The Game of a Legendary Genius Dark Mage-Chapter 213

Seong had no particular reason to go out.

But sitting around in a powerless apartment wasn’t appealing either.

He considered exercising—

"But two hours of working out sounds excessive."

So far, his routine only included morning runs.

He had improved so much that his initial five-minute pace had now dropped to the three-minute range.

That was almost marathon-runner levels.

There was no need to push further.

And he wasn’t the type to have many hobbies.

Then, he remembered—

"I bought a car. I might as well take it for a longer drive."

Calling up friends for a sudden meetup felt awkward.

So, after throwing on some casual clothes and grabbing his keys and wallet, he headed out.

Despite being a beginner driver, Seong felt completely at ease.

Maybe it was thanks to the memories and experiences of ghosts he had absorbed.

Not only was he comfortable behind the wheel—

He was actually driving quite well.

Navigating the chaotic roads of Seoul wasn’t an issue.

As he drove, he settled on a destination—

The Future Mall in Yeouido.

The reasons were simple.

First, he hadn’t eaten yet.

Second, after receiving his huge payout, he realized—

He hadn’t bought anything for his parents.

They weren’t the type to expect gifts.

But as their son, it felt wrong not to do anything.

Pulling into the underground parking lot, he exited his used Matiz.

If he had been worried about driving a small car, he didn’t need to be.

No one looked down on him.

Because, honestly, who even cared about that in modern times?

As he stepped inside—

"Huh."

It was rare for him to visit such a massive mall.

Even Seong, who was usually calm, felt a little overwhelmed.

A grand, plaza-like lobby sprawled before him—

Teeming with crowds rushing past, under bright, flashy storefronts.

He tried not to look out of place.

But avoiding that was impossible.

There was simply too much going on.

"Where do I even start?"

Seeing the bustling food court, he sighed.

"A regular restaurant would’ve been much easier."

After checking reviews, he settled on a Japanese tonkatsu place.

He wasn’t crazy about tonkatsu—

But he didn’t dislike it either. free𝑤ebnovel.com

It seemed like the best option.

Then, he opened the menu—

And immediately did a double take.

"Thirty thousand won...?"

Most Japanese-style tonkatsu should cost around 15,000 KRW.

Even high-end ones shouldn’t exceed 18,000 KRW.

But this place?

They were charging 30,000 KRW for a set.

Even a single plate was over 20,000 KRW.

"What the hell?"

Seong wasn’t hurting for money.

He had over 50 billion won in his account.

But 30,000 KRW for tonkatsu?

That was crossing a line.

Still, he had already sat down and received the menu.

Leaving now would be awkward.

So he just sighed and ordered a mix of loin and fillet cutlets.

"I hope it’s at least worth the price."

Soon, a steaming-hot tonkatsu was served.

As he took his first bite—

"Hmm."

It was better than most.

Crispy. Juicy.

But...

"Is it worth the price?"

Probably not.

Still, he finished his meal satisfied enough and left the restaurant.

Now that he had eaten, it was time to buy gifts.

As he wandered through the mall—

He couldn't help but notice—

The countless spirits.

Some were attached to people.

Others floated aimlessly.

Seong sighed.

"This is why crowded places are exhausting."

If it were just people, that would be one thing.

But the mix of guardian spirits, wandering ghosts, and residual echoes made it visually exhausting.

Still, thanks to his absorbed memories, his stamina and mental endurance had improved.

He could handle it.

First paycheck tradition.

Technically, it wasn’t a paycheck—

But this was his first major earning.

People usually bought thermal underwear for their parents.

But given how much money he had, he thought—

"Why not go for something luxurious?"

Just as he was about to enter a designer store—

Someone grabbed his arm.

"Huh?"

Seong turned to see—

A smiling man and woman, dressed neatly.

"Ah, hello!"

"Haha, nice to meet you."

Their warm and friendly demeanor was... strange.

Seong frowned slightly.

"Do I know them?"

No.

He was sure.

Thanks to his enhanced memory, he could clearly recall every face he had ever encountered.

And these two?

He had never seen them before.

"Why are they talking to me?"

Still, he kept his expression neutral.

"What’s this about?"

"Is there something you need?" Seong asked.

The woman smiled.

"Ah, well! Have you ever been told you have great energy?"

The man chimed in.

"Your aura is really strong."

Seong nodded immediately.

"Yes. I hear that all the time."

Which was true.

Ghosts constantly told him things like:

"You are a fated one!"

"Your aura is incredibly bright!"

"You have an unusual energy."

He had heard countless variations of this.

So, to him, their words were nothing new.

The man and woman visibly flinched.

Most people would respond with confusion or curiosity.

But Seong?

He had answered without hesitation.

They exchanged subtle glances.

"This guy’s not reacting normally."

"Maybe he’s just a skeptical Gen Z?"

Deciding to push forward aggressively, the woman continued.

"But have you noticed your good energy being blocked lately?"

