The Game of a Legendary Genius Dark Mage - Chapter 234

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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 234
234
A secret keyword.
I didn’t know much about it.
But wouldn’t that suggest it was one of Hindel’s secrets?
Yoo Sung-hyun opened his eyes, gazed at the passage, and exhaled softly.
I had wondered why the Hindel I saw in the past attacked Helena as if to kill her.
So there was such a hidden truth to it.
Of course, his sister’s death alone wouldn’t be the only reason.
But I suspected it became the most decisive catalyst.
“Hmm.”
“You sense there’s something more to this, don’t you?”
Plinky reacted to Yoo Sung-hyun’s murmur.
The way he was lost in thought suggested there was indeed something more.
But let’s wait in silence.
Yoo Sung-hyun broached the subject first.
“No matter how you look at it, I don’t think Hindel would have been swept up by emotion and deceived so easily.”
“Oh?”
“It could have been the decisive catalyst, but I suspect there was manipulation before that, or further manipulation after. That’s what I think happened.”
“Hmm, you understand Hindel quite well, don’t you?”
A piercing question that cut right to the point.
But Yoo Sung-hyun didn’t give any particular reaction.
Of course, I had even met him directly.
But there was a high chance he wouldn’t believe me if I said that.
Either way, that’s what I thought.
Hindel wouldn’t have been deceived by his sister’s death alone.
He must have witnessed something decisive.
But what could that be?
Could we find more clues here?
Just as Yoo Sung-hyun was pondering this.
Whoooosh——!
A damp, violet-tinged aura seeped and burst forth from the scroll and notebook that Plinky held.
The moment both of them saw it, they became alert and prepared to react.
Then, from within Yoo Sung-hyun’s inventory, a similar aura erupted, and a message appeared.
[『Demonic Sword – Nemesis (Sealed)』 reacts to demonic energy.]
“Demonic energy?”
“…When I checked earlier, I didn’t sense any demonic energy….”
Plinky spoke with evident bewilderment, and Yoo Sung-hyun nodded in agreement.
This much was certain.
“The scroll and notebook must be connected to weapons imbued with demonic energy. This sealed demonic sword I carry has the ability to detect other weapons infused with demonic energy.”
“What?! Then…?!”
Plinky spoke, and I nodded in acknowledgment.
It wasn’t simply a matter orchestrated by a Dark Mage.
They must have killed Hindel’s younger brother, Lumen, using a weapon imbued with demonic energy.
And perhaps Hindel, sensing the demonic energy lingering there, gradually came to regard Helena as an enemy?
Entertaining such thoughts, I established a faint connection to the Underworld.
Then I asked Helena.
[Helena, was there any connection between demonic energy and Dark Mages?]
[Huh? Demonic energy belongs to those filthy demons. Dark Mages use dark magic, not demonic energy. Demons wield dark power. Though there was an idiot once who thought the two were the same.]
Helena answered with remarkable clarity.
And hearing that final remark tinged with sadness,
I refrained from pressing further and simply nodded.
This confirmed it.
‘They’ve conflated demonic energy with Dark Mages.’
And that meant the Riescan Kingdom was the one utilizing weapons imbued with demonic energy.
As my thoughts reached this point,
Plinky murmured in disbelief.
“Now that I think about it, weapons imbued with demonic energy always seemed to appear near the Riescan Kingdom.”
“Precisely.”
The Riescan Kingdom manufactures weapons imbued with demonic energy.
Upon uncovering this much,
another message materialized before me.
[The secret keywords for 『Hindel』 now include 『Demonic Sword』 and 『Weapons Imbued with Demonic Energy』.]
[Furthermore, the secret keywords for 『Hindel』 now include 『Riescan Kingdom』.]
A declaration confirming what I had discovered.
Seeing it, I nodded, and Plinky likewise murmured with a grave expression.
“This could mean there’s a connection to the Sword Saint as well.”
“The Sword Saint?”
“Yes, one of the Nine Heroes.”
I had heard of them in passing.
The nine most powerful heroes in this world’s lore.
And one of them was connected to the Riescan Kingdom.
