The Game of a Legendary Genius Dark Mage - Chapter 303

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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 303
303
2.
The Library in Septia was far more crowded than I had anticipated.
Most users congregated in the Rare Grade Library.
The Epic Grade was considerably more difficult, so the majority were attempting to clear Rare Grade books, and since Rare Grade offered the best efficiency, it naturally attracted the most players.
Of course, there were exceptions.
Rare Grade books that, in practice, rivaled Epic Grade difficulty or surpassed even moderately challenging Epic books.
Horror-themed books were typically among them.
Since they offered substantial experience rewards, quite a few players attempted them in the early stages.
But that enthusiasm never lasted long.
“Ugh, I really can’t handle horror themes.”
“Forget the difficulty—it’s genuinely terrifying and gives me chills.”
“I saw it in my nightmares….”
Because it was a virtual reality game.
The immersion was overwhelming.
It felt like directly experiencing a genuine horror film.
Even seasoned horror movie enthusiasts would wince.
Most players simply refused to attempt them.
Above all, the difficulty was so high that dying within the book meant suffering a genuine death penalty.
It was not something to challenge lightly.
Of course, occasionally someone with genuine competitive spirit would emerge.
But far more often they failed than succeeded.
Yet when several players noticed that particular book floating in the Rare Grade Library, they gasped in astonishment and muttered nervously.
“Eek!? They actually went in there?”
“That’s insane… they actually entered….”
“Wow, I’m terrified just hearing about it?”
They must not have read the warning messages other users left.
Those who muttered while watching the book materialize.
When someone enters a book in the Library, it floats and activates so no one else can enter.
This allowed players to see who was challenging which book, sometimes creating queues.
But now, seeing the book that had just materialized, everyone was visibly horrified.
The title of the book was this.
[The Me in the Mirror Beyond the Window]
A book with an ominous title from the start.
Seeing it, the users began chattering.
“Isn’t that one of the forbidden books?”
“Yeah, the pinnacle of Rare Grade forbidden books, right?”
“Yeah, everyone dies when they attempt it.”
“Has anyone actually cleared it?”
“I’ve heard there were a few who tried, but none of them have touched horror themes since.”
“Wow, and there’s actually a user attempting this?”
People shook their heads, clicking their tongues in disapproval.
When a user retired from within a book, it would close and be shelved away again.
Everyone assumed this unfortunate user would meet the same fate soon enough.
It was a shame to see someone challenge it without understanding the danger.
As everyone went about their business,
“Uh, uh-uh?! Could it be…?”
One user suddenly gasped in shock.
Several people glanced over, wondering what the fuss was about.
They couldn’t help but react the same way.
“What, what is that!?”
“They cleared it!?”
Because ‘Me in the Mirror Beyond the Window’—the pinnacle of forbidden books—was trembling and radiating light.
They couldn’t contain their astonishment.
To witness someone actually breaking it.
They swallowed hard, waiting—unable to imagine they’d ever see someone clear it, despite all the rumors.
A user in a black robe emerged from within, and a book floating in mid-air drifted into their hands.
Thud.
“Hmm.”
Seemingly unbothered, the user casually held the book and returned it to the shelf.
Truly as if nothing had happened.
Their hands weren’t even trembling—they looked perfectly fine.
There were rumors that even those who cleared it would have their minds completely shattered.
The people watching swallowed hard.
Their reactions were like witnessing an urban legend come to life.
Unable to contain their curiosity, one user approached the one who had just shelved the book.
“Um, excuse me?”
“Yes?”
“You just cleared ‘Me in the Mirror Beyond the Window,’ right?”
A question asked on a whim.
And the user answered briefly.
“Yes, I cleared it. Are you planning to try?”
“What??? Oh!? No, no! I was just curious if you had done it.”
“Ah, I see. Enjoy yourself.”
Answering so casually, the user in the black robe departed.
People stared blankly after them.
They had suspected it, but the user really had cleared it and remained perfectly fine.
“Could it be… the rumors are just talk and it’s not actually that difficult?”
“M-maybe that’s it?”
“I-I should give it a try.”
“M-me too.”
“Let’s form a party and enter.”
With that, several people chattered excitedly as they lifted the [Mirror Within the Window – Me] from its place.
Not long after they entered, the book closed on its own as if nothing had happened and returned to the shelf.
It meant those who had entered were completely annihilated.
The users who had been watching until the end clicked their tongues in disbelief.
Truly, the pinnacle of forbidden books.
How could they already be wiped out so quickly after entering?
But then.
“So that user really cleared it without any trouble?”
They muttered their disbelief and swallowed hard.
How skilled would one need to be to accomplish such a feat?
Could a horror-themed dungeon really be cleared through skill alone?
What kind of nerves would that require….
As such thoughts circulated and rumors began to spread.
The user in the black robe stepped out of the library and muttered to himself.
‘Horror themes aren’t that entertaining, really.’
The identity of the user complaining about the lack of fun was none other than Yoo Sung-hyun.
Because Yoo Sung-hyun was quite far removed from fear, he had attempted it anyway.
The difficulty was harder than other dungeons, but it wasn’t impossible to clear, and since it wasn’t particularly frightening, he hadn’t found it especially enjoyable.
For others, it was a book of terror.
Was he a true lord of horror, perhaps?
It had no effect whatsoever on Yoo Sung-hyun.
‘Still, it gave plenty of experience, so that’s nice.’
Thanks to the horror theme, he was able to level up three times.
If he had chosen an ordinary Rare Grade book, he would have only leveled up once.
