The Game of a Legendary Genius Dark Mage - Chapter 30
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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 30
Episode 30
3.
Sekan Village.
It was not a place with a pleasant atmosphere.
Ever since the village chief—a great elder of this town—had died a year ago, the mood had remained this way.
Though not vibrant, the people who lived here worked diligently to survive, yet the atmosphere remained heavy and subdued.
The entire village seemed draped in perpetual mourning.
Some NPCs even rejected players.
If a player had arrived in time, the chief would still be alive.
There were NPCs who harbored such resentment.
This only made the atmosphere worse.
Perhaps because of this?
The number of players visiting afterward had diminished somewhat.
They didn’t expect special treatment, but no one played a game just to be rejected.
Some players who came to Sekan Village wondered if a hidden piece might be sleeping in such a forsaken place, but they all came away empty-handed.
In contrast, there was one player who arrived at the village with quite an excited gait.
‘It’s certainly different from Perseville.’
It was Sung-hyun, who had just arrived at Sekan Village.
The atmosphere felt heavy, and several NPCs regarded me with cautious eyes, but what did it matter?
There was supposedly a dungeon left behind by Hindel here.
What was that compared to what I sought?
I walked down the road with a positive mindset.
I could observe quite a few things.
‘From the second village onward, the atmosphere is definitely different.’
I wasn’t merely referring to the NPCs’ mood.
The atmosphere among the players was quite different.
In the first village, there were quite a few clumsy-looking individuals.
But in the second village, there was a much more organized feel.
Was it because they had adapted to and mastered the game?
Since I hadn’t engaged in party play, it didn’t particularly concern me.
‘So I need to find the chief’s ghost….’
If someone died of illness, they usually lingered near their home.
Otherwise, they remained near a place that held deep meaning in their lifetime.
Of course, there were ghosts like the former chief of Hindel Village who wandered here and there.
That would be troublesome, but I had a method that was practically a cheat code.
And that was!
“Excuse me.”
—Oh my? I can be seen? How rare! We have quite an honored guest visiting our village.
I spoke to an elderly woman’s ghost nearby.
And immediately.
“Do you happen to know where the former Chief’s ghost is?”
-Ah! You’re asking about the Chief, I see~ Of course I know~ He’s sitting on a bench in the Village Square right in front of the Chief’s Residence.
“Thank you so much.”
Asking another ghost made it quick.
It was a method I hadn’t considered when searching for Hindel, but thinking about it, ghosts would naturally know other ghosts best.
I identified the location of Sekan Village’s former Chief’s ghost.
I immediately headed there.
Just as the elderly woman ghost had described, in front of the Village Square, before a large mansion that appeared to be the Chief’s Residence, I could see an old man ghost sitting on a bench.
It was the Chief’s ghost, resembling a kindly grandmother figure.
Though elegant, her attire had a nostalgic, antique quality that clearly revealed her status as the Chief.
Benevolent and warm in appearance.
I could understand why she had been a great elder of this village.
As I approached the grandmother-like Chief’s ghost.
The Chief’s ghost looked at me first and greeted me with a kind smile.
-Good day to you, ho ho ho. I never imagined I’d be greeting the living after death.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
-What brings you to seek me out?
“Ah, well, I’m looking for information about a cave where the hero Hindel sealed away a monster during his lifetime.”
-Ho ho ho, of course, I can tell you. Let me share what I know.
The Chief’s ghost began to share the information.
I naturally accepted the Chief’s ghost’s memories and experiences.
The moment I saw the cave she had discovered while playing with friends in her early childhood, and the memory of discovering the sealed monster there, I could grasp its location.
The grandmother Chief’s ghost, seeing me receive her memories, wasn’t surprised at all—rather, she laughed as if she’d expected as much.
-You truly are a remarkable person.
[You have demonstrated abilities beyond your current stats through ‘Unknown Power’.]
[Wisdom +5 permanently increases.]
Having obtained memories and experience.
I expressed my gratitude to the grandmother Chief’s ghost, Gwen.
“Thank you. I’ll be on my way then.”
-I wish you safe travels.
Receiving Gwen’s farewell.
I moved forward immediately.
‘It wasn’t simply because Gwen had died.’
A thought crossed my mind as I observed the dreary village atmosphere.
Sekan Village’s mood hung unnaturally heavy.
It seemed too much to attribute solely to the death of Gwen, who had been a great elder.
The living must continue living, after all.
Now that I had obtained Gwen’s memories, I felt it even more strongly.
The villagers had respected and followed Gwen, they said.
There was no reason to reject users to this extent.
After all, I hadn’t died because of them.
There was nothing to resent them for.
But why had things come to this?
