The Game of the Greatest Black Mage

[Translator - Prøks]

[Proofreader - Prøks]

Chapter 69

He readily gave away a Unique-rank skill book.

The NPCs he had encountered so far hadn't acted this way, except for those from Over Palace.

Conversely, didn't this imply that Flingky was an important figure affiliated with an organization comparable to Over Palace, if not quite as influential?

As this thought crossed his mind,

Seonghyun's expression turned slightly troubled.

He hadn't done anything particularly wrong, but, all things considered, he was a black mage, and even a successor, or descendant, or whatever, of Helena, who had been called the Demon King.

'What if they don't think well of me?'

Should he flee?

For the moment, all he had done was accept the request and fulfill it.

Perhaps it was just needless worry.

He had heard that the perception of black mages had improved significantly thanks to Over Palace, so he had no choice but to trust that.

Just as Seonghyun reached this conclusion,

Flingky was about to say something.

"Ah! And……."

However, he couldn't finish his sentence.

- Kkaeeeeee—! (Enemy attack!)

- Biaaaaa—! (Enemy!)

Karisha and Anemor roared simultaneously.

To Flingky's ears, it was merely a cry, but Seonghyun understood its meaning.

They were creatures he had only just turned into undead today, but

Seonghyun already knew what those cries signified.

Since he could understand the language of ghosts,

Seonghyun's two pupils glowed with a teal light.

A waterspout erupted from the broad, deep waters of the Trin River's bank.

Puaaaaaaah———!

The waterspout shot towards the sky as if it would reach the heavens, and a massive shadow emerged, tearing through the column of water.

This creature was somewhat different from the River Trolls, all twenty-three of which Seonghyun had captured.

While the webbed feet, fins, and fish-like scales were consistent, it was far larger than any troll he had ever seen.

And, most notably, it possessed fierce, enormous tusks.

It was clearly no ordinary creature.

[You have encountered the field boss, 『River Troll Chief, Rigus』.]

As he suspected.

It was a field boss.

As soon as it appeared, Seonghyun stepped forward, as if to protect Flingky.

Protecting Flingky was his priority.

Similarly, as Seonghyun took the lead, Karisha and Anemor emanated a fierce aura, threatening the creature.

- Kkaeeeeeeeee——! (How dare you! Who do you think you're baring your fangs at!)

- Piaaaaaaaa——! (I wouldn't be satisfied even tearing you to pieces!)

At first, Rigus, the River Troll Chief, seemed somewhat intimidated by their combined pressure and recoiled slightly,

But soon, as if overcome by rage, Rigus also roared in fury.

"Guwooooooo——!"

It was a display of mutual intimidation.

However, in terms of numbers and momentum, Seonghyun's side had the advantage.

The other side had already lost all its subordinates and was alone, while Seonghyun's side had two, Karisha and Anemor, who were field boss-level undead, and dozens of Ash Crows flying around.

If they were to clash, it was obvious who would be defeated.

Rigus himself seemed to be aware of this fact and didn't rashly attack.@@novelbin@@

He was simply gnashing his teeth in frustration.

On the other hand, the reason the Ash Crows, Karisha, and Anemor weren't attacking Rigus wasn't because he was a pushover.

'Wait.'

It wasn't like Seonghyun to stop an attack.

However, there was a reason he had them wait.

It was because of Flingky, who, as Seonghyun moved forward to protect him, was looking at him with shining eyes and fidgeting as if he wanted to say something.

Did he want something?

"Were you about to say something?"

As if he had been waiting for the question, Flingky began to speak rapidly.

"Ah! Am I interrupting?! It looks like a confrontation, but it seems more... relaxed than I thought, so is it alright if I say something? Right? S-so, if it's alright, perhaps..."

While speaking quickly, Flingky rummaged through his subspace bag.

A blue liquid sloshing inside a glass bottle.

It was a rather high-quality bottle containing a liquid with a mystical aura.

There was no need to ask what it was.

Seonghyun could already see it.

[Flingky's Special Mana Potion]

However, that wasn't all.

[Flingky's Special Black Magic Power Enhancement Potion]

[Flingky's Special Undead Enhancement Potion]

[Flingky's Special Resistance Enhancement Potion]

[Flingky's Special Mana Enhancement Potion]

He had taken out a total of five different potions.

And not just one of each.

Roughly counting the five types of potions, he had taken out at least five of each.

That made a grand total of twenty-five!

Seonghyun met Flingky's eyes, wondering what was going on.

"If you're alright with it... could you drink these and fight?"

"......?"

Normally, wasn't it Seonghyun who would be making the request?

Why had the roles been reversed?

He was confused, but

It didn't matter.

"I'd be happy to."

"Ah! Thank you!!! Please, try them!"

