White Lion was older and far more powerful than himself.
Should he move, this war would become meaningless.
The war itself was merely intended to eliminate the merchants of the Labyrinth Merchant Guild.
If only he could succeed in that…
The Labyrinth’s dominion might rise—however briefly—and even surpass that White Lion.
This war had been initiated for that moment.
Yet from the very start, everything has gone awry.
This is a war that cannot fail under any circumstances.
A war that required the death of every merchant from the Labyrinth Merchant Guild.
Not a single mistake could be tolerated.
Therefore.
“If we fail to stop those undead now, filthy undead will infest the entire Basilica. Thus, we may proceed with war against Ninyaru after disposing of them.”
All the unit commanders bowed their heads at the King’s words.
Then the King looked to one side and asked.
“Sibren.”
“Yes.”
“What of Ninyaru’s movements?”
“They realized my involvement, but failed to apprehend me to the end. I have already eliminated all the merchant administrators, so they will be occupied with filling that void for some time.”
“Then we postpone the war. It is impossible for the dull and sluggish Ninyaru to discover our plans and strike first.”
He could never know that the fool was himself.
His eyes and ears were sealed shut.
There was no means for him to perceive it.
Thus the Black Snake King cried out.
“Dispose of those filthy undead before my eyes.”
“Yes. Understood.”
“I shall comply.”
“I accept your command.”
Three unit commanders shouted in response.
Sibren and Nuartein bowed their heads, their eyes gleaming with teal light.
The operation would commence soon.
1.
Yoo Sung-hyun informed Silberion, who had just arrived, of the current situation unfolding in the Basilica and the circumstances of the King’s orders.
“…So that is what transpired.”
?????????
Silberion, her expression utterly bewildered by the account, blinked repeatedly as she stared at Yoo Sung-hyun.
Her face bore the look of disbelief—was this truly real? What was he even saying?
Yet she came to understand this was reality, and she grasped the magnitude of Yoo Sung-hyun’s extraordinary Achievement.
How could such a cheat-like ability exist?
He had eliminated the enemy’s leadership and turned them into spies.
And then he had done the same with another leadership, converting them into spies as well?
‘Does this even make sense?’
Ordinarily, it made absolutely no sense whatsoever.
Even Yoo Sung-hyun had not anticipated this would work.
It had been a strategy devised on the spot.
The problem was that the enemy’s vigilance had risen to its peak as a result.
For anyone else, it might have been different.
“The commander of Assassination Unit 1, the Spider Humanoid Lakti—I don’t think we can manage that among ourselves.”
“…Y-yes, of course…”
Even Silberion, who had initially spoken casually, began to add formal speech.
Considering everything Yoo Sung-hyun had said and his power, it was only natural.
Yoo Sung-hyun didn’t particularly mind and began formulating his strategy.
Should we wait for the main force to arrive first?
They’re waiting for us anyway.
What strategy should we employ to face them?
Countless such thoughts followed one after another.
“…You’re already doing so well that I feel like there’s nothing left for me to do.”
At this point, Silberion’s pride wasn’t even wounded.
Though she had acted alongside her subordinates, those subordinates were also Yoo Sung-hyun’s power.
He was a Dark Mage, after all.
In other words, Yoo Sung-hyun had built this fortress to this state entirely alone.
Now Silberion couldn’t take a stance on anything.
Whether it was power or strategy.
Yoo Sung-hyun surpassed Silberion in everything.
And because of that.
“Whatever command you give, I will carry it out.”
Now she truly acknowledged Yoo Sung-hyun as the commander of the Special Detachment and followed him.
As she spoke with that acknowledgment.
Yoo Sung-hyun gazed thoughtfully at the distant City Wall above.
Soldiers were gathering one by one.
In particular, he observed Lakti, the captain of Assassination Unit 1, who felt exceptionally powerful.
If I summoned a great army like this, it would certainly be annihilated in no time.
‘An Explosion Build?’
No.
That had too much of a one-time nature to it.
