Genius Wizard Takes Medicine [EN]: Chapter 915

“I didn’t expect them to throw a test like this at us.”

Laktasha muttered, unable to hide her dismay.

“How did they know that Obaekro was popular in Ars Nova? No, wait, was Obaekro actually helpful for learning magic circles?”

“It seems the Deep Web didn’t have information about the customs of the central city.”

“I could understand if it was a famous custom, but even a game popular among the nobles…”

Laktasha bit her lip slightly and turned to the other administrators who had followed her.

“Has anyone here ever played Obaekro?”

“When I was young, for a few years, maybe?”

“I’ve fiddled with it occasionally, just for fun.”

“I’m good enough to beat a professional player.”

The administrators didn’t seem to be completely ignorant about Obaekro.

Since they were all people who enjoyed mental exercises, many of them had tried their hand at various difficult games.

“That board game definitely has a lot of depth to it once you get into it. I stopped because it took up too much time.”

“But I never thought it was a game for learning magic circles. If I had known, I might have become a barrier mage myself?”

“……”

It was such a silly joke that even Lenok, who was listening nearby, chuckled.

Laktasha nodded, looking a little relieved.

“Good. Actually, I’ve reached Master rank on a remote Obaekro betting site. It’s a relief that most of you know how to play.”

“Master rank? Isn’t that the best among us?”

“I didn’t know everyone was this good at Obaekro. Should we add Obaekro to our bets from now on?”

“More importantly, we need to pass the search engine’s test first.”

Laktasha said, nodding towards the statue with the benevolent smile.

“Even if it’s a strong AI, this is still inside the Deep Web. We can use all the auxiliary computing devices we have at our disposal.”

They were taken aback by the unexpected condition, but the administrators hadn’t given up on the challenge.

In the first place, this was an intangible cybernetic space without form.

The administrators were also cybernetic lifeforms who had abandoned their physical bodies and entrusted their consciousness to the network.

The computing devices that assisted their processing power could also be used freely in a match against a strong AI.

If that was the case, there was no reason not to try and gauge their chances of winning.

Laktasha confidently stepped forward and spoke as she walked towards the statue.

“Anyone want to go first? If not, I’ll go first.”

* * *

[C12 reversal. Sequential three-way shift. Occupy F58 to 72 in order.]

Clack!

With the crisp sound of a stone being placed, the clear voice of the strong AI, Heiberg, echoed.

[This concludes my victory.]

“Damn it……”

A massive game board was spread out in front of the statue with the benevolent smile.

The administrator sitting opposite it clutched his head in frustration.

[That is my 2049th victory. Would you like to try again?]

“……”

At the AI’s calm words, the other administrators couldn’t even offer a rebuttal.

It had been three hours since each of them had confidently challenged the search engine’s AI, showing their confidence in Obaekro.

All of the administrators had been defeated without being able to put up a fight.

The fact that they had played over 2000 games in about three hours was due to the accelerated game speed using processing acceleration.

Even considering that, they hadn’t managed to win even once against the AI in front of them.

[This AI does not limit the number of attempts for the Obaekro test.]

The AI’s gentle voice poured down on the frustrated administrator.

[The luck that exists in Obaekro is an area that can be controlled depending on skill, and even variables can be overcome with skill. Please rest assured that there is no possibility of the security being breached by chance.]

“……Are you making fun of us right now?”

Was it saying that even with a rare stroke of luck, there was no chance of winning against the AI in front of them?

As the administrator grumbled and stepped back, Lenok glanced behind him.

After Heiberg’s one-sided victories continued for about 50 games, the administrators had started to change their approach.

Some were pulling out laptops in the cybernetic space and starting to work, while others were reviewing the games they had just lost.

There were even administrators gathered in groups, playing Obaekro among themselves and giving each other advice.

“Hey, not there. You need to place it on R22 and aim for a reversal!”

“No, if I did that, the 13 areas I occupied would all be flipped.”

“Still, you need to advance and occupy the opponent’s territory.”

