The Game of a Legendary Genius Dark Mage - Chapter 189

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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 189
189
Lazard’s eyes flickered with thought as he absorbed Yoo Sung-hyun’s answer.
Why so many?
With merely that level of strength, he possessed so many Minions?
Questions bloomed endlessly in his mind.
He himself had adjusted his power to match that boy’s and reduced his own to five.
Twelve, though.
His bewilderment persisted.
Yet as he found no clear resolution,
a sudden thought occurred to him.
‘What if he created so many precisely because they were weak?’
It was entirely plausible.
‘Indiscriminately inflating their numbers would be beneath my dignity, after all.’
Lazard consoled himself with this reasoning.
He closed his eyes firmly and spoke.
“Five will suffice.”
“…?”
At Lazard’s words, Yoo Sung-hyun tilted his head in confusion.
He said he would match the number.
Five?
Surely that couldn’t be all?
He wanted to ask,
but he refrained.
‘If the number is smaller, I’ll simply finish this as quickly as possible.’
Surely the Minions of Lazard, who bore the epithet of Blood Lord, numbered more than a mere five.
His concern lay instead in how to deploy those Minions.
His opponent was Lazard, who carried the title of Blood Lord.
If they were his Minions, they would certainly be vampires.
Recalling past encounters,
‘He is the type whose Minions are stronger than himself.’
There existed classes like battlefield commanders or generals—those who fought by enhancing their allies’ morale and abilities rather than their own strength.
Lazard appeared to be of such a category.
And given his status as a lord,
he was certainly no weakling.
Thus I had to choose my Minions carefully.
‘I’m uncertain about compatibility or attributes, but I should select those strongest in raw power.’
That way, even if I lost, I would have no regrets.
Yoo Sung-hyun mentally ranked his Minions by strength.
Helena was absolutely essential.
Next would be Dracanoss.
Unfortunately, Dracanoss had fought Lactira just yesterday, so he needs rest for the time being.
Excluding Dracanoss, the next strongest is Anemor.
But…
‘Can I deploy Anemor here?’
I looked around while thinking that.
The castle is spacious, certainly.
But it’s only about the size of a large hall.
It won’t be easy to leverage Anemor’s strengths—gliding and aerial combat.
I’ll have to pass on Anemor as well.
Then the next most powerful would be Fiora.
Fiora absolutely must be included.
After Fiora, Leonik, Baltar, and Serpina displayed roughly comparable strength.
‘So it’s settled with five?’
As Yoo Sung-hyun was thinking through his participating servants this way.
Lazard, who at this level had only five servants, was thinking something different.
This generation’s Overlord was far too weak.
Yet he himself had been similarly diminished.
Part of it was from sleeping for so long.
But he had weakened due to the covenant with Helena.
As a result, the number of his servants decreased.
And the power he could allocate also diminished.
Still, no matter how weak, an Overlord remains an Overlord.
He had been overwhelmingly dominant among the lords.
So Lazard’s mind grew busy.
‘Five. But I cannot distribute equally.’
Lazard’s servants all slumbered within his blood.
Depending on how much blood he allocated to each servant, their strength was determined.
So the strategy had to be carefully crafted.
Where and how Yoo Sung-hyun would position his forces.
Only by considering that and deploying his servants could he seize victory.
Around the time he was consumed by such thoughts.
A sudden idea flashed through Lazard’s mind.
‘There’s no reason to insist on best-of-five, first-to-three.’
Originally, he had intended to follow the standard best-of-five format.
But this generation’s Overlord possessed an unusually large number of servants—something he could sense now.
This could become a variable.
Just because there are many, does that mean each one is weak?
Hardly.
Perhaps if he considered even the servants left behind by the previous Overlord.
There was no need to take on such unnecessary risk.
At the very least, all five might possess powerful Minions.
Thus, Lazard’s mind worked solely toward the obsession of victory.
And as a result.
“Rather than a best-of-five format, we’ll conduct this as a tournament—winners continue fighting until a final victor emerges.”
