The Game of a Legendary Genius Dark Mage-Chapter 305
As Seong followed the boy, they gradually made their way deeper into the dense forest.
And then—
“Shhh.”
The boy gestured for him to stay quiet and follow.
From the entrance of the village, Seong had been trailing him slowly. And after a while—
‘Wouldn’t it be faster if I just carried him and ran?’
They moved at such a sluggish pace that Seong started to feel impatient. Only after quite a while did the boy point to one side.
A place far off in the distance—so far that most wouldn’t even notice it. But Seong saw it clearly. And once he looked—
There were quite a few horses tied up, and people dressed in rough clothes with hardened bodies were gathered.
‘Hmm.’
Anyone could tell they were bandits.
As he watched them, Seong stroked his chin.
Was this mission about taking out a group of bandits?
‘For something unique, this seems pretty minor.’
It didn’t seem all that difficult.
And hiring a mercenary just for that hardly seemed like a “strategy.”
As Seong thought that, the boy gestured for them to head back.
They weren’t going to strike now?
It seemed odd—but mercenaries follow the client’s lead.
So Seong complied and quietly left the area.
Once they had gotten far enough away, Seong asked the boy:
“Am I supposed to take care of those bandits?”
“Huh? No way. If it were just that, we wouldn’t be offering ten thousand gold.”
“Hmph?”
Well, he had a point.
No one would pay ten thousand gold just to get rid of some bandits.
At first, Seong thought the boy was just naive about the world.
But now he was curious—what was he thinking?
He looked at the boy, who then spoke.
“Hyung, they’re not the end of it.”
“...What?”
“They’re just the advance unit. Have you ever heard of a bandit group called the ‘Savage Wolves’ that operates around here?”
Just as Seong was about to say he hadn’t—
[Info: ‘Savage Wolves’ is a bandit group active in this region, known to have over a thousand members. While the exact number is unclear, it is widely known that they are not a single unified group.]
Seeing that info pop up, Seong nodded immediately.
“So those guys are with the Savage Wolves.”
“Yeah. As you probably read, once one of their units is taken out, they drop everything to come back for revenge. No matter the cost.”
“Hm.”
“So we can’t deal with those guys right now.”
That... did make sense.
Taking out that group would be easy.
They did look fairly skilled for bandits—but to Seong, they were laughable.
However, getting them to retreat on their own? That was several times harder.
And to make sure they never came back here again—If that could really be done...
‘Then the boy’s plan would be considered clever.’
Finally, Seong nodded in understanding.
As he silently came to grips with the situation, the boy said to him:
“You look strong, hyung, but even you can’t take on the whole Savage Wolves group. And even if you could, I don’t have that kind of money.”
A very rational kid.
Well, since this was a quest, Seong could have gone ahead and wiped them out—but who knew how things would unfold?
Better to hear the kid out.
So Seong focused on what he had to say.
The boy gave a sly smile.
“You’re really a good person, hyung.”
“Suddenly?”
Seong tilted his head at the unexpected compliment. The boy chuckled and said:
“Even if they’re paid, most adults don’t listen seriously to a kid like me.”
“Hm, is that so?”
Well, that could be true. It was easy to write a kid off as being naive.
More than anything—
“You looked more amused than greedy when I showed you the money.”
“Hm, I suppose that’s possible.”
“Anyway! We have to make those guys turn back!”
“Got a plan?”
“Of course! If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have hired you!”
Alright, then—
Let’s hear this plan.
How were they going to deal with those bandits? Seong turned to the boy with growing curiosity.
The boy giggled mischievously—and as Seong listened to his story, his expression turned noticeably serious.
If this worked—even bandits wouldn’t dare come near this village again.
“This really could do the trick.”
“Yes! But I’ll need your help with it, hyung.”
“Alright.”
It just so happened—this job was perfectly suited to Seong.
Time to begin.
6.
The ones dominating this area were true villains in every sense.
The Savage Wolves.
Most bandits just looted money, food, or goods—but these ones would slaughter entire villages if things didn’t go their way. They were infamous for a reason.
And with over a thousand members, even some noble territories found it hard to justify launching an extermination ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) effort.
Too risky to move directly.
Too troublesome to ignore.
Perhaps because they knew exactly where that line was, they would hit a territory a few times, then vanish. They’d move on before retribution could be mustered.
So the territories, despite the damage, often chose to let it go.
Only the commoners suffered, but the Savage Wolves didn’t care in the slightest.
“Bwahaha!”
“We’re hitting all the villages around here soon, right?”
“Our boss is a real genius!”