“Nope. If you did that, you’d be throwing in the towel before you even reached 200 moves, like you did.”

“What did you say, you punk?”

The administrators were reviewing and advising each other, their voices getting louder, and they started arguing among themselves.

While Lenok watched the scene with interest, Laktasha shook her head.

“Haa… it’s hopeless.”

“It seems things aren’t going well.”

“After the first 50 moves, I can’t even read the opponent’s intentions.”

Laktasha sighed deeply.

“After 100 moves, the balance is completely broken, and after 150 moves, we’re just barely hanging on. We’re not even trying to win anymore; we’re just having a pride battle over how long we can last.”

“……”

“As you’ve been watching, you can see that opinions differ even on one phase, so advice doesn’t work well. There are too many variables to consider, so even with auxiliary computing devices, we can’t keep up with the calculations.”

It was almost impossible to consider the space that could be occupied and the black and white stones that were being flipped in all directions every time a move was made.

Even hackers who had handled all sorts of hacking tools and complex code were reduced to throwing stones as if relying on luck, so what more could be said?

The fact that it was a game that an Ascendant could create and play meant that, conversely, even an Ascendant’s capabilities couldn’t measure all the variables.

“So, what are you trying to say?”

“……”

Laktasha, who had been keeping her mouth shut, spoke as if she had no choice.

“You can have the access rights to the search engine, so please cooperate. I want to use any means necessary to unlock that emergency protocol and check its performance.”

“If I get the search engine’s access rights, the distribution ratio we discussed earlier will be useless.”

“It’s better than just standing here and staring blankly at the search engine, isn’t it?”

At Laktasha’s firm answer, Lenok stroked his chin, looking thoughtful.

“Unlocking the protocol, huh……”

“As a great mage, your Obaekro skills must be outstanding, right? That’s what the AI said, after all.”

Laktasha said with conviction.

“Among us, you have the highest chance of winning. You knew that from the beginning, and you were just waiting for me to ask, weren’t you?”

“No. Rather, there’s a hunch I wanted to confirm beforehand.”

“A hunch?”

“There’s something fishy about the AI’s game. There are parts that I can’t comprehend with my judgment, and perhaps……”

Lenok trailed off and slowly began to move.

“There’s no point in watching any longer. I need to check it myself. I’ll participate too.”

Lenok stood in front of the statue and smirked at Laktasha.

“However, the statement that I have a high chance of winning is wrong.”

“……What?”

Leaving the bewildered Laktasha behind, Lenok turned and stood opposite the game board in front of the statue.

The administrators, who had been focused on reviewing the game, also immediately turned their attention to Lenok.

The challenge of the great mage, whose magical talent was beyond the reach of everyone else combined, was about to begin.

No one was not interested in the fact that the most notorious mage in the great city was participating in a board game.

“……It seems that Kyunroe still has the patience to play a board game like this.”

“Isn’t he going to flip the board halfway through?”

“It would be a problem if he deleted the search engine in a fit of anger. It wouldn’t be impossible for a great mage.”

Ignoring the murmuring administrators, Lenok placed his hand on the game board.

The AI, recognizing Lenok’s intention to participate, immediately spoke.

[Would you like to start a new game?]

“Let’s start.”

Whoosh!!

At that moment, the black and white stones that had been densely placed on the game board were instantly retrieved to Lenok’s and the statue’s sides.

The AI fearlessly made the first move on the empty game board.

The moment Lenok was about to pick up a black stone, Davi sent a mental message, looking nervous.

[Master. If you need a computing device……]

“No, it’s okay.”

Lenok said, immediately placing the black stone on the game board.

“A computing device won’t be that helpful in this game.”

An infinite number of variables that could never be fully considered with just superior computing power.

Conversely, complex rules that could never be won with just superior magical aptitude.

But why did the engineers of the central city make Obaekro the condition for renewing access to the search engine?

If it was just about being good at Obaekro, then people outside of the central city would also be able to access the search engine.