Lazard spoke thus.
Yoo Sung-hyun tilted his head as if puzzled.
He wondered if there was truly a need for such a thing.
“Hmm?”
“If all five are victors from one side, then naturally that side wins.”
“It doesn’t matter to me.”
“Good.”
Foolish, perhaps.
With this arrangement, I could allocate minimal blood to four and create a single supremely powerful Minion.
No matter what the previous Overlord, Helena, might have left behind, the strongest Minion would be unstoppable.
Lazard believed this without the slightest doubt.
Meanwhile, Yoo Sung-hyun raised no objections to Lazard’s proposal.
After all, he intended to win regardless.
Yoo Sung-hyun recalled all his deployments and completed his preparations.
He could have devised strategies or paid closer attention to positioning.
But if the match would be decided by fighting until a final victor emerged in this manner.
Strategy hardly mattered at all.
The orthodox approach would be to deploy the weakest of the five Minions first, then gradually increase in strength.
Helena naturally found herself positioned last.
Though this too was intentional.
‘It would be awkward to deploy Helena from the start.’
Helena was practically Lazard’s trauma incarnate.
So wouldn’t it be better to save her for last?
Yoo Sung-hyun entertained such thoughts.
Then Lazard asked.
“Are you prepared?”
“Yes, we can begin immediately.”
At Yoo Sung-hyun’s words, Lazard nodded and extended his hand into empty space.
His blood gushed forth from his palm, taking on a singular form.
That shape of blood, resembling a woman’s silhouette, gradually took on human features.
Though her skin and complexion were pallid, her lips and eyes alone gleamed with vibrant, luscious crimson radiance—a woman of striking beauty.
The moment the woman appeared.
She turned toward Lazard, bowed her head, and cried out.
“Ahhhhh!!! I behold my eternal lord, the immortal Blood King who encompasses all kindred!”
“Niera, it has been a long time.”
“Ah, how honored I am that you would remember even such a lowly name as mine.”
“Go forth and seize victory.”
“Yes!”
Watching her unwavering loyalty, Yoo Sung-hyun nodded approvingly and summoned one of his Minions.
He hadn’t particularly planned which one to call first.
But it happened to be a female Minion.
A teal-colored portal materialized in the empty air.
From within it emerged a graceful woman with her navy-blue hair neatly bound, stepping forth with unhurried elegance.
Serpina appeared in that place and spoke to Yoo Sung-hyun with quiet composure.
“Thank you for summoning me.”
“Yeah, it’s more of a duel vibe. Go win and come back.”
“Very well.”
At their remarkably casual exchange, the vampire known as Niera let out a scornful laugh.
“Hmph, such informality even before your own lord. How pathetic.”
“….”
Meanwhile, watching this unfold, Lazard’s lips twitched momentarily.
His brow furrowed briefly as he gazed at Serpina.
She was definitely a familiar presence.
Sifting through his memories, he recalled who she was.
A certain woman flashed through Lazard’s mind.
‘The Witch of the Night?’
Serpina Nightbloom, the Witch of the Night.
Remembering her existence, Lazard regarded her with bewilderment.
Compared to the past, she appeared as diminished as he himself was.
But how was she even alive?
He had heard that she too had perished.
What in the world was happening?
Though he couldn’t comprehend it, Lazard didn’t dwell on it much.
Even if Niera hadn’t been given a full share of power.
Still, she was his Minion.
‘Perhaps she might even achieve victory.’
With such thoughts, Lazard watched Niera.
Niera’s confidence was unmistakably brimming over.
Perhaps?
With that notion, he watched both of them ascend to the Arena.
Then, naturally, a blood-red orb appeared in the center.
As that sphere of blood materialized in the air, it signaled the beginning of the match.
Both of them recognized it as the signal.
Yet despite recognizing the signal, Serpina remained motionless.
Seeing this, Niera scoffed and unleashed her magic with full force.
Vampire-tinged magic suffused the air—spells woven from blood itself.
