The Game of a Legendary Genius Dark Mage - Chapter 95

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Episode 95
95
Since ancient times, all humans have feared darkness.
Or more precisely, they feared what they could not comprehend.
Everything that transcended their perception, eluded their understanding, and surpassed their strength filled them with dread.
Darkness was the very embodiment of such terror.
Unable to see even an inch ahead.
Unable to feel anything.
The fear of floundering in that vast, boundless ocean of darkness consumed the entire world.
A world saturated with darkness stripped away all light, rendering everything indistinguishable.
In a world filled only with darkness, not a single ray of light remained, and it eroded everything around it.
The terror that bloomed with the thought—what if even my own existence had vanished?
As if to devour that very fear, the darkness deepened and intensified, eventually converging and condensing into a single point.
All the darkness in the world began to gather within Yoo Sung-hyun’s blade.
If one were to give form to darkness, would it look like this?
Undulating and viscous, heavy.
‘Is this truly Almighty grade?’
Even Yoo Sung-hyun could not hide his astonishment.
He was startled by the extraordinary nature of the effect itself.
Yet if Yoo Sung-hyun was amazed by such external appearances and effects,
those who witnessed it were horrified by the power that dwelled within.
Beyond its overwhelming form, one could sense a severing force capable of cutting off anything.
“…W-what… what is this!?”
Nocturnium, facing that blade, forgot even his pain and stared at Yoo Sung-hyun’s sword as if entranced.
He wielded the darkness as if he were the master of all darkness in the world.
It was not merely the aura contained within the blade.
Nocturnium did not perceive it, but Hindel recognized it immediately upon sight.
From the grip of his hand to every nuance of his stance.
One could glimpse the profound depth of his mysterious swordsmanship.
A form of swordsmanship that had not been visible during their fight.
No, it had been visible.
He had known that his technical skill with the blade was exceptional.
Yet he had not revealed any swordsmanship skill.
‘He possessed a swordsmanship skill all along!?’
A swordsmanship technique that had remained hidden from him.
Yet he felt neither disappointment nor frustration.
Look at that unfathomable darkness contained within the blade.
Had he wielded it then, it might have been far more dangerous than the violent explosion he had witnessed before.
And so Hindel was relieved.
Grateful that this blade was not directed at him in this moment.
‘My Galaxy Swordsmanship is the finest blade technique, but….’
A swordsmanship so remarkably threatening it rivaled my own.
No, perhaps.
‘It might even surpass Galaxy Swordsmanship.’
Even bound within the same Almighty grade, the depth and power contained within were of an entirely different dimension.
Certainly, Galaxy Swordsmanship, passed down through generations to heroes, was counted among the world’s greatest blade techniques.
Yet no matter how I contemplated it, I could not envision a scenario where I emerged victorious against the swordsmanship Yoo Sung-hyun wielded.
A heaven above another heaven.
To Hindel, that was Yoo Sung-hyun.
‘Perhaps possessing the same power as the master of that Dark Castle….’
I unconsciously arrived at the answer.
Yet I did not know if it was correct.
“Ah, all the darkness is gathering….”
“That, that was possible? I cannot believe it. Perhaps even stronger than Hindel’s swordsmanship….”
“…stronger.”
The other members of the party, besides Hindel, uttered exclamations bordering on reverence.
Yet Nocturnium, toward whom the blade’s edge was directed, trembled with dread.
The master of darkness?
That could not be.
To my knowledge, only my master could truly command darkness.
Then what in the world was this swordsmanship before my eyes?
Nocturnium had thought Hindel’s swordsmanship was excellent, but not to this degree.
I glared at him with eyes brimming with fear and an expression twisted with rage.
As Yoo Sung-hyun leaned his body forward lightly toward the glaring Nocturnium.
“…!!!”
His form vanished.
He had not moved swiftly or increased his speed.
A deep flow of mana was felt.
Nocturnium quickly prepared a defense.
Reading the flow rapidly, I perceived where he would appear as if foreseeing it.
Soon I could discern it.
Directly before me.
Yoo Sung-hyun, wavering forth from the darkness, swung his blade.
The pitch-black darkness itself rippled and cleaved the space between Nocturnium and Yoo Sung-hyun.
Whoooosh——!
“Gack!”
The blade was swung before I could even mount a defense, and I could not evade in time.
Terrible agony engulfed my body, and I tried to stumble backward.
Yet only then could Nocturnium perceive the abnormality.
The world had vanished.
As if I had stepped into absolute darkness, I could feel nothing at all.