“Breaking into separate teams to loot villages and then bailing—no one’s chasing us!”
“Right? Bwahahaha!”
The drunken bandits roared with laughter, drinks in hand.
Most bandit groups were at least cautious before a raid—but not these guys. They couldn’t care less.
They were convinced they couldn’t lose.
So they laughed and shouted boldly—
Whinnnnne—!
Thud, snort.
Whinnnnnnne—!!
The horses suddenly grew restless.
All eyes turned.
It was unusual.
Even for bandits, these horses were treated like warhorses. Heavily trained and carefully managed. They didn’t spook easily.
So why now?
“Something up?”
“Hey, rookie! Go check it out.”
“Ugh, when do I stop being the rookie...”
“What was that? We’ve got a long wait till the next new guy, so quit whining and go!”
Grumbling, the rookie headed toward the horses.
But...
There wasn’t anything particularly odd.
Except—
Whooooosh...
Kihihihihihihi...
“...???”
A chilling breeze.
The air felt off—eerie. But this wasn’t the kind of guy to be spooked so easily.
He just tilted his head.
Was that what the wind normally sounded like? It did feel off. But he wasn’t exactly the perceptive type, so he turned around and went back.
“Anything out there?”
The one who could be called the party leader of this bandit squad asked.
The rookie scratched his head.
“The wind sounds a little spooky, but nothing much.”
“The wind?”
“Like... a ghost wailing or something...”
Just as he finished saying that—
Kihihihihihihi——.
That eerie laugh-like wind came again. But now, it echoed from all around them.
It was definitely getting creepy. But the bandits weren’t the type to get spooked by something like that.
“Just the wind,” they shrugged.
Still, the leader furrowed his brow.
“The wind didn’t sound like that earlier, did it?”
“Earlier it was normal wind, right?”
“Hmm... maybe it’s just because it’s night.”
“Bwahaha! What, you think a ghost is gonna show up?”
“Kehaha! As if!”
They laughed off the idea and raised their drinks in another toast.
But—
Kihihihihihi——!
That ghost-like laughter grew louder.
And as it did, even those who had been ignoring it now started to frown.
“Ugh! It’s killing the mood.”
“What the hell is that noise?”
“Puhaha, if it’s that bad, shouldn’t it sound like a man instead?”
“Kehaha, right?”
The lewd jokes didn’t stop—but a strange tension started creeping in.
“...Was it always this dark here?”
“Huh? Wasn’t there a full moon just a minute ago...?”
The full moon that had been shining brightly—was gone.
Now, the sky was drenched in oppressive darkness, as if no light were allowed.
And all that remained—
Kihihihihihi——!
was that eerie wind swirling around them.
“......”
“...Ahem.”
“......”
“Huh...”
All the bandits fell silent.
As if they sensed something—
The most cowardly among them began to tremble.
“C-Could this place be cursed?”
“Cursed?”
“...Ahem.”
“A curse, huh...”
A cursed land. Such places did exist. No one could confidently deny it.
They wanted to ask how villagers could live here if it was cursed—but then again, the villagers didn’t come out at night.
Maybe... they already knew about this?
The bandits didn’t say anything out loud, but they were swallowing nervously, trying to adjust to the dark.
Eventually, the surroundings grew pitch black. It became hard to see even a step ahead.
But they were bandits. They were used to the dark. They’d adjust soon.
That was when—lights began to appear in the forest.
Faint, bluish lights.
Floating in midair. One by one, they multiplied.
The bandits swallowed hard.
Was this place really cursed?
Just as that thought sank in—the bluish lights turned red.
And the full moon reappeared—
But now it was blood-red. Completely different from before.
“L-Leader. Maybe we should, uh, tell the boss and... find another spot?”
“You idiot!!! Are you saying we should run away just like that!?”
The leader shouted, but even his voice trembled slightly. He wanted to flee, too.
The others felt the same. They just wanted to get out of there.
Then—something fell from the sky.
Thud.
A horse. One of their horses.
It crashed down. And trembled violently on the ground.
Its head was missing.
Blood spouted like a fountain—its flesh torn apart as if by vicious jaws.
“......!!!”
“......!!!”
“!!!!!!”
Panicked, the bandits mounted their horses and fled in every direction.
They were certain now—this place was cursed.
But as they fled in a frenzy, they didn’t realize one thing:
If one of their horses had died—how could all of them still be riding?
“D-Don’t attack that village!!!”
“We need to tell the boss!!!”
And as the bandits ran for their lives, a boy and Seong stepped out, smirking.
“That was pretty effective.”
“Sure was.”
.
!
Chapter 305
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