The Game of a Legendary Genius Dark Mage-Chapter 304
Seong was momentarily surprised—he hadn’t expected to see any other users here. Barbaros, for his part, looked equally caught off guard.
The two exchanged confused glances, both feeling that odd sensation of familiarity—like a memory sitting just out of reach.
Then, at almost the exact same time:
“Pentagrid?”
“Got kicked out of a library?”
Recognizing each other at last, the tension melted instantly. Barbaros's face lit up with unexpected joy.
He never thought he’d meet a familiar player here of all places—and in a library again, no less.
He smiled warmly, as if meeting a fellow bibliophile was always a welcome event.
Seong wasn’t quite as overjoyed, but he did look at Barbaros with mild curiosity. This young man with brown hair, glasses, and a bit of an awkward but youthful demeanor looked to be around Seong’s age.
‘He’s around my level?’
That was surprising. Seong leveled up extremely fast—yet somehow, this guy had managed to keep up?
‘Must be incredibly skilled.’
Then again, Barbaros seemed more like the reading type than a hardcore grinder. The way he leveled might be connected to books—possibly even a book-related class?
Given how much he loved books, that didn’t seem far-fetched.
With that in mind, Seong said,
“Fancy seeing you here again. Your nickname was... Barbaros, right?”
“Oh!? Yes, that’s me!”
“Ah, I’m Seong-hyun. It’s kind of nice seeing a familiar face again.”
Barbaros eagerly nodded at the greeting.
“Hehe, right? Did you come here to read books?”
“Yeah, I’m looking for a specific one.”
“Oh?”
Barbaros perked up immediately. If anyone could help, it’d probably be him.
As Seong was wondering if Barbaros might know where the book was—he wasn’t disappointed.
“Just tell me the title or what it’s about. I can try to find it for you! I don’t know every book in here, but I’ve got a good sense of where things are!”
Barbaros spoke with a cheerful confidence that somehow felt trustworthy. Seong smiled faintly at that, and just in case:
“Do you happen to know a book called The Cleverness of a Village Boy?”
“Huh?”
Barbaros’s reaction was immediate. Could he know it?
Seong watched skeptically, expecting it to be a long shot. But then—
Barbaros darted off to a nearby shelf and shouted:
“Found it!”
“......???”
That fast?
Had he known about it already?
Seong followed Barbaros to the shelf, still stunned—and sure enough, there it was:
『The Cleverness of a Village Boy』
How did he find it that fast? Seong gave Barbaros a puzzled look.
Barbaros scratched his cheek with a sheepish smile.
“Well, the title was super normal-sounding for a Unique-tier book, so I remembered it.”
“Ah, I see.”
“And I already read it too!”
“Oh?”
“Are you going in now?”
That question left Seong hesitating. He did have time left—but not much.
He figured it’d be best to log out and try it the next day.
“Probably tomorrow. My time’s a bit tight today.”
“Ah! Got it. It’s a fun one, so I hope you enjoy it! I’ll get back to looking for something new to read then...”
With that, Barbaros returned to browsing the shelves.
Seong watched him go, smiling faintly. Barbaros really did love books.
Though this place was more about experiencing stories than just reading, for someone who genuinely loved narrative—there probably wasn’t a better place in all of Eternal World.
[Eternal World—the world of forever—awaits your return.]
As the familiar logout message appeared, Seong disconnected.
4.
After logging out, Seong stretched his stiff limbs as he climbed out of the capsule. He’d exited earlier than usual today, but surprisingly, his body didn’t feel all that stiff.
A few stretches later, he noticed his sister Yu Mina stepping out of her capsule as well, yawning.
“Logging off early today?”
“Huh? Oh, yeah. Just been grinding lately without any quests, so it’s getting boring. You too? You’re out early.”
“I’m in Seftia for a quest.”
“Huh?”
Mina looked a bit surprised at Seong’s response—then nodded like it made sense.
“Yeah... Seftia is efficient, I’ll give you that.”
If even Yu Mina admitted it, then it must be true.
As Seong was about to brush it off, she gave him a curious look.
“What kind of quest sends you to Seftia though? I’ve only heard of solo players going there to grind EXP—not for quests.”
She had a point. From what Seong had seen, it was mostly small parties or solo users—not many on actual quests.
“It’s a class quest. I need to read the Chronicles of the Lord of the Dead.”
“Aaah.”
She nodded again, clearly understanding.
“Yeah, if you’re not getting sent into the past, Seftia makes the most sense. Find anything yet?”
“Yeah, just hit Unique tier. Found the first book.”
“Nice.”
They chatted a bit casually, until Mina suddenly asked,
“Hey, you didn’t get any follow-up messages or anything?”
“Messages?”
“Oh~ so you didn’t.”