Based on what Lenok had observed so far, there was a high possibility that things wouldn’t go so smoothly.

Lenok was participating in the game now to confirm his hunch with the data he had gathered so far.

The game that had begun in that way continued for 2 hours and 12 minutes.

[HA434 reversal. Sequential occupation completed from BB312 to 398.]

“……This can’t be.”

The black and white stones were densely placed on the massive game board.

1053 moves exchanged between them.

[Changsaeng (Eternal Life). It’s a draw.]

The first game, which seemed like it would never end, ended without a victory for either side.

* * *

[In the long history of Ars Nova’s games, a Changsaeng (Eternal Life) draw has only occurred 13 times.]

As soon as the game ended, the first thing the AI said to Lenok was that.

[All 13 cases occurred in games between great mages of level 8 or higher.]

“……”

[Changsaeng (Eternal Life) is an immutable contradiction where all the stones on the game board maintain a state of equilibrium where they cannot be killed or flipped, no matter what move is made. It is the rarest and most valuable of the five draw rules that exist in Obaekro.]

The statue with the benevolent smile spoke, giving guidance for the first time outside of the game.

Everyone held their breath and listened to the AI’s words.

The AI, looking at Lenok with a gentle gaze, said.

[Human. You are a mage who has reached a transcendent level. Especially the intuition you use to engage in calculations in important phases far surpasses this AI’s processing power.]

“……”

[However, there are causal relationships in Obaekro that cannot be explained by the principles of magic. To overcome this, talent alone is not enough—]

“That’s enough.”

Lenok got up from his seat without even listening to the AI’s words.

No one dared to speak to Lenok as he turned away with a blank expression.

Was it because the great mage’s skills were unexpected, or was it because Ars Nova’s technology was that unrealistic?

In the quiet silence, Laktasha was the first to speak.

“For an AI to shower a human with such praise, it’s the first time I’ve seen anything like it since I started hacking.”

She looked up at Lenok with a calm gaze and asked,

“How was it? If you managed a draw in the first round, you might have a better chance of winning next time—”

“I don’t think I can win.”

“……”

Lenok spoke calmly, watching the managers blink in surprise.

“Regardless of skill, they are superior when it comes to eliminating the causes of defeat. It’ll be hard to surpass them overnight.”

“……I don’t quite understand. Can you explain it?”

At Laktasha’s words, Lenok paused to gather his thoughts before speaking.

“It’s true that you can learn how to create magic circles through Obaekro [a board game used to teach barrier magic], but those two abilities aren’t completely organically linked. There are aspects of creating magic circles and playing Obaekro that don’t overlap.”

“……”

“Among those, the AI possesses Obaekro skills that can’t be covered by magical aptitude. It makes moves that I can’t explain with my magical judgment, and each time, it gains the upper hand.”

Lenok shrugged.

“If you heard what the AI said, you might guess, but I suspect it has the Obaekro match data that Ars Nova has accumulated.”

“That powerful AI has the Obaekro records from Ars Nova?”

Laktasha asked, unable to hide her bewilderment.

“Otherwise, it wouldn’t have mentioned how many times the ‘Eternal Life’ draw I just made has occurred in Ars Nova.”

“……”

“I only had a suspicion, but this confirms it.”

Lenok said, rubbing his shoulder with a tired look.

“It’s using the records to compensate for its shortcomings whenever it falls behind in judgment. If the problem were match time or lack of experience, it wouldn’t be easy to solve in a short time.”

Obaekro is a board game created by Jintun to teach barrier magic in an easier and more convenient way.

However, it doesn’t mean that every element of Obaekro perfectly matches the aptitude for barrier magic.

Lenok was able to learn Jintun’s barrier magic through Obaekro because it was a miracle that occurred within Jintun’s ideological domain [a space where Jintun’s ideas and magic are amplified].

Obaekro can be a way to judge aptitude for barrier magic, but not everyone who is good at Obaekro can become an excellent barrier mage.