"Ah, yes. Thank you."

Without refusing, Seonghyun first drank the mana potion.

[You have consumed Flingky's Special Mana Potion.]

[Your total mana has recovered by +15%.]

'Just what is this...'

He was taken aback by just the mana potion.

It restored 5% more mana than the effect of the Tri-Colored Whistle.

Could the others be like that too?

[You have consumed Flingky's Special Black Magic Power Enhancement Potion.]

[Black magic skill-based skills are enhanced by +5% for 10 minutes.]

[You have consumed Flingky's Special Undead Enhancement Potion.]

[For 10 minutes, all stats of directly summoned undead are increased by +10%.]

[You have consumed Flingky's Special Resistance Enhancement Potion.]

[For 10 minutes, all resistances are increased by +5%.]

[You have consumed Flingky's Special Mana Enhancement Potion.]

[For 10 minutes, maximum mana is increased by +10%.]

'Crazy.'

It was a word Seonghyun wouldn't normally use.

But in this situation, it was unavoidable.

Each and every one of these potions was equivalent to at least an Epic-rank item.

And he was being given five of each type!

While Seonghyun wasn't exceptionally knowledgeable about the value of such potions,

He had a strong feeling that each one was worth at least several hundred, perhaps even over a thousand, and his hands began to tremble at the thought.

He had received a Unique skill book, and now, potions of this caliber as well?

Even though he had become a billionaire with assets in the 2 billion range,

In his heart, Seonghyun was still a commoner.

Swallowing nervously, Seonghyun looked at Flingky.

As if asking if this was really okay.

However, Flingky, on the contrary, looked at him with sparkling eyes and asked,

"Can you revive those guys too?"

He knew it was just a question.

However, he couldn't simply ignore it.

After receiving so much, shouldn't there be something in return?

Snap!

Seonghyun snapped his fingers.

From his grasp, a teal heart appeared, emitting a beating sound.

Then, the River Trolls, whose bodies had been reduced to pieces by Flingky's butchering, bubbled and swelled up as if dark energy was boiling within them.

Black energy filled in for the missing bones and flesh of the corpses, and the River Trolls were resurrected.

No, they had returned with death.

They were in a form similar to zombies, but their pre-death regenerative abilities remained intact, as evidenced by their perfectly restored bodies.

Their former boss, Rigus, could only gape in astonishment.

His subordinates, whom he thought were dead, had been revived.

And as enemies.

He didn't know how to react to this.

He was filled with confusion.

"Wowwwwwww! Wow! Wow! I thought so even when I saw those two, but they're so different from other undead!?!?"

"Hmm, they tend to be like that."

"Wowwwwwww!!! They're so cool!!! I've never seen undead like this before."

Flingky, as if lost in a trance, was gazing at them with shining eyes.

Seonghyun was a bit concerned if this was dangerous,

But, like an uncle who enjoys the irresponsible pleasure of generously ordering chicken for his nephew, even though he'll have to deal with the aftermath,

Seonghyun simply nodded, as if saying it didn't matter.

Now that things had come to this,

"Would it be alright if I tried using the skill book you just gave me here?"

He asked a question that could be considered somewhat rude.

Now that he had consumed the potions and received the buffs, he was eager to test out his new skill.

Despite the potential rudeness, when Seonghyun asked,

Flingky, rather than minding, rapidly nodded his head dozens of times, as if he was delighted, and replied,

"Eeeh!? It's something I was hoping you would do!"

"Oh ho? In that case."

Seonghyun accepted all the prompts that appeared to use the skill book and immediately activated the skill.

Since it was a skill exclusive to black mages anyway,

This was the skill he had obtained.

『Self in Darkness』

→《Unique》

→[Lv Max][Completed Form]

[Continuous Effect][Passive]

→Skill exclusive to Black Mage-type classes.

→Awakens the self within the darkness, allowing the simultaneous use of different magic spells.

'Huh.'

A very simple explanation.

However, the impact was as strong as its simplicity.

A skill that allows the simultaneous use of different magic spells.

In simple terms, it was double casting.

And even a passive skill.

Wasn't this skill among the highest tier of Unique-rank skills?

Up until now, Seonghyun also hadn't been able to use magic spells simultaneously.

Casting simultaneously had been impossible.

But that was no longer the case.

'If I first lay down the Corpse Poison, I can simultaneously use Corpse Explosion and Exploding Poison?'

Just how powerful would that explosion be?

Let's test it immediately.

Since Flingky was present, he could have thought to test it later, as the explosion might be dangerous.

However, he didn't.

Seonghyun deliberately moved all the additional River Trolls summoned by Add More.

They emitted a faint greenish mist.

- Geuwooooooo!

- Gueok!

- Guwooooooo!