This is escalating far beyond what I anticipated.
I thought as much but said nothing aloud.
Plinky, too, offered no further comment,
yet one thing was certain.
“We shouldn’t investigate further until we’ve grown stronger.”
“Agreed.”
I concurred with Plinky’s assessment.
After all, the Nine Heroes might very well be involved.
Though Hindel’s story dated back hundreds of years.
The mere fact that weapons imbued with demonic energy continued to manifest throughout the Riescan Kingdom and its surrounding regions.
Was more than suspicious.
Especially if weapons imbued with demonic energy had deceived Hindel himself.
After organizing their narrative in such a manner.
Plinky handed over the scroll and notebook that had been stolen.
Having already manipulated all traces of demonic energy and suspicious elements, Yoo Sung-hyun accepted the now perfectly pristine scroll and notebook.
And Plinky spoke to him.
“Given Terian’s nature, he won’t report this upward anyway.”
“Yes, that does seem likely. Especially since you’ve covered your tracks so thoroughly.”
“There’s no risk of discovery.”
The two of them, having orchestrated what was nearly the perfect crime, exchanged knowing nods.
Just as when they had first gathered here, the room plunged into darkness, and in that instant, both vanished from the space.
Plinky reappeared in the Market Alley where she had originally been.
The sudden shift in her surroundings was disorienting enough.
But Plinky quickly adapted.
And slipped seamlessly among the crowds without drawing notice.
As she did, she thought to herself.
‘I’ve stumbled upon an even more tremendous secret than I expected. I wonder if I should tell Luke about this….’
Thinking of Luke, who by nature would likely rage and charge at her immediately.
Plinky deliberated for a moment.
But she decided a simple warning would suffice.
In any case.
‘What on earth is their true identity?’
A foreigner who already possessed power surpassing even lords.
Or should one call them an Overload?
Plinky found herself amused by the thought.
‘Hehe, I must find a way to be of help. The sins of ancestors are repaid by their descendants!’
She resolved to do her utmost to assist Yoo Sung-hyun.
To accomplish this.
‘First, I’ll need to persuade the Alchemist’s Tower.’
The Tower of old might have been different.
But this generation’s Alchemist’s Tower was not the same.
And they could not afford to repeat the mistakes of the past.
To wage war against the kingdom, one would need at least an organization of comparable standing.
Then, suddenly.
‘Ah, perhaps it’s unnecessary? The Overpellis is already assisting Yoo Sung-hyun so greatly?’
Overpellis came to mind.
But precisely because of that, Plinky reconsidered.
‘No. Given Overpellis’s nature, they might view the Tower—which harbored the same sins in the past—as an accomplice this time as well.’
I need to find a way to get them to join forces no matter what.
For the very survival of the Magic Tower.
8.
After sending Plinky off.
I immediately grabbed the scroll and notebook, then headed straight for Sysvalt’s administrative castle.
Arriving far faster than expected, the administrator Terrian Mitria greeted me with an anxious expression.
The moment I pulled out the scroll and notebook, he jumped in shock.
“What!? Y-you found them!?”
“Yes, though I wasn’t able to catch the thief, I was able to recover both the scroll and notebook.”
“Ah! S-so quickly recovered! Thank you! Thank you so much! I don’t even care whether the thief is caught or not!”
“…?”
I had expected him to complain that the thief might strike again if left uncaught.
Instead, he was simply overjoyed that the items had been recovered so quickly.
Something felt off about this.
Though he seemed somewhat lacking in intellect.
It appeared he did have some contingency plan in place.
“Now that the Archive will require magical authentication to enter, the thief won’t be able to steal anything so easily.”
Watching Terrian mutter to himself like that, I scratched my cheek.
The Archive had already been protected by magical wards before, yet those were breached.
To think that strengthening them further would make them absolutely impenetrable.
Should I call that naive?
Or perhaps it reminded me slightly of modern times with its superficial approach to problem-solving.
Either way, I let it slide.
It would have been strange to press the issue anyway.
I’d just leave it be.
[Hidden Quest, ‘The Thief of the Archive’ has been cleared.]