Countless blood-inscribed magical circles materialized behind Niera’s back.
“Kyahahaha!!! Your tears and pleas are utterly useless….”
The moment she lunged forward to strike.
A crimson moon suddenly blazed across the sky.
The scarlet moonlight converged all the world’s luminescence into a single point and unleashed it.
Crimson moonlight descended upon Niera’s head before she could finish her words.
Kwaaaaaaa———!!!
The Arena beneath Niera’s feet melted away like wax, consumed by the scarlet moonlight.
A massive crater opened where she stood, and Niera vanished completely—not even a drop of blood remained to mark her existence.
A single instant decided everything.
Serpina spoke with unhurried composure as she observed the result.
“That would be my victory, would it not?”
“….”
Lazard found himself unable to open his mouth at Serpina’s haughty declaration.
No matter how much he’d reduced her power.
Niera was not one to fall so pathetically.
Yet it had happened in a single, devastating instant.
Lazard grasped at his reeling mind.
And nodded.
“Match one goes to the Overlord. You have it.”
“Yes, it appears so.”
“We shall proceed to the next match.”
Lazard considered whether he should alter his strategy now, but shook his head.
This woman who resembled the Witch of the night so closely might very well be his strongest Minion.
Perhaps this was fortunate.
At the very least.
If he crafted his most powerful Minion from blood itself, victory would surely follow.
Such was his judgment.
The second match commenced, and he summoned another Minion.
Blood surged forth once more.
It coalesced into human form.
A vampire male materialized—the sort who might grace the pages of medieval fantasy, draped in a black cloak with its collar raised high.
The handsome vampire with flowing golden hair, like Niera before him, proclaimed his loyalty to Lazard.
“My lord, sovereign of all our blood kin! This humble servant Damien humbly presents himself before you.”
“Damien, it has been long. Go forth and claim victory.”
“I shall bring triumph to my lord.”
With that vow, Damien turned and advanced toward the Arena.
The Arena, damaged by Serpina’s crimson moonlight, had already been restored to its original state.
And Yoo Sung-hyun watched the scene with indifference before reopening the portal to the Underworld.
The next to be summoned was.
-Kahahaha!!! What an honor to be fourth!!! My Lord!!!
Baltar strode forward with a wild laugh, his crimson skin and massive greatsword on full display.
At his appearance, the vampire who called himself Damien’s expression twisted sharply.
“How crude and vulgar. The manner in which you conduct yourself before your lord—you are surely beneath association.”
-Hmm? Is that one my opponent?
Ignoring Damien’s words, Baltar asked Yoo Sung-hyun instead.
Damien’s fury rose to the crown of his head at this display.
Yet Baltar paid him no mind, his gaze fixed on Yoo Sung-hyun.
Yoo Sung-hyun nodded in response.
-Sigh.
At this blatant dismissal, Damien’s rage boiled over as he extracted every razor-sharp claw from his hands.
He glared at Baltar with murderous intent.
In that instant, a sphere of blood materialized in the center of the Arena.
And as the sphere signaled the match’s beginning.
Whoosh!
“I’ll tear your throat from your body!!!”
Damien rushed forward with tremendous speed.
Just as his claws were about to shred Baltar.
His vision spun violently.
Damien stared blankly, utterly unable to comprehend what had happened.
What was this?
But then.
A voice from above his own head.
-Yaaawn. Is it like this?
Baltar spoke languidly, stretching into a leisurely yawn.
Damien gazed at him in bewilderment.
‘How are you above me?’
But no words came.
Only his mouth hung open uselessly.
Baltar, as if remembering something, spoke casually.
-Well, your body is over there.
As he turned his hand.
Damien could see his own body.
His form, collapsed with his throat torn away.
Baltar then kindly tossed the severed head he held toward the corpse.
And with that, Damien’s consciousness faded.
Lazard, who had witnessed the entire spectacle, could not help but tremble violently.
‘What in the world just happened?’

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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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