While their individual intelligence seemed lacking, for Rigus, who had been their leader in life, this was a truly horrific sight.

Was this terrible thing about to happen, where he would have to kill his former subordinates with his own hands?

Rigus momentarily had such thoughts, but then shook his head.

No.

It was rather fortunate.

He would be able to send his subordinates to eternal rest with his own hands!

He would send them to eternal rest and express his fury to those who desecrated death!

Rigus expressed his anger with a roar.

"Geuwoooooooo!"

A powerful roar that shook the very ground.

That roar alone was enough to make Karisha and Anemor flinch momentarily.

It was evident that his rage had reached its peak.

With that roar, Rigus charged forward, extending his long claws like blades and swinging them like swords to send his former subordinates to eternal rest.

Seokeong! Seokeong!

As they were claws, not sharp swords, the sound of rough slicing echoed as he entered among the River Troll zombies.

The faint greenish mist caused their bodies to corrode and melt, but

He paid it no mind.

They were shallow wounds that would soon regenerate.

Sending his subordinates to eternal rest was far more important than tending to such trivial wounds.

"Geuwoooooooo!"

The moment he let out a battle cry like a warrior,

Rigus saw something ignite like flames on the bodies of his subordinates.

And it wasn't just on their bodies.

He also saw it flickering and igniting between the streaks of faint green poison.

Unable to fully comprehend what he was seeing, Rigus couldn't help but tilt his head and let out a puzzled sound.

"Geuwo?"

Those were Rigus's last words.

Puhuuuuuuuung————!

A scorching heat that shook the heavens and earth spread out as if it would engulf everything on the ground.

Engulfing Rigus, who was closest, and even a portion of the Trin River nearby,

The overwhelming heat clashed with the Trin River, causing thick steam to rise.

Kushiiiiiiiiii———!

However, despite being the Trin River, the heat of the explosion was not extinguished, instead creating a powerful updraft.

The explosion cloud and steam, born from the blast, were instantly carried upwards by the updraft, forming a pillar of clouds.

The shock of the explosion spread out across the surrounding land like a wave.

Kugeugeugeuge————!

Burrrrrrrrrr.

The ground rumbled as if an earthquake had occurred, and in some places, it even cracked.

It was truly an overwhelming power.

However, within that overwhelming explosion, two figures, protected by two massive, ashen crows who had deployed a barrier in advance, watched the scene and briefly exclaimed in awe.

"Wow..."

"Huh..."

They couldn't utter any other words.

Anyone would be the same before such a majestic spectacle.

It wasn't quite as powerful as a nuclear explosion.

That much could be said with certainty.

However, wasn't it the most powerful attack Seonghyun could unleash at that moment?

Even Anemor and Karisha, who were already under Seonghyun's command and thus unaffected by the explosion, recalled memories from their previous lives and shivered.

If 'Self in Darkness' had existed before the fight with Anemor,

Wouldn't he have been able to defeat Anemor much faster?

As he was having such thoughts,

[You have defeated the field boss, 『River Troll Chief, Rigus』.]

[You have gained experience!]

[The corpse cannot be found.]

[You cannot use 'Death Legion'.]

Along with the familiar message confirming the kill, a message he had never seen before also appeared.

It stated that he couldn't use Death Legion because the corpse couldn't be found.

The River Trolls created with Add More were also the same.

Was this, perhaps, the price to pay for such immense power?

'It seems the original Death Legion can't be used to resurrect targets if they're caught up in the simultaneous explosion.'

This was another new piece of information he had learned.

It couldn't resurrect targets that had been completely obliterated.

It was a bit of a shame, but

It was actually a relief.

The explosion had been triggered only by the creatures summoned by Add More.

Unless it was a truly critical moment, this combined explosion should not be used.

Declaring a temporary seal on the technique, and having also confirmed the power of Self in Darkness,

Seonghyun was thinking of heading back.

Just then, Flingky, with sparkling eyes, was about to say something, but then his expression suddenly crumpled, and he let out a deep sigh.

"Haa. It's a shame, but I should probably get going soon. I would have liked to spend more time with you, Seonghyun, but it can't be helped. Oh! And if you ever need more potions, please feel free to come find me!"

With those words, Flingky handed something to Seonghyun, and as Seonghyun received it and tilted his head in question,

Flingky, who was already some distance away, stretched out his hand and waved it around broadly before disappearing even further into the distance.

Seonghyun wondered if he would be alright traveling alone,

But then he remembered the potions Flingky had given him and thought it unlikely that anything would happen to him, so he dismissed the thought.

But what had he given him?

[Alchemy Magic Tower Insignia - Descendant of the Sage, Flingky]

"......?"

It seemed he had received something quite important.

[Translator - Prøks]

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