The Game of a Legendary Genius Dark Mage

Chapter 34

A Death Soldier stronger than the dungeon boss, Adum?

How could this be? Seonghyeon was only Level 25!

Manhu’s mind swirled with disbelief and frustration, but he couldn’t voice his thoughts aloud.

The air had grown heavy.

Ssshhh, haaaaa…

The breath of Barfur, the Death Soldier, seemed to freeze the surrounding atmosphere.

The power Barfur wielded now was unimaginable.
It wasn’t just an improvement over his original strength—he had grown far stronger than when he faced Seonghyeon previously.

And with strength came fear, a suffocating terror that swept over the room.

“Aaaaah!”

Amir, unable to withstand the pressure, raised his bow and loosed an arrow at Barfur.

It was an impulsive reaction to the overwhelming fear, aimed directly at the undead commander.

But Barfur, exuding disdain, casually caught the arrow mid-flight between his index and middle fingers.

Flick.

“Hmph. You didn’t think you could harm me with this toothpick, did you?”

Barfur’s mocking words were accompanied by a system message:

[Party member ‘Amir-Lv.26’ has attacked you.]
[Entering full hostile state.]
[Party member ‘Amir-Lv.26’ has left the party.]
[This user has a bounty. Attacking them will not increase your infamy.]

Two members had now formally turned hostile.

Seonghyeon watched this unfold and turned his gaze to Barfur and the goblin undead.

With a mere thought, his will was conveyed to his minions.

“We shall carry out our master’s commands.”

“Kerk! Kek! Kerhuk! (Everything for our lord!)”

“Kehuruk! Kehk! Kek! (We will obey our master!)”

The goblin undead and Barfur’s unwavering loyalty only amplified the oppressive air around them.

Even Jinu, who had been fighting a hobgoblin, was visibly shaken.

While everyone’s eyes quivered with fear, the first to regain composure was the boss monster, Adum.

“Kerrek! Kehuk!”

Though the guttural sounds were incomprehensible, the hostility in Adum’s tone was clear.

The other hobgoblins reacted to his words, likely receiving commands.

But it was futile.

The goblin undead moved first.

The goblin undead, leveraging their small frames and impressive agility, charged ahead of the hobgoblins and launched their attack.

Three undead surrounded each hobgoblin, moving with precision and ferocity.

“Kerkhuk! (For the master!)”

“Kekekekek! Kek! (Hahaha! Let’s kill them all and make them our kin!)”

“Kerkhur! (We shall all become one!)”

They deftly avoided the hobgoblins’ attacks, using their nimbleness to their advantage.
Their strategy was simple but effective: target the knees and shins with their blades, crippling the hobgoblins’ mobility.

The hobgoblins, unable to respond in time, stumbled as their legs gave out.
Seizing the opportunity, the undead closed in, obscuring their vision and driving their blades into the hobgoblins’ torsos.

In mere moments, the hobgoblins were left bleeding and gasping.

“Grrrkk…”

“Pwaaaah!”
“Keeeeek!”
“Krrrrrk…”

The hobgoblins coughed up blood, their groans echoing through the chamber.

Though their levels prevented immediate death, their faces contorted with fear and agony, making death seem preferable.

Even the boss, Adum, was not exempt.

Unlike the other hobgoblins, who were targeted by three undead each, Adum faced eight.

The undead employed a coordinated strategy: one even carried a shield, blocking Adum’s attacks while the others exploited every opening.

Thunk, thunk, thunk!

Sickening sounds of cold steel piercing flesh accompanied Adum’s pained roars.

“Kreeeeehhhh!”

The horrifying cries echoed through the cavern as the relentless assault continued.

Manhu and his group, as well as Jinu, could only watch in stunned disbelief.

Even as this unfolded, Seonghyeon glanced at them and spoke softly:

“You could’ve been less obvious.”

Of course, the little ghost had already warned him, so he had known from the start.
But their behavior had been so blatant afterward that he couldn’t help but comment.

Manhu remained silent, though his expression hardened.

The others, however, stammered nervously.

“W-What should we do?”

“S-Should we attack?”

