The Game of a Legendary Genius Dark Mage - Chapter 7

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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 7
Episode 7
0.
The iWorld User Management Team oversaw users active even in beginner villages. However, such cases were rare.
It had already been a year since the game’s release.
With countless prodigies having passed through, they barely had time to manage them.
Yet Lee Won-sang, a deputy manager, found himself observing a single user in the beginner village—not one of the rankers under his purview.
[You have displayed abilities exceeding your current stats through an ‘Unknown Force’.]
[A new stat 《Dexterity》 has been created.]
[Agility +3, Dexterity +2 have permanently increased.]
“This is driving me insane.”
It had risen again.
The synchronization rate and other metrics had suddenly skyrocketed, granting permanent stat increases.
Was this even possible?
Other users struggled for hours with repetitive training or special actions just to gain a single stat point, yet this user was obtaining stats through an Unknown Force?
It was a phenomenon beyond comprehension.
For Lee Won-sang, it was utterly inexplicable.
But today was a holiday.
His superior, the team leader, was out on an errand, leaving no one appropriate to report to.
For now, all he could do was continue observing.
Beyond that, watching the hidden pieces the user ‘Sung-hyun’ obtained, he shook his head in despair.
The user had even swept up rewards from the Butcher Shop.
At this rate, a truly absurd monster would be born.
There was nothing he could do about it.
‘Immortal says it’s not a bug—it’s already been classified as an item that cannot be sanctioned.’
Though Eternal World wasn’t ancient, there had never been a single instance of fraudulent play.
According to Immortal’s analysis, the highest artificial intelligence, this case was no exception.
A single user’s growth wouldn’t cause the game company difficulties, but growth of this magnitude would inevitably invite complaints, so caution was necessary.
He wished it hadn’t been revealed to others.
Still, there shouldn’t be much more to gain now.
As Lee Won-sang was thinking this, his junior colleague Oh Jin-hyuk asked from beside him.
“Huh? Senior, doesn’t something appear if you go there?”
“Hm? What?”
“Well… isn’t there a hidden dungeon in Hindel Village? It looks like they’re heading there?”
“What? There’s something like that in Hindel Village???”
“Yes, here…”
When Oh Jin-hyuk showed him the data on Hindel Village, it was clearly documented.
A hidden dungeon in Hindel Village: ‘Hunter’s Forest’.
It was difficult to discover through normal means, and the conditions were stringent.
“So the condition is… an excellent butcher title with a steel sword?”
“Yes. So….”
“That user right there?”
“…Yes.”
“Hahaha! Hahahaha!”
Lee Won-sang chuckled and nodded his head.
He actually found it.
How was that even possible?
Come to think of it, the Mist Forest of Hindel Village had been circulating widely across multiple strategy sites.
Most users who arrived at Hindel Village would venture into that forest.
Though the hidden dungeon had never been discovered because no one had fulfilled the conditions, this time it just so happened that Sung-hyun, who had met the requirements, was heading there.
Sung-hyun wasn’t the first to fulfill that condition in Hindel Village.
However, most users who had met that condition were in the early stages of the game, so they were too busy rushing through the beginner village.
So it made sense that it was only being discovered now.
But why of all people did it have to be that user ‘Sung-hyun’?
“At this point, a ghost must have told him, right?”
“Oh? Really?!”
“Really?!!!”
“Ugh!”
“Ah! If he eats that too… then he’d be eating that item as well, right? Sigh, no. Right, if he just eats up to that point, it doesn’t matter. Yes… that’s right.”
Oh Jin-hyuk watched Lee Won-sang muttering and denying reality to himself.
‘Usually when people say that, don’t they end up eating more?’
He didn’t voice it aloud.
Oh Jin-hyuk was perceptive enough to know better.
1.
Following the path the Old Man Ghost had shown me, the mist grew thicker as I walked.
No wonder no one had found it.
When I searched using the search function available within Eternal World, there were indeed people who had come to this misty terrain, but for some reason, they kept circling in one area, or so they said.
A place where they’d wander like in a maze.
This was that very place.
Among users, it was listed as the Mist Forest, but what did the Old Man Ghost call it again?
‘He said a barrier was set up, right?’
He said this barrier could be broken through via the mage of Hindel Village, but meeting the mage wasn’t an easy task.
The alternative method was that those who fulfilled the conditions could enter.
And that was exactly what I was.
To possess a steel sword and bear the title of Excellent Butcher—only then could one pass through.
A barrier created to prevent amateur adventurers from entering and allow only Hunters to pass through, apparently.
Even for me, these weren’t easy conditions to meet.
Without the ghosts, I wouldn’t have obtained the steel sword or the Excellent Butcher title.
As I pushed through the mist for quite some time, letters appeared before my eyes through the haze.
[All conditions are satisfied.]
[Entering the field-type hidden dungeon, ‘Hunter’s Forest’.]
[You have discovered a hidden dungeon for the first time!]
[You have obtained the title, ‘Explorer’.]
[First discovery rewards have been granted.]
[Butchering success rate increased by 50% in the field-type hidden dungeon, ‘Hunter’s Forest’.]
[Quality of butchered items increased by 50% in the field-type hidden dungeon, ‘Hunter’s Forest’.]
[First discovery rewards will persist until you clear the dungeon for the first time.]
Sung-hyun slowly reviewed the countless messages.
“Oh.”
They were rewarding him this generously just for discovering a single hidden dungeon.
And he hadn’t even cleared it yet—the rewards were quite substantial.
And a title on top of that?
The moment Sung-hyun saw it, he opened the title details.
『Explorer』
→《Rare》
→A title granted to users who discover a hidden dungeon for the first time.
