The Game of a Legendary Genius Dark Mage - Chapter 41

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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 41
Episode 41
By the time Yoo Sung-hyun and Kim Che-gun arrived.
There were already quite a few users present, entering in order by group number.
A number appeared at the Dungeon Entrance indicating which group should enter next.
There was no way not to know.
The current turn was still at Group 57.
Yoo Sung-hyun and Kim Che-gun’s turn at Group 99 was still quite far away.
What would happen if they missed it?
Curiosity bloomed within me.
“Ah! I’m Group 44! D-did I already miss it!?”
“Yes, if you miss your turn, you get pushed to the back and have to enter later, I heard?”
“H-how can this be!?”
Fortunately, a late user appeared, and the curiosity was satisfied.
Yoo Sung-hyun and Kim Che-gun, who thought coming was the right decision, entered methodically one by one, while waiting leisurely.
But then, a commotion erupted at the Secret Cave entrance.
One man of considerable build, and conversely, one woman of considerable smallness.
“Waiting is so boring. If we kill everyone, we can enter first, right? Isn’t that so, Kallak?”
“…Hmm.”
“…?”
“???”
The surrounding users looked at the pair with bewildered expressions at such crude language.
What did they just hear?
It was far too crude to be a joke.
What was that tiny woman saying?
As they stared with such expressions.
“Hmm~ What should we do, Kallak?”
“…The guild told us to exercise restraint.”
Rather, the man of considerable build spoke very cautiously toward the tiny woman.
Normally it would be the man who would speak such crude language, but hearing it from the tiny woman made it somehow strange.
“Are you insane!?”
Another user gathered there spoke at the woman’s words.
The tiny woman kept her head still but rolled only her eyes to look at that user.
Then she smiled slightly and snapped her fingers.
Five flaming spears ignited in the empty air.
In a single moment, magic filled the air, and the users’ complexions turned ashen.
Surely, only users under level 50 who hadn’t undergone a second class advancement could accept this Quest.
Yet she could wield magic of that magnitude?
Beyond shock, fear bloomed across their faces.
Someone cried out upon seeing the emblem on the shoulders of both the woman and the man.
“C-crazy! Look at those people’s shoulders!!”
At someone’s shout, everyone’s gaze snapped toward the woman and man’s shoulders.
There, etched with unmistakable clarity, was a withered willow tree rendered in a shimmering, vibrant pattern.
A mark that most people in this place recognized.
“Echo Willow!?!”
“W-wait, Echo Willow?!”
“C-crazy….”
Echo Willow.
One of the Large Guilds, yet few aspired to join it.
It was a guild with a notorious reputation, after all.
Most of its members had accumulated infamy ratings, and they didn’t hesitate to engage in poor conduct.
It was a Large Guild where villains among villains gathered.
Echo Willow wasn’t ranked particularly high among guilds.
But it was far from something to dismiss.
The fact that it had become a Large Guild despite being composed solely of infamy-laden users was itself evidence that skilled notorious players had congregated there.
As most people stood in shock.
The woman finally smiled with satisfaction and nodded her head.
“That’s the atmosphere we need. Right, Kallak?”
“…The guild said to exercise restraint. Uz.”
“How boring. Fine.”
At the massive man called Kallak’s words, the woman called Uz pouted her lips in displeasure, then snapped her fingers again—and in an instant, the flame spears that had blossomed in the air vanished.
Though the flame spears disappeared, the overwhelming presence that had dominated the hall remained unchanged.
The silence that settled over the venue was filled only with the sound of people swallowing hard.
And within that atmosphere.
Only Yoo Sung-hyun tilted his head in confusion.
‘Where is Echo Willow?’
I was contemplating whether to ask Kim Che-gun through the party window.
Just then, a message arrived from Kim Che-gun through the party window.
Had she read my confused expression?
Her intuition seemed sharp.
[Joseon First Blade Kim Che-gun – Sorry, but do you know what Echo Willow is?]
I paused for a moment at the question.
So she didn’t know either.
I shook my head at Kim Che-gun without responding and ignored it.
Kim Che-gun also murmured something like “I see” and didn’t seem particularly concerned.
While many were shocked, we weren’t the type to make a fuss over merely five flame spears appearing.
We simply moved on.
‘If they come at us, we fight. Simple as that.’
Both Yoo Sung-hyun and Kim Che-gun shared similar thoughts as they proceeded.
When it came to Group 78’s turn, the massive man called Kallak and the woman called Uz entered.
Not long after the others had entered.
It was now Team 99’s turn—Yoo Sung-hyun and Kim Che-gun.
As written at the entrance, Rocks’ Tomb placed team members at different starting points unless they entered together.
But that didn’t concern me.
I already knew all the paths.
However, I wasn’t alone in this place.
‘Hmm, what should I do?’
Kim Che-gun seemed unlikely to die along the way.
