Genius Wizard Hides His Sword Skills [EN]: Chapter 141

141. Awakening

“You must know how dangerous the Hall is right now…”

Grantel frowned at my request to take me to the Hall alone.

“Do you have some kind of plan?”

The Hall of Night was a place where energies ran rampant. His concern was understandable.

“Actually, I felt something when I went to the Hall last time.”

“Last time…? Are you talking about when that accident almost happened?”

“Yes, when I accidentally stayed until early evening.”

I had visited the Hall during the last vacation as well. I was so focused on gathering Aura that I didn’t realize the sun had set and stayed longer than I should have.

[Of all times, none of the Leaf Knights were there either.]

Now that I had visited several times, I could go to the Hall alone. But of course, the Leaf Knights weren’t with me that time.

‘But thanks to that, I saw a possibility.’

A possibility I discovered in the midst of the rampaging energies of the Hall.

[That thing had to pop out again.]

When the energy in my body began to surge, a dark energy stealthily emerged. It calmed the rampaging Aura and Mana, taking control of my body.

Thanks to that, I was able to escape safely.

“I want to try it again.”

“…Unless you have a definite method, I would advise against it.”

Naturally, Grantel’s voice was filled with worry.

[Are you fearless? You’ll be dead if you mess up.]

Oberon also stepped in to dissuade me.

However, there was another reason why I couldn’t give up.

‘Still, I felt an enormous amount of Aura and Mana back then. The Hall is the real deal at night.’

The Hall emitted tremendous energy even during the day, but at night, it was incomparably stronger.

‘If I can properly absorb that, I can save a lot more time.’

If I could harness that immense energy…

‘I might be able to reach not only my previous level but also the 10-star realm.’

There was a possibility of reaching the realm of dreams in a short period.

Right now, the Five Star Families and the Magic Tower were showing suspicious movements.

‘How can I miss this opportunity?’

As a knight and as a mage, it was a forbidden elixir I couldn’t ignore.

[Haa. Let’s say that dark energy protects you. What if that thing completely consumes your body afterward? Can you drive it out of your body then?]

However, Oberon brought up another concern.

‘Then I’ll use your authority, so come in and chase it out for me.’

It was not enough to persuade me, who had already made up my mind.

[Tsk. What do you take me for? I don’t want to run into that thing!]

‘My Constellation! Are you just going to stand by and watch when I’m in danger?’

[Only when you need something, you call me Constellation, huh?]

Leaving the grumbling Oberon behind, I nodded to Grantel.

“I still think it’s better to go.”

“Hmm. If that’s what you want, let’s try it. Either way, once you decide something, you don’t budge.”

As expected, Grantel knew my temperament.

“But if it seems even a little dangerous, I’ll carry you out.”

In the end, he nodded.

* * *

Full moon.

The full moon illuminated the Ego Forest.

‘It’s definitely intense.’

Of all days, it had to be a full moon. I hadn’t even reached the vicinity of the Hall yet, but the Mana and Aura within my body were already surging.

[Are you okay?]

‘So far. But if I go any further, it’ll definitely be dangerous.’

I could still control the Aura and Mana on my own, but if I got any closer, it wouldn’t be easy.

[It’s ominous. It’s the perfect state to fall into Mana Deviation [a dangerous state where one loses control of their magical energy].]

Oberon’s expression hardened as he looked at the surging energy of the Hall in the distance.

[How about turning back now?]

‘Let’s do what we can for now.’

The closer I got to the Hall, the harder it became to handle the flow of Mana and Aura. I thought I had mastered the flow of energy, having reached the realm of the 9-star mage in the past.

‘It’s definitely tough.’

I was sweating profusely. It was a situation where the internal energy could explode at any moment. My whole body was already soaked in cold sweat.

‘React quickly…’

With each step, the help of the dark energy became more and more urgent.

“Tell me anytime if you feel it’s too much.”

In Grantel’s worried voice.

It was when I took another step.

‘…!’

The moment I felt an alien energy. Another energy, not Mana or Aura, began to be felt in my heart.

‘It’s out.’

The dark energy was overflowing, spreading throughout my body.

[How is it?]

‘It’s definitely better.’

The dark energy soothed the surging Aura and Mana. The energies that seemed about to burst out were being contained within it.

“Grantel, I think we can go a little further.”

“Hmm. You certainly look lighter than before.”