Lenok, who directly inherited Jintun’s barrier magic, naturally possesses excellent skills in playing Obaekro.

Nevertheless, there were times when he couldn’t understand the AI’s moves during the match.

That’s not because the AI’s magical aptitude is superior to Lenok’s, but because the AI has learned the ‘knack’ of Obaekro, which is different from magical talent.

If an AI without memory or life has learned such a knack, then its database must be from Ars Nova.

“That can’t be…”

“Damn it, isn’t that cheating?”

The other managers’ faces crumpled terribly after hearing Lenok’s logical explanation.

“It means we can’t win against that AI unless we get our hands on Ars Nova’s records.”

“Or we collect enough Obaekro records to surpass the AI’s data.”

“Either way, it’s impossible.”

It’s unknown how popular Obaekro was among the nobles of the central city, but the amount of records accumulated would be enormous.

Moreover, the level of those matches would have been extremely high, so how could the managers gathered here possibly obtain such records?

“Did you know this from the beginning?”

“While watching you play, I thought the AI’s responses were strange.”

“……”

“But every time a move came out that I couldn’t understand with my judgment, the AI would take the lead in the match.”

Lenok said, looking back at the statue.

“Seeing that, I realized there was a knack for playing Obaekro well that wasn’t included in my aptitude. After that, I just confirmed it by experiencing it myself.”

“……”

While the managers were busy trying to hold their own against the AI, this mage had seen that far ahead and even dragged the game to a draw.

Not only predicting the outcome of the match before it even started, but also trying to use that process as a basis for judgment.

Even though only their consciousness was connected to the cybernetic space, the managers couldn’t help but admire his unparalleled intuition.

“You deliberately led the match to an ‘Eternal Life’ draw against Ars Nova’s AI… the great mage is just too different.”

“He managed to drag the match that far without any auxiliary processing devices like us. What on earth is in his head?”

“Kyonroe, it’s good that you figured out the AI’s secret, but if we can’t win, we need to make a decision.”

Laktasha said with a serious expression.

“We need to either hide the search engine’s hidden address or extract it and store it somewhere else.”

“Why?”

“By now, other hackers will have noticed that we’re gathered in this area.”

Lenok nodded, understanding the meaning of her words.

“You mean other forces could seize the search engine.”

“It’s not enough to just install a firewall. In the worst case, they could inject viruses or malware and contaminate it beyond repair.”

Laktasha said with an increasingly serious expression.

“Actually, we’re already in a precarious situation. I left it alone because I thought Kyonroe might win the Obaekro match. But now…”

Does it mean that they need to take action now that Lenok has admitted he can’t win?

The other managers sighed quietly, understanding the situation.

“If we had known this would happen, we should have prepared more thoroughly.”

“Who would have thought that the central city’s AI would challenge us to an Obaekro match?”

“If it were Chunbun, maybe we wouldn’t have known. As far as I know, there’s a rumor that Evan Martinez inherited Jintun’s barrier magic…”

“Hey, hey!!”

“Shut up. What are you doing?”

At someone’s careless mutter, the other managers were startled and covered their mouths.

Less than a month after the battle between Kyonroe and Chunbun, it was impossible to bring it up unless they were willing to risk their lives.

The managers, secretly glancing at Lenok who was lost in thought, scolded the manager who had just made the reckless remark.

“No, but it’s true that Chunbun would have been more helpful than Kyonroe at this point—”

“He’s right here, and you’re comparing him to that Flame Sorcerer. Do you think he’d like that? Huh?”

“Do you want to be incinerated while still conscious?”

While the managers were trying to shut each other up, glancing at Lenok.

Laktasha asked Lenok, who was lost in thought, ignoring the surrounding chatter.

“If it’s okay with you, I’d like to finish the work here and seal the address. Would that be alright?”

“……”

“I’m thinking of collecting Obaekro records and creating a new AI for matches. I’ll call you again when we’re ready, so for now—”

“If the Obaekro records were worth collecting, is there any reason to throw them away?”

“……What?”