Should I stay with her all the way to the end?
I’d heard that hidden pieces weren’t meant to be shared in the first place.
But I already had a vague sense of what hidden piece was here.
Since it was said to be necessary for the Dark Mage.
I thought I might obtain it.
‘Let me find it first and think about it then.’
With that thought, I stepped into the dungeon interior alongside Kim Che-gun.
Like any other dungeon, several messages appeared.
[You are with a team member.]
[Entry is possible.]
[Entering 『Event Dungeon – Rocks’ Tomb』.]
[*Warning: Upon entry, all players will start at different locations.]
I dismissed the messages and was transported inside, able to see the interior clearly.
A pitch-black maze devoid of light.
Yet as an Overlord, darkness felt all the more familiar to me.
My vision was unrestricted and perfectly clear.
Rather than resembling a natural cave, the stone floor was finely carved and the walls were quite smooth.
It was more fitting to call it a labyrinth or maze than a tomb.
As I surveyed my surroundings.
I could see Kim Che-gun standing calmly beside me with her eyes closed.
It might seem sudden, but I understood why.
‘She’s adapting to the darkness.’
When you suddenly move from a bright place to a dark one, your vision doesn’t recover as quickly as you’d think.
That’s why closing your eyes and then opening them allows faster adaptation to darkness.
Soon enough, once she’d fully adjusted, Kim Che-gun spoke.
“Hmm. I’m ready. Thank you for waiting.”
“Not at all.”
Noticing that I’d already adapted to the darkness, she thanked me, and I took the lead forward.
Even with her adaptation, in a place with such dim light, it was better for me to lead since my vision had no restrictions in darkness.
Kim Che-gun seemed to reach the same conclusion, following behind me without another word.
How much time had passed like this.
A sound came from Kim Che-gun’s feet as she stepped forward.
Click.
The moment I heard the sound, Kim Che-gun and I reacted like lightning.
As the clicking from the floor continued and something moving above the ceiling echoed down, we both swiftly dodged away from that spot.
Pop! Crack-crack!
Kim Che-gun explosively launched himself away, his feet scraping the ground in that characteristic manner, and I followed suit since I’d witnessed this before.
The moment we both moved with agility and escaped that location.
The ceiling plummeted rapidly, crushing the space where we’d stood.
Boom!
The vibration gave me a sense of how devastating the impact was.
Had we been caught under that, we would have been far from unscathed.
The power was formidable, but the speed was equally relentless.
Only because it was me and Kim Che-gun did we react in time—most users would have been crushed and eliminated the moment they tried to react and dodge.
It was undeniably a vicious trap.
Yet Kim Che-gun and I regarded it with composed expressions.
Kim Che-gun’s face suggested, “Is this all?”, while I assessed that it was manageable to evade.
“Shall we continue?”
“Hmm, very well.”
From that trap alone, I had perfectly mapped out this location.
Moving forward with knowledge of where to go.
Our pace naturally accelerated considerably.
Even Kim Che-gun momentarily questioned whether moving this fast was wise.
But deciding that speed was better than caution, he followed my lead.
As we both ran, we evaded every trap we encountered and pressed onward.
Ahead, I heard something like laughter.
“Hehehehe! Heh!”
“…?”
“Hmm.”
The sudden laughter made me stop, while Kim Che-gun stroked his smooth, beardless chin.
Before us appeared an unidentified entity.
Black horns and dark skin, perhaps?
Or should I say short fur?
In any case, there stood a creature with visibly dark skin.
With both hands, it covered its mouth to stifle escaping laughter, giggling away.
Meanwhile, it wielded a long, sharp tail like a whip, striking the ground repeatedly.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
The force behind those swings suggested considerable power.
Soon, I could see the creature in full.
[Lv.40 Lesser Demon, Kaisak]
Truly befitting the tomb of an evil sorcerer.
A demon appearing as a monster, no less.
Kim Che-gun watched Kaisak with intrigue, and Yoo Sung-hyun gazed at him with equal fascination.
Could even a lesser demon become undead?
‘I’m curious.’
Unable to suppress his curiosity, Yoo Sung-hyun rushed forward first.
Following his lead, Kim Che-gun sprinted swiftly behind him.
Though Yoo Sung-hyun had charged first, Kim Che-gun overtook him and surged toward Kaisak ahead of him.
But the moment Kim Che-gun reached Kaisak.
The tail that had been whipping like a whip shot forward in a straight line, its sharp tip gleaming.
Whoosh!
The tail pierced forward faster than an arrow, causing Kim Che-gun’s eyes to widen slightly.
It was faster than expected, but it was still just a tail.
Kim Che-gun swung his blade toward the tail thrusting at his brow, blocking it in an instant.
The tail and blade collided.
Clang!
A fierce metallic ring echoed in all directions.