"Have things not been going your way recently?"

Seong tilted his head.

"Nope. Everything's fine."

"I haven't had any problems at all."

He looked at them.

Then at the ghosts clinging behind them.

And suddenly—

It all clicked.

"Ah."

"They’re cultists."

This was one of those infamous pseudo-religious scams.

He had read about them online—

But never expected to be targeted himself.

Curious, he turned fully toward them.

He had time.

And his parents’ gifts wouldn’t take long.

"Might as well see what they have to say."

As he shifted his posture, the two cultists hesitated.

They exchanged another glance.

"Uh-oh."

“Really MZ.”

It seemed that they thought Seong had turned toward them to argue.

The woman stepped forward, taking the lead in the conversation.

“Oh, I’m sorry to say this, but even if things are going well for you now, you might face some difficulties in the future. We’re not strange people or anything—we study people.”

“When you study people, you start to sense things like energy and flow. You become more attuned to them.”

“Hm.”

Seong listened to their words and gave a silent nod.

The old Seong would have dismissed this as complete nonsense.

But honestly?

Now, he could actually do that kind of thing.

Only with ghosts, of course.

Still, it worked.

Even though it was obvious that these two were lying, Seong nodded quietly.

And as if thinking they had convinced him, their excitement grew, and they kept talking.

“We were observing your strong energy, and we saw that your ancestors are angry.”

“That’s why we took the liberty of approaching you.”

“Do you have any idea why your ancestors might be upset?”

As they spoke, clearly thrilled by their own performance, Seong shook his head.

“Oh! You don’t know?”

“When an ancestor is angry, it means—”

Before they could continue, Seong interrupted them.

“No, my ancestors aren’t angry.”

“...What?”

“Oh, um, you might not realize it, but—”

“No. I just asked them. They’re not mad. Actually, it’s your ancestor who’s angry.”

Seong cut them off again and pointed at the woman.

What the hell was this?

The two hesitated.

At first, they thought he was just pushing back out of stubbornness.

But something felt off.

‘Wait... is he serious?’

‘What... what is this guy?’

Something about him was unsettling.

They swallowed nervously.

Then, Seong pointed at the woman.

“You’re Park Ji-hyun, right? And your grandfather’s name was Park Chun-bok.”

“...What?”

“W-What’s going on?”

The woman—Park Ji-hyun—stared at Seong, her eyes widening in shock.

How did he know that?

Seong didn’t care about her reaction.

He continued.

“You joined some weird club in college and started going to those meetings regularly. That’s why your grandfather’s angry. It upset him even more when you left home and cut ties with your parents.”

“My... my grandfather...?”

She didn’t even think to ask how he knew.

She didn’t even question how he knew her grandfather’s name when he had passed away years ago.

All she could feel was the overwhelming certainty that what Seong was saying was true.

Her face turned pale.

“Go home. Your parents are worried about you. Park Chun-bok is worried about you too.”

“Sniff... yes... yes... T-Thank you.”

And just like that, as if she had repented on the spot, Park Ji-hyun burst into tears and ran off.

The man left behind trembled as he locked eyes with Seong.

He didn’t understand what had just happened.

His partner had suddenly bolted—

And that terrified him.

But at the same time, he was someone who had already fallen into a cult.

Curiosity and fear mixed in his voice as he hesitantly asked,

“M-M-M-My turn...? Can you see something about me too...?”

“...Did you have a poodle?”

“CHOKO!!!”

The man suddenly screamed and collapsed onto the floor, sobbing.

Seong took a step back, startled.

The guy cried even harder than the woman.

As if he, too, had just repented.

Feeling secondhand embarrassment, Seong awkwardly turned away.

He decided to chalk it up to an interesting experience and walked into the luxury store, browsing for his parents’ gifts.

By the time he left, satisfied with his purchase, the man was still sitting on the floor, crying about Choko.

Seong quickly walked past him toward the parking lot, pretending not to see.

He had no interest in getting dragged into a conversation where the guy asked him, "Is Choko doing okay?"

Better to leave while he still could.

Hero Luke used one of the many items in his possession.

He didn’t know where the current Overlord was headed.

But he knew that they had come to Despair’s Gorge.

He had long since found traces of the current Overlord.

The lingering effect of the Overlord’s power had left behind skill remnants.

Since he had discovered this much, this item should be enough to track them down.

He didn’t know what kind of person this era’s Overlord was.

And he knew that Overpalace was trying to prevent their meeting at all costs.

But even so—

He wanted to meet them.

He wanted to ask about the past.

And as he activated the item, he saw the current Overlord’s location.

On the map before him, a red dot appeared.

Luke stared at it and murmured,

“So that’s where they are.”

The City of Necromancers.

The City of Death.

Hexia.

Now °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° that he knew the location—

“It’s time to go.”

Behind him, Hero Hindel sighed deeply and shook his head as if he had given up.

“Oh, dear God.”