“If he was so attached to Obaekro that he played it even before he died, I don’t think he would have left those records somewhere out of reach.”

At Lenok’s monologue, Laktasha tried to regain her composure.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. If you have something to say, please explain it so we can understand—”

“I’ll be back from reality for a moment.”

“What? Wait! If you disconnect here, you won’t be able to come back…!!”

Ignoring Laktasha’s flustered words, Lenok immediately walked out of the Dreamscape’s domain.

Whoosh!!

The cybernetic space’s domain peeled away like a shell, and he landed in front of the ramp right next to the underground chamber.

Lenok, sitting on the ramp, began to take out various items from his pocket.

Chik!

-Ah, Ban. Are you done with your business? I was just contacted about some summit.

Jenny, sensing Lenok’s presence, sent a message using the underground chamber’s speaker.

-They want to send an envoy to guide you to the summit schedule. They’ll be arriving at the Magic Tower soon. If you want to meet them—

“Let’s talk later.”

Swish!!

Lenok took out a huge scroll from his pocket and unfurled it.

Papyros Argenteus [Silver Papyrus], with a faint silver glow. The Ascendant’s Formula Weapon that Lenok obtained from Jintun’s Cradle [a place where Jintun’s artifacts are stored].

A relic-level artifact that records and stores magic power or formulas, which Jintun used to pre-engrave barrier magic circles during his lifetime.

Lenok had been using this papyrus to charge low-efficiency blink formulas.

However, what Lenok was looking for in the papyrus was not a pre-stored formula or magic circle.

Rustle…!

Lenok’s eyes sank deeply as he ran his bare hand over the rough surface of the papyrus.

‘If Obaekro records are valuable for improving skills, Jintun must have kept records as well.’

Jintun was so attached to the game he created that he used it to teach Lenok barrier magic before he died.

If so, he wouldn’t have carelessly discarded the Obaekro records he had played throughout his life.

However, Lenok had never seen any paper or data with records in Jintun’s Cradle.

If so, the artifact where Jintun’s Obaekro records might remain is—

‘Ethan Bajur used Papyros Aureus [Golden Papyrus] to record his travel journal, not magic power or formulas.’

Lenok, tracing the papyrus with his fingers, slowly drew up his magic power.

‘If the papyrus series has the ability to store phrases or sentences, then Jintun must have—’

The moment Lenok thought that and rubbed the papyrus with his magic power as if drawing an Obaekro board.

Swoosh…!!

Lenok paused, seeing an Obaekro board and white stones appear on the blank papyrus.

When Lenok placed a black stone, a white stone was drawn again on the papyrus.

“I see.”

Lenok smiled, realizing that the series of moves was not a random coincidence, but a natural sequence as if it were a promise.

“This isn’t a record… it was Jintun’s hobby tool?”

Lenok immediately got up and walked back into the Dreamscape’s domain.

Chijik!!

Laktasha stepped back in surprise, asking.

“Y-you really came back. How did you manage to come back after disconnecting once…”

“The search engine. It’s still there, right?”

“We were just about to clean it up. If there’s no other way, there’s no reason to stay here—”

“Let’s try one more time.”

“What?”

Ignoring Laktasha’s words, Lenok immediately stood in front of the statue.

The AI, recognizing the challenger, smiled kindly through the statue’s face.

[Would you like to start a new match?]

“Let’s start.”

Lenok said, tapping the board leisurely.

“But this time, I won’t be playing with my own skills.”

[I do not understand what you mean.]

“It’s nothing much.”

Lenok chuckled and immediately took out a long papyrus from his pocket.

Swish!!

Papyros Argenteus. An artifact that draws, records, and stores barrier magic circles.

But Jintun had recorded all the Obaekro he had played throughout his life on this recording device.

And then, he had used it for the purpose of playing against himself.

A hobby tool created to alleviate the boredom of an Ascendant [a being who has transcended mortal limitations] who was close to eternity.

“Let’s see which tool is better. Is that okay?”