The Game of a Legendary Genius Dark Mage-Chapter 234

The secret keyword.

Though Seong wasn't entirely sure, it likely referred to one of Hindel's hidden secrets.

He opened his eyes, glanced at the phrase, and let out a soft sigh.

He had been wondering why Hindel had attacked Helena so viciously in the past, almost as though he meant to kill her.

But it turned out there was more to it than he had thought.

Of course, it wasn’t just the death of his sibling, but it could have been the most crucial factor in triggering it.

“Hmmm.”

“You think there’s more to it?”

Plinky reacted to Seong's silence.

Noticing Seong deep in thought, it seemed like there was something more behind it.

But Seong waited in silence before speaking first.

“As I thought, it doesn’t seem likely that Hindel was easily manipulated just because he was emotionally affected.”

“Oh?”

“It might have been a pivotal event, but I think there was some preparation before that, or perhaps even further actions taken afterward. That’s what I believe.”

“Hmmm, you know a lot about Hindel, don’t you?”

Plinky's sharp question struck.

However, Seong didn’t show much of a reaction.

Though they had met in person, he figured it wouldn't be believed if he said it aloud.

Either way, Seong thought that Hindel wasn’t just deceived by his sibling's death.

Something crucial must have been involved.

What could that be? Could he find more here?

Just as Seong was lost in thought...

Whoosh—!

An ominous, dark purple energy started emanating from the scroll and notebook Plinky was holding.

The moment they both noticed it, they braced themselves.

At the same time, a similar aura burst from Seong’s inventory, and a message appeared.

[The "Demon Sword – Nemesis (Sealed)" responds to the magic.]

“Demon magic?”

“...When I checked, there was no trace of demon magic...”

Plinky spoke with a tone of confusion, and Seong nodded in agreement.

This was certain.

“The scroll and the notebook must be connected to a weapon imbued with demon magic. The Demon Sword I sealed has the ability to detect weapons with demon magic in them.”

“Ah?! Then...!?”

Plinky exclaimed, and Seong nodded in agreement.

This wasn’t just the work of a dark mage.

It was likely that the demon magic-infused weapon was used to kill Hindel’s sibling, Lumen.

And maybe, after feeling the residual demon magic, Hindel slowly came to view Helena as his enemy?

Seong pondered this as he briefly connected to the Netherworld and asked Helena.

[Helena, were you connected to demon magic and dark mages?]

“Huh? Demon magic is the stuff from those filthy demons. Dark mages use dark magic, and demons use demonic power. Sure, there used to be some idiots who thought they were the same, but...”

Helena responded kindly, and with a slightly sad tone at the end, Seong couldn’t bring himself to ask more. He nodded instead.

Now, it was clear.

‘They linked demon magic with dark mages.’

And the use of a weapon with demon magic meant the Kingdom of Rieskan was involved.

Once Seong thought this through, Plinky mumbled in disbelief.

“Come to think of it, demon magic-infused weapons always seem to appear near the Kingdom of Rieskan.”

“That's certain.”

The Kingdom of Rieskan creates weapons infused with demon magic.

Once Seong figured that out, another message appeared before him.

[The "Hero Hindel" secret keyword now includes the keywords "Demon Sword" and "Demon Magic-Infused Weapon."] [The "Hero Hindel" secret keyword also includes the keyword "Kingdom of Rieskan."]

A phrase that felt like a definitive verdict appeared.

Seong nodded at it, and Plinky muttered seriously.

“This might even be related to the Sword Saint.”

“The Sword Saint?”

“Yes, one of the nine heroes.”

Seong had heard about them before.

The nine most powerful heroes in this world.

One of them was linked to the Kingdom of Rieskan?

This was getting bigger than expected.

Seong thought that, but didn’t say anything. Plinky didn’t continue, but one thing was clear.

“We won’t be able to investigate any further until we get stronger.”

“That’s right.”

Seong agreed with Plinky's words.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

Even though Hindel’s story was from centuries ago, the fact that demon magic-infused weapons were still appearing near the Kingdom of Rieskan made it highly suspicious.

Especially if the demon magic-infused weapon was what deceived Hindel.

The two of them concluded their discussion.

Plinky handed over the stolen scroll and notebook.

After all the demon magic and suspicious elements were manipulated, the scroll and notebook Seong received were perfectly clean and untouched.

Plinky then spoke to Seong.

“Anyway, with Terian’s personality, he’s not going to report this to the higher-ups.”

“Yeah, I think so. Especially since it’s all been so neatly manipulated.”

“There’s no way we’ll get caught.”

As they exchanged a nod, the room grew dark once more, just like when they first met, and in that moment, they both disappeared.

Plinky appeared back in the market street.

At first, the sudden shift in his surroundings might have been disorienting, but he quickly adapted and blended in with the crowd unnoticed.

Thinking to himself, Plinky murmured quietly.

‘I’ve uncovered an even bigger secret than I expected. Should I tell Luke about this...?’

He imagined Luke, likely to fly into a rage and charge straight into action, and hesitated for a moment.

