NOVEL NEXT
Chapter 9
[Translator – Kie]
[Proofreader – Demon God’s male Disciple]
[Quality Checker – Kawaii]
Chapter 9: The Dark Mage (2)
Damien followed the tracking spell, pursuing the dark mage.
The location indicated by the dark magic was a forest which was adjacent to the Hasken manor.
It was a place frequently visited by the residents of the territory to gather mushrooms and herbs.
‘It was farther than I thought.’
Curse type dark magic tended to have a lower success rate as the distance increased.
The fact that the dark mage had established his base so far from the mansion meant that he was a skilled magician.
‘This might be dangerous.’
Saying so, Damien moved further into the woods.
It was when he reached the heart of the forest that the tracking spell suddenly ceased.
‘It seems to be around here…’
There was nothing at the place where Damien was currently standing.
Leaves littered the ground, and only trees grew nearby.
“He must be hiding somewhere here.”
Dark mages were pursued by the Church for being considered as demons’ kin, leading most of them to habitually conceal their abilities or residences.
‘Let’s take a look around…’
Damien Hasken began to explore the surroundings meticulously, inspecting under tree roots and seemingly ordinary rocks.
After a while of wandering, Damien halted.
The sensation under his foot felt peculiar. Damien examined the ground.
‘It’s an illusion’
Surprisingly, it wasn’t an ordinary illusion. It possessed some degree of dark magic as well.
“Indeed, it’s the dangerous one.”
Damien scrutinized the illusion closely.
The knowledge of dark magic imparted by the Dorguo to him was extensive and precise, enabling him to quickly grasp the magical components.
“Found it.”
He thrust his longsword towards the core sustaining the magic.
As the core shattered, the magic formation supporting the illusion dissipated and the illusion vanished, revealing a staircase.
As Damien descended the stairs he found himself in a big chamber.
“Kukk-kuk-kukkk.”
Suddenly, a strange laughter echoed in the chamber. Damien hurriedly hid himself behind the wall.
“Whether he’s the boss of the Black Serpents or whatever, he was indeed a foolish guy. He really brought all the items that I demanded.”
A small-framed man entered the chamber and spoke to himself.
Damien observed the man.
He barely surpassed 150 cm of height and had a small stature with lanky arms and legs which was devoid of any muscles.
A typical physique for a magician.
“Strange. He doesn’t seem as threatening as I expected him to be.”
Contrary to Damien’s anticipation, the dark mage didn’t emanate a significant aura of power.
“Is he hiding his strength? No, there’s no way I wouldn’t recognize it if he did that.”
Damien’s observation skills transcended those of an expert. So even if the dark mage concealed his strength, it wouldn’t have escaped Damien’s notice.
“I should observe a little longer.”
Concealing his presence, Damien observed the dark mage.
“With this much amount, I won’t have to worry about experimental materials for a while.”
The dark mage looked at the items scattered around the chamber.
Jars filled with the insides and blood of various animals, a plethora of herbs, and more were spread across the chamber.
“But goodness, what a downgrade I have become, ending up with such a petty job.”
The dark mage expressed his discontent.
“Even if I hadn’t been chased by the Church, I wouldn’t have had to take on such annoying tasks… damn it.”
The dark mage picked up a wine bottle placed on the table.
Without pouring it into a glass, they took swigs from the bottle.
“Phew, it might get boring, but it’s not so bad. Avoiding the Church’s gaze and conducting the experiments that I’ve been planning for a while.”
Seemingly having a high tolerance towards alcohol, the dark mage quickly emptied a bottle of wine.
“Still, it feels lonely being alone.”
The dark mage pondered while surveying the cave.
“Come to think of it, I’ve heard that the noble’s daughter is quite a beauty.”
Lost in thought, the dark mage sat still, stroking their chin.
“No, no, she can’t be ‘quite a beauty’. Beauties of that level are rare even in the capital. It was unlikely that I’d find such a gem in a place like this countryside.”
The dark mage smirked.
His gaze was unsettling, hinting at some ominous thoughts.
“Since it’s a doomed family anyway, might as well have some fun by kidnapping in advance, huh?”
Perhaps because there was no one to listen.
The dark mage unleashed all sorts of lewd remarks about Louise Hasken.
‘What nonsense is that imbecile spouting?’
The problem, contrary to his thoughts, was that there was one more person present here.
‘Just what is he talking about my sister?’
In his past life, Louise Hasken, her sister was the only one who worried about him till the moment of her death.
She was the person Damien had the most to atone for.
Hence he was furious when he heard the dark mage talking something indecent about his sister..
Deliberately making loud footsteps, Damien entered the chamber.
“Who are you?”
The dark mage immediately turned to Damien.
As soon as he saw Damien’s face, the mage’s pupils widened as if about to pop out.
“You’re… that guy. The eldest son of the Hasken family.”
The mage’s pupils dilated with unease.
“The Black Serpent warned me to be cautious of you since you alone killed dozens of their members… but how did you find this place?”
“What are you, a soon-to-die man so curious about?”
“Die? Who? Me?”
Damien Hasken drew the longsword given by his father.
“You’re well aware. If you understand, politely offer your neck and wait.”
“This guy’s a real pain.”
A smirk formed on the dark mage’s lips.
“I’ve decided. I’ll turn you into an experimental subject and torment you forever.”
As the mage raised his hand, dark mana began to gather in the air.
The dark magic coalesced into dozens of projectiles, aimed straight at Damien Hasken.
As the dark projectiles were launched, hundreds of ways to kill the dark mage flooded Damien’s mind.
He could’ve deflected all the projectiles and thrust a blade into the mage’s heart, or redirect the projectiles to strike the mage instead.
But due to the sudden turn of events, all those plans had to be forgotten.
A crimson light emanated from Damien Hasken’s left palm.