It was simple.
‘Demon Beast Barfur.’
The monster sealed by Hindel.
The name of the demon beast spreading its malevolent energy throughout this village.
From Gwen’s memories, I learned where it was sealed and its name.
And what kind of power that creature possessed.
Through stories passed down among the village chiefs.
Demon Beast Barfur spreads evil in people’s hearts and brings them misfortune.
Exactly like the village’s current situation.
‘It’s fortunate its power has weakened.’
Originally, it was a monster I could never catch.
Before its sealing, Demon Beast Barfur’s power was so formidable that even Hindel barely managed to seal it.
Even if that was before Hindel had fully grown, he was still stronger than any adventurer.
But even Hindel could only manage to seal it.
Demon Beast Barfur’s power was no trivial matter.
‘But too much time has passed.’
Not long after Gwen took office as chief.
There was a time when Demon Beast Barfur’s seal loosened once.
Over the long years, as Demon Beast Barfur’s power weakened, so too did the seal wear and deteriorate.
A mage passing through the village at that time repaired Hindel’s seal, but even that had loosened after all this time.
According to my sister Yoo Mi-na, it was called a lost hidden piece.
But that didn’t seem right.
‘This must have opened as a Sekan Village event.’
If Gwen had still been alive back then.
And if the Rapid Guild members had succeeded as my sister said.
Perhaps a subjugation squad for Demon Beast Barfur would have been formed at that time.
This time too, just before the seal completely broke.
A subjugation squad might have been formed.
But that won’t happen this time either.
‘Since it’s still sealed, I can handle it alone.’
Strictly speaking, I wasn’t alone.
[The Legion of Death stored in the Underworld has finished growing to match the Overlord’s level.]
I turned my gaze away after seeing that message.
It was a forest no different from any other.
But if I looked carefully in the middle of the dense forest, I could see something pale.
A transparent veil of sorts.
A place where black rock and white rock stood side by side.
A barrier had been spread across it to prevent anyone from entering.
And I already knew how to pierce through this barrier.
‘Three taps on the black rock, four taps on the white rock.’
Recalling Gwen’s memory, I tapped the rocks in sequence.
Ripples spread across the transparent veil.
Shhhhh.
The barrier parted like a curtain naturally unfurling.
No matter how many ages had passed and its power weakened and sealed away, the opponent was a formidable Demon Beast.
Even I, usually composed and calm, felt a flicker of tension.
Demon Beast Barfur.
Weakened or not, it was certainly stronger than the village boss monster that existed from the second village onward—in other words, stronger than Sekan Village’s boss monster.
But without excessive tension, I recalled the memories of hunter Apik, Former Instructor Ghost Eddie, and even Helena’s memories.
As countless memories and experiences flooded into me at once, a teal light emanated softly from my eyes.
I moved forward.
Thud, thud.
Beyond the parted barrier lay a cave.
It didn’t appear to be artificially constructed.
Stalactites and stalagmites hung and rose naturally, and the floor was rough and uneven.
Walking through that difficult terrain.
I pressed deeper.
A cool and damp wind blew from deep within the cave.
It was an utterly unpleasant breeze.
And riding on that wind came a black mist-like aura.
It appeared to be what was called demonic energy.
[You have been exposed to demonic energy.]
As I expected, a message appeared, and I was about to furrow my brow.
[Due to the dignity of 『Overlord』, demonic energy has no effect.]
‘Huh?’
Normally, wouldn’t I be hit with a barrage of debuffs here?
Overlord seems to ignore even that.
This changes things considerably.
According to strategy guides and what my sister told me, the reason Demon Beasts are difficult to face is because of this demonic energy.
But if that demonic energy doesn’t work on me.
I could capture it far more easily than expected.
As I thought this.
Something came flying at high speed from within the cave.
Shrieeeeeek!
I had already activated the memories of several ghosts and Helena’s memories.
So I immediately switched to combat stance and drew out my steel sword and tiger fang dagger.
At the same time, I opened the Underworld to prepare for any contingency!
It was truly a perfect combat stance.
And what came flying at rapid speed was Barfur’s Specter, wrapped in a teal glow and emanating an ominous aura.
[Lv.35 Barfur’s Specter]
-Kyaaaaaaaa!
The creature lunged at me.
I immediately leaped backward to evade.
Toward a direction without stalactites or stalagmites.
Whoosh!
The mole-like hand assaulted the spot where I had been standing.
But it only struck the unfortunate cave floor.
Boom!
Thick smoke billowed up as the section where it had struck caved inward.
Seeing that crater-like blow, a chill ran down my spine.
What kind of physical force was this specter exerting?