[You receive your reward.]
[You have acquired substantial experience points.]
[Level Up!]×2
[You are now Level 188.]
[Additional rewards can be claimed from Terrian Mitria.]
As the quest cleared and I gained experience, I watched my level jump up two tiers at once.
In truth, I had merely been fooling around with Plinky.
Yet the reward felt almost too generous for such minimal effort.
Well, there was no reason to refuse it anyway.
As I happily accepted the reward, Terrian spoke up eagerly.
“I’m so grateful! Is there any specific reward you’d like? I’ll do my best to accommodate it!”
At those words, I pretended to think for a moment.
“Thank you so much! Is there any reward you’d like? I’ll do my best to make it happen!”
Yoo Sung-hyun pretends to think for a moment at those words.
I opened my mouth.
“By any chance, could I learn about weapons imbued with demonic energy in the area?”
I had already given thought to what I wanted as compensation.
The whereabouts of weapons imbued with demonic energy.
As I dealt with those wielding other weapons imbued with demonic energy.
Wouldn’t I be able to obtain another keyword connected to Hindel?
Unfortunately, I couldn’t receive further guidance from Nemesis.
It no longer responded, as if it wasn’t nearby.
So I had asked Terrian Mitria, the administrator of this place where countless information gathered for the knights’ missions.
Upon hearing my words, Terrian Mitria pondered for a moment, then stroked his chin and spoke.
“Hmm, from what I’ve heard, beyond this realm—yes, in what the foreigners call the seventh region, Septem Arcana—someone wielding a weapon imbued with demonic energy has appeared.”
“Septem Arcana….”
“Yes, it’s a magical city situated near the border, not far from our Riescan Kingdom.”
“….”
At those words, Yoo Sung-hyun’s eyes narrowed slightly.
Indeed, that was true.
At the same time, Terrian Mitria offered further explanation.
“Moreover, this person is said to have connections to Sysvalt as well.”
“Ah!”
Now that I thought about it, Leon had mentioned something similar.
Hadn’t he spoken of someone resembling Ragna Ecrion?
Recalling that, Yoo Sung-hyun thought inwardly with bewilderment.
Whether this was being hidden or not.
In any case, having obtained the information, I rose from my seat.
Rather, Terrian Mitria spoke with satisfaction.
“Asking for information about humanity’s enemy as compensation—truly a righteous knight. I cannot offer a new mission as mere compensation for such a noble purpose. Here, accept this instead.”
“…What is this?”
As Yoo Sung-hyun accepted the reward.
A message appeared.
[Terrian Mitria grants you a Unique-grade Skill Book, ‘Song of the Blade,’ as Quest compensation.]
A Unique-grade skill book.
With the Legendary-grade skill book I received from Leon, that made two now.
Yoo Sung-hyun left the skill book in his inventory for now and spoke.
“Thank you.”
It was somewhat disappointing that it was only Unique-grade.
But honestly, Unique-grade was still a good rank.
I accepted it readily.
And so, leaving the satisfied Terrian Mitria behind.
Yoo Sung-hyun stepped outside.
Though I had learned the information.
‘The seventh region.’
Still a distant prospect.
Just as I wondered what to do next.
Yoo Sung-hyun sensed a presence nearby and, using the Lord of Darkness, conjured a blade of shadow that erupted toward a single point.
There, he could see a figure standing motionless, making no attempt to evade the attack.
The shadow blade halted the moment it perceived an opponent with no hostile intent.
The blade stopped mere inches from the figure’s face.
Thud.
The blade had truly stopped right before them.
Yet the figure calmly observed it, then revealed the emblem of the Black King while draped in a black robe.
Overpellis?
Did an Overpellis Branch exist here as well?
As such thoughts crossed my mind.
“I have come to escort you to Hexia regarding an urgent matter.”
Since I had nothing else to do and was planning to return to Hexia anyway.
An urgent matter?
I looked at the figure with that thought in mind.
The figure opened their mouth.
“The Heroes Council is about to convene, and I have come to summon you.”
“The Heroes Council?”

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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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