Clearly, I could see Yoo Sung-hyun and the pitch-black blade that had cut me down.
I felt the sound of wind and the rich scent of earth blooming abundantly around me, along with the fresh fragrance of the Forest.
Not only that, but I could hear the sound of birds nearby fluttering away in panic and the various sounds emanating from the Forest.
Yet I felt nothing.
“How is this possible….”
I felt as though I were drifting alone through an endless, boundless darkness.
Up and down were indistinguishable, and I could feel nothing.
I could see my body moving, but I could not feel the movement itself.
Had I not seen it, I would never have known I was moving at all.
While Nocturnium floundered in confusion, Yoo Sung-hyun saw the message before his eyes.
[Deploying Swordsmanship Skill 『Darkness』.]
[Nocturnium’s tactile sense is severed by the encroaching Darkness.]
[Effect persists while the blade remains steeped in Darkness.]
‘Interesting.’
Nocturnium appeared genuinely bewildered and profoundly disoriented.
Yoo Sung-hyun could keenly sense the skill’s potency.
Severing tactile sensation was tantamount to cutting off a substantial portion of one’s sensory perception.
Smell, hearing, sight, and taste—these four senses provided comparatively limited information.
But touch was distributed throughout the entire body, encompassing all other sensory data.
Yet if that vanished?
One might smell something, but doubt would inevitably arise as to whether it was real.
Even if sounds reached one’s ears, everything would feel muffled and hollow.
Vision suffered the same fate.
The loss of touch made one question all four remaining senses.
“What have you done to me?! What sorcery is this?!!”
Nocturnium charged forward in outrage.
Yet Yoo Sung-hyun observed the raging Nocturnium calmly and moved with precision.
Nocturnium, rushing forward mindlessly, could not spare a thought for the damage from the Doomsday Clock or the fresh wound, and instead became consumed by confusion, attacking indiscriminately.
The Battlefield itself answered his will.
In service to his intent to strike Yoo Sung-hyun, a small mountain became an arm, moving with singular purpose.
The mountain’s arm, moving to crush Yoo Sung-hyun beneath its weight.
Yet Yoo Sung-hyun paid it no mind, extending his hand to unleash a torrent of blood.
A vortex of blood far more massive than the mountain’s arm materialized, pulverizing the limb.
In the moment when a metallic, bloody scent filled the air and a crimson mist of blood obscured the vision—
Nocturnium desperately sought the flow of mana once more, obsessively searching.
Yoo Sung-hyun would surely attack next.
Yet the flow of mana could not be felt, and in that instant, I sensed something materializing behind me.
And by the time I felt it, it was already too late.
Shhhhwaaaaaaa——!
Whoooooosh——!
Two consecutive sword strikes.
[Activating the sword skill ‘Darkness’.]
[Consumed by darkness, Nocturnium’s sense of taste is blocked.]
[The effect persists while the blade remains stained with darkness.]
[Consumed by darkness, Nocturnium’s sense of hearing is blocked.]
[The effect persists while the blade remains stained with darkness.]
Two senses vanished.
Taste held little significance, but when hearing disappeared—
“…What?”
I couldn’t even hear my own voice.
Though I could see with my eyes, the absence of sound created a profound sense of wrongness in everything.
Like drifting alone in silent, boundless waters.
That suffocating solitude engulfed me.
The isolation of being here, utterly alone.
But more than that, the terror of my senses being progressively severed grew ever stronger.
I tried desperately to escape.
Yet I could not.
Yoo Sung-hyun’s movements, now stripped of even sound, had been impossible to evade even when all five senses were intact.
Another sword strike followed.
[Consumed by darkness, Nocturnium’s sense of smell is blocked.]
[The effect persists while the blade remains stained with darkness.]
My sense of smell was stolen.
And then—
[Consumed by darkness, Nocturnium’s sense of sight is blocked.]
[The effect persists while the blade remains stained with darkness.]
Even my vision was taken.
All senses were gone.
I could perceive nothing.
Blindness alone would have been terrifying, but sound, smell, and even touch—all had vanished.
I couldn’t even sense that I was moving, couldn’t know if I was being attacked.
In that moment, trembling before the terror of Yoo Sung-hyun, who had stolen everything—
Suddenly, everything returned.
Yoo Sung-hyun released the darkness blade, his expression relaxed as though his business was concluded.
He had taken all my senses, then returned them to me.
Watching him regard me as nothing more than a test subject, fear took root deep within my heart.
A sensation similar to when I once faced my master Helena in ages past.
I want to cry out that it cannot be.