With that sound, Kim Che-gun’s expression tightened slightly as his wrist throbbed, and he was pushed back a step.
With this much force, Yoo Sung-hyun alone might struggle to defend against it.
Just as Kim Che-gun was about to shout a warning, Kaisak’s tail had already rebounded and whipped toward Yoo Sung-hyun like a lash.
The tail tore through the air as it descended on Yoo Sung-hyun, only to be blocked by a crimson membrane before his eyes.
Boom!
The air burst, and the tail that should have shredded the thin membrane was halted.
Kaisak’s laughter stopped abruptly.
“Huh?”
“?!?!”
“….”
A thin membrane materialized, blocking the tail’s assault.
Both Kaisak and Kim Che-gun could only stare in shock.
Kaisak was astounded that the thin membrane had stopped his tail, while Kim Che-gun was surprised—he’d known Yoo Sung-hyun wasn’t a warrior or swordsman class, but a Dark Mage wielding a blade to such a degree?
‘A Dark Mage with such exceptional swordplay.’
Kim Che-gun couldn’t help but be amazed.
Even among his peers where he came from, few wielded a blade with such mastery.
What exactly was his identity?
As both Kim Che-gun and Kaisak stood in shock.
Yoo Sung-hyun maintained his composed expression and summoned bone arrows, launching them at Kaisak.
The swiftly conjured bone arrows flew to pierce Kaisak, but he nimbly wrapped his tail around his body, deflecting the arrows.
Ting!
Moving quickly and blocking the bone arrows at just the right moment.
Only then did Kaisak’s eyes catch sight of a teal-blue spear of light flying toward him from Yoo Sung-hyun.
He had to block it.
Instinctively sensing this, he desperately tried to retract his tail and block the spear again.
Was it because the tail had sharply changed direction?
A bizarre sound echoed from the tail.
Crack-crack-crack! Snap!
Yet Kaisak pressed his tail forward defensively as if unbothered, intercepting the teal-blue spear.
Or rather, he tried to.
The timing was certainly precise.
I had clearly struck at the spear’s trajectory with my tail.
But the tail passed through empty air like a phantom.
And the spear flew through, piercing exactly near Kaisak’s heart.
Squelch!
“Kyaaaaaaaa!”
Kaisak could only scream in terrible agony.
With that scream, Kaisak’s eyes darkened to black.
[Critical Hit!]
[The effect of 『One Strike』 activates!]
[Darkness damage applied.]
[Lesser Demon Kaisak loses all sight and senses for 3 seconds.]
Merely 3 seconds.
But in those 3 seconds, Yoo Sung-hyun and Kim Che-gun had countless possibilities.
Kim Che-gun showed no hesitation either—while Yoo Sung-hyun unleashed the vengeful spirits of the dead, he closed the distance, arriving at Kaisak at nearly the same moment as Yoo Sung-hyun.
Yoo Sung-hyun swung his blade at Kaisak, and Kim Che-gun did likewise.
The golden aura dwelling in Kim Che-gun’s blade made his strikes even faster, and the power increased dramatically, leaving a long gash across Kaisak’s upper body.
Yoo Sung-hyun’s blade strike, though shallower than Kim Che-gun’s, was still a formidable blow that carved a long wound into Kaisak’s body.
Still 2 seconds remained.
Both of them used that time to unleash relentless attacks on Kaisak, and he collapsed without even a scream.
[You gain experience.]
A message confirming experience gained.
And as always, teal-blue smoke rose into the air.
A welcome system window appeared before Yoo Sung-hyun’s eyes.
[『Legion of Death』 can now be used.]
[Will you raise 『Legion of Death』?]
A lesser demon undead.
Just as Yoo Sung-hyun was about to raise it as a death soldier with satisfaction, footsteps echoed from the opposite corridor.
And soon, as the two sets of footsteps revealed themselves.
“Oh? Another user? This counts as a reward, doesn’t it, Kallak?”
“…It’s fine inside the dungeon.”
Two people muttering.
Upon facing them, several system windows materialized before my eyes.
[A user with infamy.]
[Attacking does not accumulate infamy.]
[A user with a notorious reputation.]
[Attacking them will not increase your notoriety.]
[Entering combat mode.]
The text that appeared above their heads was unmistakable.
『Notorious User – Lv.45 Kallak』
『Notorious User – Lv.49 Uz』
A massive man with an imposing presence, Kallak, and a petite woman, Uz, had arrived with overwhelming confidence.
Yoo Sung-hyun turned his head as if pleased by the sight of them both.
Laughter echoed from above the corpse of the lesser demon, Kaisak.
-Kehehehe!
Laughter that only Yoo Sung-hyun could hear.
As he listened to that laughter, Yoo Sung-hyun’s thoughts crystallized.
‘I should test out the lesser demon undead.’
A perfect opponent had just presented itself.

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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
—————