That was fortunate.
The next tier was Epic Grade, after all.
‘Let me check the forbidden book list at the entrance again and go in.’
As Yoo Sung-hyun thought this to himself.
Helena spoke from the Underworld, shaking her head.
-Yoo Sung-hyun, you’re quite something.
-Why?
-Nothing. Your efficiency is good, at least.
-Right?
Helena started to say something but shook her head instead.
Thus, the reputation of the user known as the Forbidden Book Hunter spread throughout Septia.
3.
Lee Won-sang was still busy, checking his monitor and verifying various details.
Since giving Yoo Sung-hyun the Galaxy Sword Technique, there hadn’t been any major incidents.
But there had been quite a few minor ones.
First, there were changes in the single rankings.
Second, there was news that one of the users I’d been carefully monitoring was thriving like a fish in water.
The single rankings weren’t Lee Won-sang’s domain.
So I let that slide.
But this fish-in-water user was Lee Won-sang’s responsibility, so he scratched his head as if quite troubled.
“Ugh, what do we do about this.”
The user causing Lee Won-sang to scratch his head in trouble was none other than Barbaros.
He was the user I’d encountered with Yoo Sung-hyun at the Overpalace Branch in the Fifth City, Pentagrid.
I’d known it would come to this eventually.
But Barbaros’s class was the problem.
At first, he was merely a Dark Mage.
But now things had changed.
He’d become the Lord of Knowledge.
A Lord with an unusual structure where his stats increased whenever he acquired knowledge.
When he’d encountered Yoo Sung-hyun before, he hadn’t obtained the Lord of Knowledge yet.
But after clearing those demanding conditions and obtaining the Lord of Knowledge in the Sixth City.
He’d been steadily raising those stats by reading books.
Moreover, the growth rate was far greater than expected.
“It’s chaos.”
His Intelligence and Wisdom stats had already approached 700 each.
Well, of course it was better than Yoo Sung-hyun, whom Lee Won-sang managed.
But this was still an astronomical figure without question.
The one saving grace was.
‘He has no interest in anything other than reading books.’
Unlike Yoo Sung-hyun, Barbaros at least didn’t travel everywhere and visibly display a collapse in balance.
He simply read books quietly alone, and once finished, he’d hunt, move to the next area, and read books again.
The problem was that this alone was quite troublesome.
But there was nothing Lee Won-sang could do about it.
After all, it was a class Park Won had designed.
All he could do was prevent errors related to that class or fix them if they appeared.
‘There haven’t been any errors yet.’
So there was no reason to fix anything.
If Yoo Sung-hyun hadn’t existed, Lee Won-sang would have been under considerable stress even from this.
But after encountering the disaster that was Yoo Sung-hyun, Barbaros was merely cute by comparison.
Then.
“Huh? Senior? Those two just met?”
“…Hmm.”
Barbaros and Yoo Sung-hyun had finally encountered each other.
Nothing should go wrong, right?
4.
It was the fourth day since arriving in Septia, the city of books.
As Yoo Sung-hyun’s level rose, he could see the messages appearing before his eyes.
[Level Up!]
[You have reached Level 237.]
[You have completed the recommended reading quota for the Epic Grade Library.]
[You have met the conditions for the Unique Grade Library.]
[You may now enter the Unique Grade Library.]
This is actually fun.
Levels were rising quickly.
And most of the stories were genuinely entertaining.
Since the narratives progressed by concept, I found myself choosing books that looked interesting based on their titles.
These past few days, I’d finally experienced what gaming should feel like.
That’s why I’d broken through to Unique in just a few days.
Having completed the Epic tier.
Normally, I would have had more than enough time to rest.
But.
I still had some playtime left.
There was still time before I needed to log off.
It was a bit awkward timing.
Should I check out the Unique Grade Library?
The timing was a bit awkward, but.
If I explored it now, I could make a list of things to do tomorrow in advance.
Yoo Sung-hyun thought as much and immediately moved forward.
The Unique Grade Library I arrived at wasn’t nearly as large as the other libraries I’d visited before.
Well, it made sense that their numbers decreased as the grade increased.
Hmm, there’s no forbidden book list here anymore.
That must mean so few users had made it this far.
With that thought, Yoo Sung-hyun stepped inside the Unique Grade Library.
Unlike the Epic tier, there were no other users to be seen anywhere.
Well, the Epic tier had some fairly demanding difficulty levels too.
It made sense that many couldn’t get past this point.
Just as I was about to look around.
A message appeared before Yoo Sung-hyun’s eyes.
[Traces of the Necromancer Lord remain here.]
A message saying traces of the Necromancer Lord were left behind.
To the naked eye, I felt nothing at all.
Then why did the message appear?
It was simple.
‘A hint, then.’
From this point onward, I could find clues about the Necromancer Lord’s biography.
Yoo Sung-hyun felt the weight of that realization—did he need to tear through this entire library?
Fortunately, the system seemed far less demanding than that.
[Find the Unique Grade tale, 『The Village Boy’s Ingenuity』.]
It was practically spelling out the book’s name for him.
It would be strange not to find it under these conditions.
Then again.
‘Even with the name, searching through this vast place would be no trivial task.’
With that thought, he turned to search for the book.
That was when he spotted another user emerging quietly from the shelves.
Had he not been alone after all?
The thought struck him as he observed the figure.
Their eyes met, recognition flickering across both their faces.
“Huh?”
“Hmm?”
It was the meeting of Barbaros and Yoo Sung-hyun.

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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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