The Game of a Legendary Genius Dark Mage - Chapter 275

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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 275
275
A replica?
I wondered if such words could even be used to describe a person.
But didn’t Yoo Sung-hyun already possess a skill capable of producing something similar?
Homunculus.
Viewed differently, it was a technique capable of creating beings akin to clones—entities one might call replicas.
Yoo Sung-hyun grasped this realization, and his gaze toward Will shifted subtly.
Then was Will currently a homunculus?
Yoo Sung-hyun regarded him with an expression tinged with uncertainty.
As if reading that very thought, Will nodded.
“Junior—or rather, your assumption is likely correct.”
His tone abruptly became formal.
Well, it had to be.
With Helena present in person, how could he dare speak casually to Yoo Sung-hyun, an Overload?
It was a sudden shift in tone.
Yet it was a situation I’d experienced countless times before.
Because of this, Yoo Sung-hyun thought little of it and asked Will directly.
“So you’re saying you’re both a homunculus of the previous Necromancer Lord and yourself?”
“Hmm, to be precise, I believe the soul itself did not transfer over.”
Even from Yoo Sung-hyun’s perspective, one who could perceive ghosts, something felt peculiar.
Had the original soul inhabited the homunculus, Yoo Sung-hyun would have sensed it without fail.
Yet he perceived nothing of the sort from Will.
Like any ordinary person.
Did that mean that within this game, consciousness itself could give birth to a soul?
The thought struck him in that moment.
And based on everything observed thus far, the probability seemed high.
A homunculus, yes—but with transferred memories forming personality, could a new soul have been born?
Observing him, somewhat philosophical musings arose.
But he soon shook his head.
‘I shouldn’t dwell too deeply on this.’
The birth and death of souls.
It was simply not a domain within Yoo Sung-hyun’s reach.
Regardless, he felt he grasped the essence of what had occurred.
Memory and body were oneself, while the soul was not.
Was that the state he existed in?
“Sensing that the soul had not transferred, I can only be called an entity of memory alone. That is why I immediately feigned the death of the Necromancer Lord afterward. In a gap within the Labyrinth—quite a suitable location, really. There was no better place to deceive the eyes of other Lords.”
“Ah.”
So that was why the breastplate had been discovered in the Labyrinth.
Now the pieces finally made sense.
Yet Helena still wore an expression that demanded further explanation.
So Will continued speaking.
Whether the memories had truly been transferred in their entirety.
He pressed on with his account.
“Before transferring my body, my original self suffered considerable shock from your death, Helena. Of course, unlike you, my original self was a Necromancer Lord, but the difference was vast enough that aging had set in.”
“Hmm.”
….
Helena fell silent, struck by the realization that her death had altered so much in this world.
Yet it was precisely because of this that she listened more intently to Will’s account.
Perhaps there was also a desire to atone.
As Helena and Yoo Sung-hyun listened without interruption.
Will continued to recount his story—or rather, the story of what he once was.
“I don’t believe our abilities were lacking. However, it was true that we couldn’t match your footsteps, Helena. My original self decided that after your death, I would venture to Overpalace, which that fanatic had established. But my aged body was an obstacle, so I sought to create a youthful form and transfer into it.”
Now I understood the Necromancer Lord’s circumstances.
He had intended to throw himself into Overpalace.
It was called the tower of all Dark Mages, after all.
It made sense.
So he had created a youthful body.
“So this is the current you, Will.”
“Yes, that’s correct. But as you can see, my soul never made the transfer. Upon awakening, I judged that continuing as I was would render the title of Necromancer Lord meaningless, so I immediately feigned death. Then I came here and established a new Magic Tower. All to find suitable material to inherit the Necromancer Lord’s legacy.”
Inherit the Necromancer Lord’s legacy?
I tilted my head slightly in confusion at those words.
If he had inherited the memories, couldn’t he simply become the Necromancer Lord himself?
Now that I thought about it, that explained what he meant by “meaningless.”
Wondering what he meant, Yoo Sung-hyun looked at Will.
Will smiled faintly and spoke, lifting the edge of his clothing slightly.
“I succeeded in creating a youthful body, but unfortunately, the homunculus we created couldn’t withstand the Necromancer Lord’s power for such an extended period.”
With those words, what lay beneath his garments came into view—a body decomposed to a rather severe degree.
Flesh crusted over with dried pus, hardened like scabs.
Though grotesque and repulsive to behold, Yoo Sung-hyun didn’t frown at the sight.
His body was crumbling under the weight of the Necromancer Lord’s power.
Didn’t they say in films that great power came with great responsibility?
This phenomenon must have occurred because he hadn’t become a vessel worthy of such strength.
“So that’s why you established the tower—to find an heir for the Necromancer Lord.”
At Helena’s words, Will nodded, looking ashamed.
And then I heard something unexpected.
“I feel only guilt for failing to fulfill this duty of Necromancer Lord that you entrusted to me, Helena.”
Helena gave him the title of Necromancer Lord?
At those words, Yoo Sung-hyun turned to look at Helena in bewilderment.
Helena scratched her cheek awkwardly, avoiding Yoo Sung-hyun’s gaze.
Even as Yoo Sung-hyun wondered about this.
“…Well, I did create several lords…”
“…I see.”
Yoo Sung-hyun looked at Helena with an expression of utter disbelief.
Though she was called one of the Transcendents.
Had there ever been an existence in the history of the Eternal World comparable to Helena?
I doubted there had been.
For one of such caliber had chosen death.