Manhu quickly assessed the situation.

He hadn’t attacked yet, which meant he still had an escape route.
If Seonghyeon attacked first, his infamy would increase—something he’d surely want to avoid.

If I abandon the others…

As Manhu contemplated betrayal, Seonghyeon interrupted his thoughts by waving his sword.

Manhu’s eyes instinctively followed the blade, his gaze drawn to it like a moth to a flame.

“Are you considering surrendering?”

Seonghyeon’s calm inquiry felt like a sharp jab, and as their eyes met, Manhu’s face burned with shame.

“Damn it!”

To suffer such humiliation and do nothing? Impossible.

Seonghyeon was only Level 25, while Manhu was higher-leveled.

How dare he provoke him?

He’s trying to rile me up, isn’t he?

Manhu realized that losing his temper would only lead to defeat.
If he stayed calm, his victory was assured.

As if reading his mind, Seonghyeon motioned for Barfur to move.

Barfur turned his attention to Nuel and Amir, who recoiled in terror.

“This is my chance!”

With Barfur temporarily distracted, Manhu prepared to strike.

Nuel and Amir, trembling like leaves, frantically cast their skills.

“A-Aaah! Energy Arrow!”

“F-Fire Wall!”

A mana-imbued arrow flew toward Barfur while a blazing wall of fire rose to block him.

But Barfur dismissed the attacks with contempt.

Flick, crack.

The arrow snapped in half with a casual wave of his hand, as if it were a mere toy.

Barfur then turned to the fire wall, exhaling lightly as though extinguishing a candle.

Hoo.

The fiery wall, which had been blazing fiercely, disappeared with a single breath from Barfur.
As it vanished, Nuel, who had been chanting a spell behind the cover of flames, turned pale.

Amir, standing beside her, was no better off.

Both of them froze as they spotted Manhu charging toward Seonghyeon.

It clicked in their minds simultaneously:

“If we kill the summoner, the undead will disappear.”

If they could just hold out until Manhu succeeded, it would all be over.

But then a terrifying thought crossed their minds.

“Can we even hold out…?”

“…No.”

The realization dawned as they watched Barfur’s menacing form approach.

Even though they rationally knew he was just a monster, just lines of data, it felt different.
It felt as though they were facing a real ghost.

Their bodies stiffened, paralyzed by fear.

It didn’t take long to realize they couldn’t hold on.

Closing their eyes, they silently hoped their sacrifices would grant Manhu victory.

Manhu was well aware that Seonghyeon’s combat prowess was formidable, but he clung to a critical assumption:

“He’s still a necromancer. His defenses must be weak.”

While the undead kept their attention elsewhere, Manhu believed he could dominate in close combat as a swordsman.

Trusting in this belief, he dashed forward, raising his sword to strike Seonghyeon.

[Party member ‘Manhu-Lv.29’ has attacked you.]
[Entering full hostile state.]
[Party member ‘Manhu-Lv.29’ has left the party.]
[This user has a bounty. Attacking them will not increase your infamy.]

The system message popped up in front of Seonghyeon, but he dismissed it with a flick of his wrist.

Manhu swung his sword, channeling all his strength into a swordsman skill.

Clang!

Seonghyeon raised his sword and deflected the blow. But it wasn’t just a simple block.
With precise control, he redirected Manhu’s blade, effortlessly diverting the trajectory of the attack.

It was a masterful parry.

Manhu immediately followed up with a skill: a rapid five-hit combo that unleashed five strikes in quick succession.

Each blow was faster and more powerful than the last, making it nearly impossible to block them all without a defensive skill.

Even if Seonghyeon tried to block, the sheer force of the attack might shatter his weapon.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

But what happened next defied all logic.

Seonghyeon didn’t use a skill.
Instead, he relied solely on his swordsmanship to deflect every strike.

“What the hell?!”

The first strike, aimed downward, was parried with a smooth upward motion.
The second, a horizontal slash, was sidestepped and deflected with ease.
Even the third, a rising cut from the lower left to the upper right, was nullified as Seonghyeon spun his wrist, coiling his blade around Manhu’s and forcing it away.