“...What’s with that look?”
Mina’s weird, knowing smile made Seong frown.
She smirked.
“Nothing~ If nothing came, then never mind.”
“......?”
What the hell was that about?
Seong blinked, a little confused.
Then he thought of something.
‘Was she talking about... Luna?’
They had exchanged numbers, sure—but there hadn’t been a reason to follow up. If it was game-related, she could always message him in-game.
Funny, he thought, shaking his head. Then he stepped into the living room to help their mother with dinner prep.
Watching him go, Mina let out a sigh.
“Jeez...”
Was he just dense? Or was he deliberately putting up a wall?
She honestly couldn’t tell.
Then her thoughts wandered—
‘No way... it couldn’t be her, right?’
She suddenly pictured that one foreign girl who had confidently declared she’d become “Joseon’s greatest swordswoman.”
But Mina shook her head. Nope. That’s too ridiculous.
Still... could Seong actually be surrounded by more women than she realized?
Then she remembered something she’d heard during a fortune reading—
“.......”
Maybe I should find his soulmate myself...
With her mind full of swirling thoughts, Mina scratched her head and joined Seong in helping with dinner.
Sometimes, chores were the best medicine for an overloaded brain.
5.
The next morning.
After finishing his usual morning routine, breakfast, and a quick shower, Seong logged back into Eternal World.
[Welcome back to Eternal World, the other world of forever.]
[Wishing you good fortune, Player ‘Seong-hyun’.]
The familiar welcome message flashed on-screen.
Seong dismissed it and made his way to the Unique-tier Library.
Sure enough—just like yesterday—Barbaros was already there, seated and waiting.
“Ah! Hello!”
Barbaros greeted him cheerfully. Seong had a brief thought—
‘...Was he waiting for me?’
No, no way. He shook the thought from his head.
“Morning,” Seong replied politely.
“You’re going for that book today, right?”
“Yeah. It’s part of my quest.”
“Ah, good luck in there!”
With that, Barbaros happily returned to reading another book.
Are there books here that aren’t dungeons? Seong pondered, then turned toward the shelf where Barbaros had found The Cleverness of a Village Boy.
As soon as he opened the book—
He was sucked in. The book hovered midair, floating open.
Barbaros glanced up, watching Seong vanish into the story. Then muttered quietly to himself.
“Ugh... I need to ask him something. But... will he help me...?”
He trailed off, uncertain.
Naturally, Seong—already inside the book—heard none of this.
Instead, he was beginning to understand the mission ahead of him.
[『The Cleverness of a Village Boy』 is beginning.]
Seong knew instantly—he was inside the story now.
What kind of tale would this be? He was looking forward to it.
Just then, a boy appeared before him—bright eyes staring up at him.
The kid looked ordinary enough, but he had the kind of delicate, pretty features that made you think he’s going to break hearts when he’s older.
Seong thought the boy looked vaguely ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) familiar... but couldn’t place him.
Then the boy spoke.
“Mister, are you a mercenary?”
“...?”
Seong tilted his head, confused.
Then the boy corrected himself.
“Oh! I mean—uh, sir, are you a mercenary?”
“Hm.”
A sudden question from the boy. It was clear he was the story’s main character.
He was asking if Seong was a mercenary?
That seemed to be the hook of this scenario.
Seong nodded.
“Yeah, I guess I am.”
“Huh? ‘You guess’ you are? What does that mean?”
“Ahem. What’s going on?”
The boy squinted suspiciously at Seong, who tried to brush it off. Maybe the kid picked up on something—
Or maybe the system just flagged Seong as a mercenary to move the story forward.
In any case, after a moment of scrutiny, the boy seemed convinced.
He looked up and said boldly:
“Can I hire you?”
Then, just as boldly, he held out a pouch that was clearly stuffed with coins.
Seong smiled, amused.
“The fee depends on the request.”
It was a practical response. Most kids would shrink back at that.
But this kid?
He didn’t hesitate.
“You’ll probably accept just by looking at the money.”
“Huh?”
How much was in there?
Curious, Seong took the pouch and opened it.
Inside were ten platinum coins—each worth 1,000 gold.
“...?”
Ten thousand gold?
Seong scratched his cheek.
The boy just grinned smugly.
“Knew it. You’ll take the job, right?”
“...Yeah, sure.”
Seong replied, half in disbelief. The kid smiled wide, absolutely thrilled.
Then a system message appeared:
[The scenario 『The Cleverness of a Village Boy』 is now beginning.]
‘Cleverness? This is just money power.’
Still, the scenario had begun. And he had just been paid.
Seong followed the boy with interest, curious what kind of story this would be—and how, exactly, it would tie into the Lord of the Dead.
.
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Chapter 304
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