“Could this be…?”
Flustered, Damien peered at the back of his hand.
Brightly glowing inscriptions appeared on his hand.
As Damien saw the writings, his pupils widened in disbelief.
‘This power…?’
The moment Damien Hasken exclaimed in astonishment, the dark projectiles surged towards him.
However, not a single projectile reached Damien.
They disintegrated and became dark mana particles before reaching him.
“…Huh?”
Observing this, a sense of puzzlement crossed the face of the dark mage.
The mage glanced at his own palm.
“Did I get drunk by any chance? I’m handling this so carelessly.”
The mage recreated and launched the dark projectiles once more.
This time, twice the number of projectiles surged towards Damien.
Reaching out towards the projectiles, Damien caused them to vanish without coming close.
“You… What’s your identity! What kind of interference are you causing in my magic!”
The dark mage shouted with an astonished expression.
Damien had no time to respond to his question.
‘How does this still remain?’
[Translator – Kie]
[Proofreader – Demon God’s male Disciple]
[Quality Checker – Kawaii]
Dorugo intended to make Damien an ultimate weapon.
Despite granting him the strongest physique and infusing the best magic artifacts in him, Dorugo was still dissatisfied.Hence, he decided to transfer the ancient powers contained in the Sacred Water he had gotten by chance into Damien’s body.
That’s how Damien gained a total of seven different powers or ‘The Seven Authorities’.
Each Authority possessed incredibly formidable abilities, which were difficult for even Dorugo to control.
Among them, the Authority Damien currently used was the ‘Authority of Greed’.
‘It can’t be true. There’s no way the power of the seven Authorities still remains inside me.’
Damien himself didn’t know the true identity of this Authority.
However, as he had reverted during the regression, losing both his Death Knight body and dark magic, he assumed the Authorities were gone as well.
‘Is it really the Authority of Greed?’
The Authority of Greed had the ability to disintegrate anything that is made of magic and absorb the mana present in it.
If this was indeed the Authority of Greed, then it wouldn’t just stop at dispelling the dark projectiles but it also would acquire the dark mana itself.
Damien Hasken reached towards the empty space. As the dark projectiles vanished, the dispersed dark magic gathered back together.
‘Incredible…’
He had hoped against it, but it was indeed real. Damien Hasken still possessed the complete seven Authorities.
“I understand! So, you were a dark mage too! It was possible for you to kill dozens on your own because of your proficiency in dark magic!”
The dark mage heaved a sigh of relief.
“Meeting a fellow dark mage in a place like this… It’s rare for a noble to be a dark mage. Who taught you? Your skills are really impressive.”
Damien looked at the dark mage with an incredulous expression.
Instead of replying, he utilized the gathered dark mana through the Authority of Greed to create dark projectiles.
“What are you trying to do now…?”
Damien aimed the dark projectiles towards the dark mage.
The dark mage quickly created a shield using dark magic to block the projectiles.
“What are you doing! Why are you attacking me, you lunatic!”
“Why am I attacking you? Huh?”
Damien said with a bewildered expression.
“You received the job of killing the Hasken family from the Black Serpents and also cursed our family’s territory. Isn’t that enough of a reason for you to die?”
“You and I are both dark mages!”
“Who said that?”
Damien furrowed his brows.
“The thing I hate most in this world is a dark mage. I’d tear one apart just by seeing them.”
Damien didn’t harbor any positive feelings towards dark mages and there was a simple reason for that,.
Dorugo, who ruined his life, was a dark mage.
“What? But didn’t you just use…”
“Stop babbling and prepare to die.”
Damien drew his longsword. His curiosity had been satisfied; now it was time to conclude.
“…I don’t know who you are.”
Dark magic began to emanate from the dark mage’s whole body.
“But If you intend to kill me, even if you are a fellow dark mage, I won’t forgive you!”
“That’s not what I meant.”
The dark mage formed hand seals with both hands.
“Standing before a dark mage who specializes at cursing is akin to committing suicide.”
In an instant, the dark mana disappeared.
It hadn’t truly vanished but had been expended in using the dark magic.
Gray smoke billowed up from beneath the dark mage’s feet.
The gray smoke, surprisingly, looked like a mouth with big teeths inside it.
“Let every joint in your body rot to death.”
The gray smoke engulfed Damien, and the pointed teeth chewed at various parts of his body.
He didn’t actually feel any pain, but something was seeping in through the teeth.
“A corrosion type curse.”
During his time as the Death Knight, Damien had frequently utilized curses.
Using curse was considered to be the best thing to do when fighting against multiple foes.
Even a massive army would collapse instantly if they are affected by the curse.
“It’s a fairly potent curse. If it were to be anyone else in my place, he would have felt the effects of the curse significantly.”
Damien exerted the Authority of Greed.
The gray smoke disintegrated in an instant.
The disintegrated dark mana was converted into dark power which was absorbed by Damein.
“…”
Witnessing his magic being nullified, the dark mage’s face stiffened.
“…W-What are you?”
“Damien Hasken.”
“I’m asking for your ‘real’ identity! Who are you? And why are you pretending to be Damien Hasken!”
The dark mage couldn’t believe what he was seeing.
“I really am Damien Hasken.”
“What nonsense…! Not only did you undo my dark magic, but you also absorbed my dark power as your own! It’s something only a high-ranking dark mage could do!”
The dark mage shouted angrily.
After a while of composure, the dark mage calmed down slightly.
“…Fine.”
With a snap, the dark mage gritted their teeth.
“If you don’t want to reveal your identity willingly… I’ll force it out of you.”
The dark mage unclasped the bracelet that he was wearing.
Suddenly, the entire cave turned pitch black.
[Translator – Kie]
[Proofreader – Demon God’s male Disciple]
[Quality Checker – Kawaii]