→Drop rate increased by 20% in hidden dungeons.
It was hard to call it particularly impressive.
Since all the monsters in Hunter’s Forest were beast-type creatures that needed to be butchered, and they didn’t drop items, this title was useless for now.
Even if that weren’t the case, the effect only applied to hidden dungeons, and who knew how many more I’d discover—it was ambiguous at best.
Without the first discovery reward, I might have felt somewhat disappointed.
Since I’d gained another title, I decided to take it as a win.
Besides, who knows what might happen.
‘The boss might drop something after all.’
With that hopeful thought, Sung-hyun stepped into the dungeon’s interior.
As I entered the field-type hidden dungeon, ‘Hunter’s Forest’, the thick mist that had shrouded everything vanished like a dream, revealing a mystical forest beneath.
Brilliant sunlight filtered through the towering, elongated trees, scattering down in shimmering rays.
Luminescent moss that glowed with its own light, interspersed with the fractured appearance of falling light, and fireflies dancing around that moss created an ethereal atmosphere.
“Wow.”
Even Sung-hyun, who always uttered measured and restrained exclamations, couldn’t help himself this time.
I exhaled an exclamation of wonder and surveyed the surroundings.
The lush, verdant forest was dreamlike and mysterious.
It was a sight that revealed the majesty of nature.
As I marveled at the scenery, I sensed movement in the distance.
Turning my head, I saw a deer with emerald-green fur.
“Oh.”
Snort!
It made a sound like a horse’s whinny, then scraped the ground with its hooves, preparing to charge.
Watching the emerald-furred deer with its menacingly long antlers, Sung-hyun quietly drew the sword at his waist.
Shing—.
The sword drew out with a slight tremor.
‘A Green Deer.’
I gripped the sword firmly, reading the name hovering above the creature’s head.
In the beginner hunting grounds, the monsters that appeared were at most deer.
Rabbits came first, then deer, and it was said that no beginner hunted deer unless it was for a Quest.
But this Green Deer seemed to be a tier above that ordinary deer.
This should be interesting.
The moment I thought that, the Green Deer charged at me.
With a rumbling sound, the Green Deer’s charge was far from slow.
It lowered its head and rushed forward with tremendous speed, attempting to gore me with its antlers using that piercing force.
But my opponent was me.
As I watched the Green Deer charge, the memories of the hunter Apik surfaced in my mind.
With the seeping experience and memories of a hunter, I waited until just before the Green Deer charged, then lightly sidestepped.
Like rabbits, these creatures couldn’t change direction easily.
Whoosh!
As the Green Deer’s eyes tracked me passing to the side, I could see myself raising my sword.
That was where the Green Deer’s memory ended.
A lightning-fast sword strike, too quick to even see being drawn, flowed from top to bottom.
A silver arc cut through the air, slicing through the Green Deer’s neck without resistance.
The Green Deer’s neck collapsed in the direction it was running and it fell.
[Critical Hit!]
[The effect of 『One Strike』 activates!]
Boom! Screeeech.
The heavy body fell, and the sound of it dragging across the ground echoed.
The Green Deer’s corpse tumbled across the floor.
Once again, a single strike.
Using my stats to their limit and swinging the sword, the critical hit and the One Strike title effect stacked together—there was no way the Green Deer could withstand it.
I was faster than when I hunted the rabbit, and it was all thanks to the hunter Apik’s soul.
My Agility had risen by 3 points since then.
‘Dexterity seems to have some influence too.’
Not only did the increased Agility make me faster, but the newfound Dexterity kept my movements precise despite the increased speed.
I could feel the sword strikes becoming more refined.
‘Excellent.’
The thrill I felt hunting the Green Deer was incomparable to the rabbit.
This is incredibly fun, isn’t it?
With my heart pounding, I placed the Green Deer’s corpse into my inventory.
There was a reason I didn’t butcher it immediately.
As long as I only butchered before facing the boss and not immediately after, I could still receive the first-clear reward bonus.
That’s why I was collecting them.
I couldn’t bear to lose this thrill by butchering right away.
The memories and experiences of hunter Apik were excellent, and those of the Former Instructor Ghost were equally outstanding.
But I still had a long way to go before fully adapting.
‘Let me adapt further.’
I hadn’t yet made them completely my own.
So let me push deeper.
Venturing further into the forest, I spotted another green deer.
The green deer was still eager to charge, and I succeeded in the hunt again, utilizing Apik’s experience and the Former Instructor Ghost’s memories.
[Critical Hit!]
[The effect of 『One Strike』 activates!]
Another one-hit kill.
As the overwhelmingly dominant hunts continued, the number of green deer increased.
Even when three green deer attacked simultaneously, the outcome remained the same.
If anything, it became even more exhilarating.
Since they charged at intervals rather than all at once, simply dodging to the side was difficult, but I could learn to move fluidly by employing footwork techniques.
As the first green deer charged, I slipped slightly to the side and swung my blade.
Watching the second green deer rush in after it, I lowered my stance, then sprang upward, rising high as I slashed diagonally upward across the creature’s neck.
For the final one charging toward me, I leaped into the air, performing an acrobatic maneuver as though gliding through the sky, and swung my blade down at the green deer’s neck from above.
[Critical Hit!]
[The effect of 『One Strike』 activates!]
[Critical Hit!]
[The effect of 『One Strike』 activates!]
[Critical Hit!]
[The effect of 『One Strike』 activates!]
[You have defeated over 30 same-level or higher-tier beast-type monsters with a single strike.]
[You have obtained the title 『Hunter』.]
After dispatching three green deer in a single display of prowess, I felt the faintest smile tug at the corner of my mouth as I murmured.
“This works.”

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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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