An attack so shocking it made my skin crawl.
One hit and I’d be instantly eliminated.
Seeing this, I attempted to unfold the Underworld and summon my legion of the dead.
But then suddenly.
‘Huh?’
-Shaaaaaaaa!
Our eyes met with Barfur’s Specter as it shrieked.
At first, I thought it was a mistake.
Barfur’s Specter, emanating a teal glow and scattering an ominous aura with game-like visual effects surrounding it.
And beside it, trembling and fidgeting helplessly, was another ghost that looked identical to Barfur’s Specter, but with its lower body scattered like broken pixels.
‘Why are there two?’
I stared in utter confusion.
One clearly had a level displayed above its head along with the monster’s name, while the other had no such marking at all.
Like any ordinary ghost.
And Barfur’s Ghost was slapping its specter repeatedly while shouting.
-Oh no! Y-you can’t hit such an esteemed person!! P-please stop!!
-Shaaaaaaaa!
-Goodness, I’m losing it!! I-I’m truly sorry!! To cause such trouble to an esteemed person!
-Kyaaaaaaaa!!
Barfur’s Ghost kept apologizing and bowing to me, while Barfur’s Specter maintained an attack-ready stance and roared.
What in the world.
And at that moment, Barfur’s Specter lunged at me.
Shaaaaaaaa!!
The specter’s characteristic ghostly swift movements!
If I hadn’t been prepared in advance, it would have been impossible to evade.
Drawing upon the experiences of the hunter Apik and the former instructor ghost Eddie, I predicted the likely trajectory and swiftly evaded from that spot.
Barfur’s Specter slammed the innocent ground below, and using the rebound to launch itself skyward, it charged once more toward me as I retreated.
Barfur’s Specter possessed remarkably sharp combat instincts.
Yet in terms of pure sense, I—carrying the experiences of two ghosts—held several moves ahead.
I kicked a stalactite, spinning through the air to barely slip past the assault Barfur’s Specter unleashed.
Crash!
Barfur’s Specter suddenly lashed out at the cavern wall, and in that instant, my eyes blazed with light.
An instinctive pull.
Recalling Helena’s memories, my eyes shimmered with a teal-blue radiance as I fixed my gaze upon Barfur’s Specter.
I could sense it naturally.
My own ability.
And that this specter, too, was a form of undead.
In other words.
‘Death’s Aura.’
Excellent material indeed.
As Death’s Aura unfurled, a teal-blue radiance bloomed behind my back, transforming into a heart, and as that teal-blue heart began to beat.
A teal-blue mist seized control of the surroundings in an instant.
Barfur’s Specter could not escape the influence of that presence.
-Kugh-ack!
Barfur’s Specter writhed in agony as if expelling something from within, its mole-like mouth gaping wide.
From that opening, a teal-blue radiance bloomed forth.
And then the message I had been waiting for appeared.
[You may now use 『Legion of Death』.]
[Will you summon 『Legion of Death』?]
At that very moment, my eyes blazed teal-blue as I called out to Barfur’s Ghost, which had been watching from the side.
“Come.”
-Yes, yes, of course!!
Barfur’s Ghost obeyed my command like a devoted servant, rushing toward Barfur’s Specter, and in that instant, teal-blue radiance erupted from my entire body.
That light soon gathered in my palm, becoming another heart, and as that heart pulsed.
Barfur’s Specter and Barfur’s Ghost merged into one, beginning to be engulfed in black darkness.
Simultaneously, the other heart clutched in my grasp beat.
Barfur’s Specter and Barfur’s Ghost, now unified, bowed their head.
-I behold my new master, my god.
[Using 『Unknown Power』, you have subjugated a target difficult to bind to 『Legion of Death』.]
[Barfur’s Specter pledges itself to 『Legion of Death』.]
[You have brought an undead of higher level under your command!]
[You obtain the title 『Sublime Command』.]
[You gain experience points.]
[Level Up]×5
[Additional stat points have reached 100.]
[Title, ‘The Persevering One’ acquired.]
[!!WARNING!!]
[Death Soldier of a higher level than the master!]
[May refuse commands!]
May refuse commands?
I glanced at the message, then looked back at Barfur’s Specter.
This creature, bowing its head with a mole-like face, seemed ready to lick my shoes at any moment.
What?
That couldn’t be.
I had obtained a specter unified with its soul.
This was an unexpected gain.
My level rose, and I even acquired a title.
But then—
-Ehehehehe, Master! If you go over there, my physical body is also stored! It may be difficult right now, but if you keep that body, won’t it be useful someday?!
It was eagerly spilling out very useful information.
I could gain even more benefits here.
‘This is good, isn’t it?’
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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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