But he figured it would be fine to just warn him.

Then, thinking about it...

‘Maybe it’s not necessary? After all, an enormous palace is already helping Seong...?’

Suddenly, the thought of Overpalace crossed his mind.

But Plinky then considered it more deeply.

‘No, considering Overpalace’s nature, they might still be complicit with the tower, just like in the past.’

He’d need to get them on his side, no matter what.

For the survival of the Tower.

8.

After sending Plinky off, Seong immediately made his way to the Sisvald Administration Office with the scroll and notebook in hand.

To his surprise, he arrived much faster than expected, and Terian greeted him with a nervous look, clearly anxious.

When Seong took out the scroll and notebook, Terian was taken aback.

“Wha-!? You found them already?!”

“Yes, I couldn’t catch the thief, but I was able to retrieve the scroll and notebook.”

“Ahh! To get them back so quickly! Thank you! Thank you! Who cares about catching the thief now!”

“...?”

Seong had thought Terian would be upset about the thief still being on the loose, but instead, he seemed delighted just to have the items back.

It seemed a bit odd, but perhaps he had a contingency plan in place.

“Now that we’ve secured the records, we’ll need to apply magic treatments to the archive, so thieves won’t be able to get in easily anymore.”

Muttering to himself, Terian looked at Seong, who scratched his cheek in thought.

Previously, there had been magical protections, but they were breached. To think that he thought the new protections would be unbreakable was a bit naïve.

It felt like an unrealistic approach, though Seong decided not to comment further.

He figured it wasn’t worth nitpicking.

[Hidden Quest, "The Thief of the Archives" completed.] [Rewards received.] [You’ve gained massive experience.] [Level Up!] x2 [You are now level 188.] [Additional rewards can be claimed from Terian Mitrian.]

As the quest was cleared and Seong received the experience, he saw his level jump by two stages.

He had just been chatting with Plinky, and yet, this reward felt excessive.

But he wasn’t going to turn it down.

As Seong happily accepted the reward, Terian, clearly excited, spoke up.

“Thank you so much! Is there any reward you’d like? I’ll do my best to fulfill your request!”

Seong paused for a moment, pretending to think, and then spoke.

“Do you have any information about weapons imbued with demon magic nearby?”

Seong had already planned what kind of reward he wanted.

The whereabouts of weapons infused with demon magic.

Perhaps, by dealing with others who wielded such weapons, he could uncover more keywords related to Hindel.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t receive more guidance from Nemesis.

It didn’t react anymore, as if there were no weapons with demon magic nearby.

So, Seong decided to ask Terian, the administrator of this place where a lot of information about knights’ missions gathered.

After a moment of consideration, Terian stroked his chin thoughtfully.

“Hmmm, I’ve heard that someone wielding a demon magic-infused weapon appeared in the seventh region, that’s Septem Arcana.”

“Septem Arcana...” ƒгeewebnovёl.com

“Yeah, it’s a magical city located not far from the Kingdom of Rieskan’s border.”

“...”

At that, Seong’s eyes narrowed slightly.

This was getting clearer.

Terian continued with more details.

“Apparently, the person there is also linked to Sisvald.”

“Ah!”

That sounded familiar. Leon had mentioned something similar.

Hadn’t he said there was someone like Ragna Eckrion?

As Seong thought about it, he wondered if it was hidden intentionally or not.

Either way, he was now armed with more information, and just as he was about to leave, Terian eagerly spoke again.

“You’re asking about information on humanity’s enemies? As a true knight, it’s only right to offer you a new mission as your reward. Here, take this.”

“...What’s this?”

When Seong accepted the reward, a message popped up.

[Terian Mitrian has given you a Unique-grade Skill Book, "Song of the Sword."]

A Unique-grade skill book.

With this, along with the Legendary-grade skill book he had received from Leon, Seong now had two.

He placed the skill book in his inventory for now.

“Thank you.”

Though it was just Unique-grade, it was still a good quality, so he accepted it without hesitation.

After that, Seong, now satisfied, left the room.

He had gained the information he needed, but...

‘The seventh region...’

That was still quite a distance away.

Just as he was wondering what to do next, Seong felt a presence nearby.

Using the Lord of Darkness, he conjured a blade of darkness and sent it flying toward the source of the disturbance.

As he did, he saw someone standing still, not moving, seemingly accepting the attack without any reaction.

The blade of darkness stopped right before the person’s eyes, coming to a complete halt in mid-air.

Plop.

The blade had stopped right before their eyes.

Yet, the figure before him simply watched and revealed a black-robed figure with the emblem of a black crown.

Overpalace?

Did Overpalace have a branch here too?

Seong thought about it for a moment when the figure spoke.

“I’ve come to escort you to Hexia, on urgent matters.”

Seong had been planning to return to Hexia, °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° but urgent matters?

As Seong looked at the figure, the person spoke again.

“The Hero’s Assembly is about to begin. I’ve come to take you there.”

“The Hero’s Assembly?”