The world itself should have trembled at such a loss.
It struck me then that Helena was far more extraordinary than I had initially comprehended.
“I cannot speak for the other lords. I myself struggled merely to preserve my own existence. That is why I held this tournament. I thought that if foreigners’ bodies were as resilient as they appeared, there might be a suitable candidate among them.”
It was during this search that I discovered Yoo Sung-hyun.
Yoo Sung-hyun understood and nodded.
Which meant.
“So that is why you summoned me?”
“Because the Overload is the lord of lords.”
From those words, I could discern precisely what she intended.
And the system message confirmed it.
[Hidden Almighty Quest, ‘The Necromancer Lord’s Legacy’ is cleared.]
[Hidden Almighty Quest, ‘The Necromancer Lord’s Succession’ is created.]
[From now on, conditions for ‘The Necromancer Lord’s Succession’ will be generated.]
[Upon fulfilling all conditions, you will acquire the Almighty Skill, ‘Necromancer Lord’.]
A quest to inherit a lord’s power—Almighty rank was indeed fitting.
With such an opportunity before me, I was not one to simply let it pass. Reading those words, I nodded with resolve.
Will smiled faintly at my response, which carried the clear intent to accept the succession.
“As you understand, I cannot grant the succession immediately.”
“I understand.”
“First, if you win the tournament, one condition should be unlocked.”
Yoo Sung-hyun nodded at this as well.
It was the first condition that had caught my eye.
[Acquire weapons imbued with magical essence. (1 / 5)]
A condition requiring no fewer than five weapons.
It might have seemed difficult.
But fortune had smiled upon me with perfect timing.
The Forbiddens possessed three weapons imbued with magical essence.
And one magical bow was offered as the tournament prize.
Finally, there was Nemesis, the magical sword I already possessed.
How perfectly it all aligned.
“Fortunately, the first condition should be satisfied swiftly.”
I let my confidence show.
Will nodded as well, sharing the rest of the details with me.
How to handle the other matters.
After hearing the general outline, I nodded in acknowledgment.
Of course, winning the tournament would be my first priority.
‘Then I should start preparing soon.’
With that thought, I quickly exited the Serul Spire Tower.
I’d already gained plenty just by finding traces of the Necromancer Lord.
But to actually inherit the Necromancer Lord itself—
The unexpected windfall made my head spin with exhilaration.
Still, acquiring the four weapons imbued with remaining mana was essential, so the tournament took priority for now.
0.
With the tournament matches drawing near,
users and NPCs alike poured into the streets in excitement, transforming the city into a festival atmosphere.
Everyone was delighted that the creature tormenting the city with its demonic bow had vanished.
But most were purely chasing that exhilarating rush they’d felt during the survival event.
The majority simply wished for the matches to begin as soon as possible.
Each person had their own team to support.
-Ah, I’m so hyped for today.
– LOL Is it true that it has already opened and there are 30,000 people waiting to ride?
Lol, there are actually idiots who don’t come even though they can watch the Demon King’s match for free?
-I saw that yesterday and immediately subscribed to Rapid Guild’s premium channel;;;.
Haha, I’m broke though.
-The paid livestream quality is definitely way better than free;;.
I can’t translate this as it appears to be incomplete or corrupted text rather than a meaningful Korean word or phrase.
The broadcast hadn’t even opened yet.
The Eternal World channel’s live waiting room was already packed with tens of thousands.
As the event drew closer, those numbers climbed steeply, eventually reaching hundreds of thousands by the time the tournament was about to begin.
With hundreds of thousands flooding the livestream,
the chat scrolled so rapidly that reading it became impossible.
Yet the excitement wasn’t limited to the users.
“Who do you think will win?”
“Hahaha! Didn’t you see the last match? Team 133 will definitely take the championship!!!”
“Hmph, you think the Knights Order will fall behind? They’re the Knights Order of the Riescan Kingdom!”
“Hmm, wouldn’t it only be right for us living in Septem Arcana to support the Cerul Magic Tower Mages?”
The NPCs were also discussing and speculating on who would win the championship.
Unlike most users who predicted that I, the Demon King, would win, there were also those who supported the Knights Order or the mages.
After all, the NPCs couldn’t possibly know all of my achievements.
It was only natural.
Yet some were saying,
“Hmph, you haven’t heard the news? That fellow from Team 133 apparently earned a knighthood?!”
“What? He wasn’t a foreigner? He holds a knighthood!?”
“My, what an impressive personage.”
“That’s not all! He’s a foreigner under Overpalace’s patronage, I hear!!!”
“Good heavens!? Overpalace!?”
“Indeed, quite the remarkable fellow!!!”
Such whispers circulated among the NPCs.
Among them, those who spoke of Yoo Sung-hyun while subtly concealing the emblem of the Black King’s crown began appearing one after another.
Yet none of them noticed even that much.
In any case, as the festive atmosphere reached its peak.
The participants began gathering in the plaza before Cerul Spire Magic Tower, just as they had the day before.
However, unlike yesterday, there was something peculiar about the mood among certain individuals.
The Forbiddens certainly seemed different from yesterday as well.
But the most striking change was undoubtedly in the Featherwing Knight Order.
Particularly, the demeanor of Gamus, who could be called their commander, had shifted considerably.
His tyrannical bearing and the other knights following behind him trembling in sheer terror.
At that moment.
[Greetings!!! The Broadcast Spirit has arrived to bring you today’s transmission.]
The Broadcast Spirit appeared.
And the match was about to begin.

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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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