I want to rage that no being could ever equal her, no matter what.
Yet I could not.
The fear that bloomed deep within my heart merely caused Nocturnium to tremble uncontrollably.
“H-huh….”
“…That creature we were struggling to contain with all our strength….”
“To see it broken so easily. It’s simply astounding….”
“…How anticlimactic.”
Hindel and his companions felt their strength drain away, overwhelmed by the futility of it all.
The very being they had strained themselves to barely contain.
Neutralized so effortlessly.
Even knowing Yoo Sung-hyun’s strength, none of them had expected him to accomplish it so easily.
But witnessing it firsthand, that sense of emptiness permeated their entire beings.
Their spirits could not help but falter.
Yet that despair lasted only a moment.
Every member of the hero’s party briefly entertained such thoughts before shaking their heads.
It was true that Yoo Sung-hyun was formidable.
But surely they too had roles to play in what came next.
Just as they were about to step forward and act.
“Mmm, what extraordinary swordsmanship~”
A voice tinged with coquetry and dripping with allure reached their ears.
The figure who appeared alongside that voice was a woman with luscious crimson hair, her bewitching smile radiant as she tore through space itself to manifest before them.
The way she strolled casually through the void, as if on a leisurely walk, was utterly incongruous with the moment.
No power emanated from her. No overwhelming pressure could be sensed.
Yet precisely because of this, their survival instincts screamed from the depths of their consciousness.
To flee.
That death awaited.
That they could not possibly stand against this woman.
But contrary to those primal warnings, their bodies had frozen solid, incapable of movement.
‘What… is… this…?’
‘A new… presence… has… been… felt…?’
‘No… no… I can’t even…!!!’
‘…Overwhelming… pressure….’
Unlike when she first appeared, it was now distinctly palpable.
Clearly a woman from whom nothing could be sensed.
Yet conversely, everything was felt.
That if this woman so desired, they were already as good as dead.
All held their breath, watching the woman’s every movement.
She gazed at Yoo Sung-hyun with admiration and spoke.
“With swordsmanship like that, even I wouldn’t have an easy time~ So I suppose I should flee before things become dangerous~”
So spoke this woman, an existence that struck terror into the world itself.
Though her manner of speaking was somewhat peculiar.
It was almost as if she were delivering some sort of advertisement, yet those within Helena’s domain could perceive nothing of the sort.
I was simply marveling at how extraordinary that swordplay truly was.
Of course, Yoo Sung-hyun felt it all.
He even caught Helena winking and giving him a thumbs up—a gesture meant only for his eyes.
I covered my face with my hand, as if to say, “Why would she go that far?”
But no one else noticed.
With those words, Helena ascended high into the sky, dragging the nearly collapsing Nocturnium with her.
“So, shall we make our escape?”
“N-no! If this one grows any further…!!! M-master!!!”
Helena’s brow furrowed sharply as she watched Nocturnium cry out in convulsions.
There was nothing she wouldn’t say to her own disciple.
Naturally, it was good that Yoo Sung-hyun would surpass her.
But Nocturnium could never understand that.
Helena shook her head and spoke.
“Yeah, it doesn’t matter. Besides, that child doesn’t seem to have any desire to be our enemy. The proof is that you’re still alive, isn’t it?”
“…Huh?”
“Anyway, I’m leaving. Stop bothering me. Especially you, Hero! Don’t bother coming after me—it’s annoying!”
Helena issued her adorable warning, then clenched her fist as if grasping at empty air.
Then.
KRAAAAAAAAAASH———!
The very space where the Dark Castle stood was torn away and lifted into the heavens.
I couldn’t believe it even as I watched.
Not only the Dark Castle perched atop that colossal mountain, but the mountain itself was wrenched free and suspended in the void.
Just how powerful would one need to be to accomplish such a feat?
Helena looked at Yoo Sung-hyun and spoke.
“I’ll have to escape so you won’t know where I’m going.”
Helena spoke with a faint smile.
Yet Yoo Sung-hyun could see it clearly.
The Dark Castle being pulled into a massive void as it vanished through the torn space.
No—a teal-colored portal.
‘What is that…?’
As Yoo Sung-hyun recalled something in his mind.
Helena waved her hand lightly at him, her eyes brimming with reluctance and longing as she spoke.
“Goodbye.”
It was not a long farewell.
Yet within it lingered a profound sense of regret and yearning.
Yoo Sung-hyun felt it, and he too was seized by that same melancholy.
And so Helena’s performance came to its end.
Like closing credits, countless reward notifications began to materialize.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————