Finally, the overhead slash aimed at Seonghyeon’s head was halted mid-swing, sparks flying as their swords clashed and locked.

“He blocked everything… without a skill?!”

Manhu’s throat tightened as he swallowed hard.
This shouldn’t have been possible.
A skillless counter to a skill?

When he met Seonghyeon’s eyes, a chill ran down his spine.

Seonghyeon’s gaze was dark, almost black, but flecks of teal glimmered in his pupils, exuding a mysterious, otherworldly aura.

“What… what is this?!”

The sensation was akin to being entranced by a ghost.
And in a way, it wasn’t entirely incorrect.

Seonghyeon had perfectly utilized the knowledge and experience of Drill Instructor Eddy, leveraging his techniques to counter every attack.

But it wasn’t over.

“Hm.”

That single syllable carried a weight of disinterest.

Manhu could feel it—the boredom in Seonghyeon’s eyes, his tone, his very presence.

It made something boil inside him.

Jealousy. Inferiority. Rage.

“AAAAAHHH!”

He roared, swinging his sword wildly in a blind rage.
But Seonghyeon, having already assessed his opponent’s level, blocked every attack with ease.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The strikes became increasingly erratic, lacking form and precision.

Seonghyeon sighed softly, shaking his head.

“Too reckless.”

His words only fueled Manhu’s frustration. He screamed and swung with all his might, but it was no use.

Seonghyeon’s counterattacks began to land.

Slash! Srrng!

“Ugh!”

Each strike inflicted more damage, chipping away at Manhu’s strength and composure.

Realizing he couldn’t win, Manhu retreated, trying to gather his thoughts.

But Seonghyeon’s disdainful gaze pierced through him.

“What…?”

Seonghyeon’s calm voice cut through the tension.

“Does it make sense to back away from a dark mage?”

“Huh?”

Before Manhu could react, Seonghyeon raised his hand, teal energy coalescing into the shape of a spear.

With a swift motion, he hurled the energy spear at Manhu.

The projectile’s speed was terrifying.

Manhu reflexively tried to intercept it, but—

Thunk!

A bone arrow, crafted by one of the undead archers, struck his sword, halting his swing.

Manhu could only watch in horror as the teal spear closed the distance.

Thud!

[Dark damage has been applied.]

[For 3 seconds, all vision and senses are impaired.]

A message appeared before Manhu’s eyes, but it offered no solace.

His world went dark.

In the void, with no sight or sound, he felt as though he was adrift in space.

He couldn’t see. He couldn’t feel.
His stomach churned violently as nausea set in.

He needed to move, to escape, but his body refused to respond.

“What’s happening to me?!”

After three agonizing seconds, his senses returned.

Surprisingly, he seemed unharmed.

“I can still escape!”

Clinging to that thought, Manhu resolved to flee.
He wanted the sword, yes—but not at the cost of his life.

However, as he prepared to run, a shadow loomed over him.

“What…?”

Against his better judgment, he looked up—and froze.

Barfur, his teal eyes glowing ominously, grinned down at him.

“Peek-a-boo.”

“AAAAHHH!”

Manhu screamed, but he couldn’t escape the massive hand descending on him.

Crunch!

The sickening sound of bones shattering echoed through the chamber.

Manhu’s body crumpled like a ragdoll.

[Critical Hit!]

[Your health has dropped to 0. Forced logout initiated.]
[Due to your infamy, death penalties have increased.]
[You have dropped one of your highest-grade items.]

As Manhu faded, his prized Ring of Speed clattered to the ground.

Seonghyeon surveyed the aftermath with a faint smile.

[You have won a player-versus-player battle!]
[You defeated a higher-level player and earned bonus experience.]
[Adum Cave has been cleared.]
[Rewards: ‘Greatsword of Hobgoblin Warrior Adum,’ 20 gold, experience.]
[Level Up!] x5
[You have reached Level 30.]
[You have unlocked a new skill: ‘Sovereign’s Command.’]

“Not bad,” Seonghyeon muttered, satisfied as he reviewed the flood of rewards.