Using it now would only heighten the enemy’s vigilance.
If I used it this time and the enemy prepared countermeasures later, its effectiveness would be greatly diminished.
I had to avoid that at all costs.
So I would save the Explosion Build and use it when the main force joined up.
To breach the City Wall and open a path.
Yoo Sung-hyun was thinking this when he suddenly looked up at the City Wall again.
“Ah.”
Why didn’t I think of that?
Yoo Sung-hyun wore exactly that kind of expression.
Helena, curious, asked.
“Aha, did you think of something fun again? What is it?”
At Helena’s words, Silberion’s ears perked up with curiosity as well.
Anticipating that an excellent command would now fall to her.
Receiving the attention of both of them, Yoo Sung-hyun spoke as he looked at them.
“Ah, come to think of it, Captain Silberion, there’s something you all need to do.”
Oh, I wonder what that could be.
Everyone waited eagerly for Yoo Sung-hyun to continue.
What emerged from his lips was truly an unexpected suggestion.
“Let’s rest for a while.”
“I’m… sorry?”
Silberion’s face twisted in utter bewilderment as she asked for clarification.
She seemed to be questioning what he meant.
Helena, however, grasped his intention immediately and let out an exclamation of admiration.
“Oh?! Of course! That’s our Yoo Sung-hyun for you! So clever!”
What on earth was she talking about?
Had only I failed to understand?
Silberion fidgeted uncomfortably with that thought.
Helena offered an enigmatic smile as she explained to Silberion.
“To make a turtle poke its head out, patience is the greatest weapon.”
“…Ah!”
Only then did Silberion cry out in realization.
Yoo Sung-hyun and Helena exchanged knowing nods.
It seemed like a truly excellent strategy.
2.
The unit commanders, stripped of their emotions, remained unaffected.
But the soldiers began to show signs of strain.
“Those damnable bastards…!!!”
“Filthy undead scum!!!”
“Damn this wretched war.”
Finally, their frustration erupted.
But it was unavoidable.
Such words were bound to come out.
It had already been four days.
Had the undead legion been attacking relentlessly without pause?
No.
Quite the opposite.
“They attack perfectly timed with our supply deliveries and don’t approach the City Wall at all! Shouldn’t we be the ones going out to fight?”
“…”
Lakti, the commander of Assassination Unit 1, said nothing in response to one of her soldiers’ words.
She merely narrowed her eight eyes and gazed out at the desolate wasteland near the City Wall.
There was nothing visible to see.
Which made it all the more puzzling.
How on earth were they obtaining their intelligence?
It was incomprehensible.
‘Should we sortie?’
No, that was impossible.
If we ventured out, we would forfeit every advantage of defending this position and have to contend with that staggering horde of undead.
It was tantamount to surrendering the war entirely.
Frustrating as it was, remaining here was the far better choice.
If only supplies weren’t dwindling, this would be the perfect strategy.
‘Our resources are running dry.’
Not merely war materiel—to threaten the Labyrinth and eliminate those who entered it, we needed the materials scattered throughout the Labyrinth Gap.
Without replenishing those, I could never maintain control of the Labyrinth.
The enemy, by contrast, commanded an undead legion that required no supplies whatsoever.
I found myself at an impasse, uncertain how to proceed.
So I turned to those whose minds were sharper than mine.
“Must we simply remain here?”
I had suppressed my emotions—no trace of anxiety or impatience showed.
Yet the question itself betrayed the urgency of our predicament.
Two voices answered.
“Abandoning the defensive advantage is precisely what they’re counting on.”
“We need only wait. Eventually, they’ll grow weary and launch an assault—that much is certain.”
I nodded at their words.
My own thoughts aligned with theirs.
If those two, renowned for intellect surpassing even mine, believed this, I could trust their judgment.
Thus I expressed my gratitude to Sibren and Nuartein.
“Thank you. We’ll continue to wait.”
To my thanks,
“No, we should be thanking you for heeding our counsel.”
“Truly.”
Sibren and Nuartein were even more grateful.

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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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