And with Grantel’s guidance, the journey continued. Slowly, one step at a time. Carefully, one step at a time for dozens of minutes.

The increasingly intense energy caused my hair to scatter and the hem of my robe to flutter.

[We’re almost there.]

Before long, the energies spewing out from the Hall were soaring in the sky.

‘Oberon.’

And what came into view a moment later.

[Yeah.]

‘But, were the colors of the energy always like this?’

[Why?]

The energies that used to shine in various colors…

“Grantel, does it always change like this at night?”

“What are you talking about?”

“All the energies have turned black.”

The fiercely raging energies were all black.

“…What?”

Grantel, who was walking ahead, turned his head.

“Are you okay?!”

His eyes widened.

“Yes?”

Oberon’s gaze, who was standing next to me, also turned to me.

[…This is crazy! Are you really okay?]

‘What are you talking about?’

The expressions of the two were full of anxiety.

“Your eyes…!”

[They’re all dyed black.]

At that moment.

The vision was completely blacked out.

* * *

Even when I turned my head to the side, there was nothing to be seen.

A completely dark world. As if not allowing even a single ray of light, only pitch-black darkness was visible.

‘…Where is this?’

Just a moment ago, Grantel was in front of me, and Oberon was next to me.

But in this dark shadow, only I existed.

‘Oberon!’

Just in case, I shouted, but only a faint echo returned, mocking me.

‘Where is this…’

An unknown world that I couldn’t even fathom. As if floating, the only thing I could do was feel a sense of déjà vu.

How long had it been?

In this place where nothing seemed to happen, a slight change came.

‘…!’

A small sound that suddenly stimulated my ears.

When I turned my head in a hurry, a small light was wriggling.

[…Hey.]

And a voice was heard.

[…Hey kid.]

The small voice that was barely audible was gradually becoming clearer.

[Oh, kid.]

Someone was definitely calling me.

And I stealthily gripped the hilt of Fragarach [MC’s sword]. I was ready to unleash Aura at any time.

[Finally, my voice reaches you.]

The voice was not transmitted to the ears. Like Oberon said, it seemed to resonate in my head.

“…Who are you?”

I could sense that it was not an ordinary being.

[You should already know.]

And there was only one being I could expect.

“You’re the thing Oberon was talking about.”

The dark energy absorbed from the Black Magic Card. It was definitely the energy that had been in my heart since some time ago.

[Ah, that damn knight. He’s such a nuisance. That’s why it was so hard to reach you.]

“What is this place?”

Then, the eyes began to scan the surroundings.

[How funny. You can’t even recognize your own body.]

“What?”

[This is inside your body. And as you can see, I’ve taken control of everything.]

A place full of black paint. I couldn’t help but frown at the guy’s words that he had taken control of my body.

‘Is this what Oberon has been seeing?’

Oberon, who had been protecting my body from him every time I used my authority.

The alien sensation emitted by the dark energy was never welcomed by me.

‘…’

Only then did I feel sorry for Oberon, but I couldn’t just stay here and talk to this guy all day long.

“What is your identity? What have you done to me?”

At the following question, the small cluster of light that had appeared began to flicker.

[Identity…….]

A stream of light that gradually grew larger. It began to take over the dark space, and soon it flashed with a round shape.

[This body is a Constellation.]

Before long, a huge eyeball was floating in the black space.

“…A Constellation?”

[Yes. A Constellation like that damn knight.]

Certainly, the energy he emitted seemed similar to Oberon’s.

“If you’re a Constellation, why were you in the card?”

I couldn’t help but have doubts.

According to what I heard from Oberon, Constellations originally had their own world. Constellations who had not made a contract with humans stayed there.

[I had a human to contract with. That’s why I was able to remain in the human realm.]

“You have a human to contract with? That’s strange too.”

The Black Magic Card was said to have been made directly by Juan Delema. In other words, he had been in it for a thousand years.

“Your contractor must be dead?”

The moment the contractor died, he should have been sent to the world of Constellations. He continued to remain in the human realm.

‘Oberon was like that too, though.’

Oberon had also wandered the human realm for a thousand years, but that was only thanks to me, who had been reincarnated in a contracted state. It was by no means a normal situation.

[I don’t care whether that damn guy is dead or not. As you said, I fell into that guy’s scheme and was trapped in a narrow card for a thousand years.]

“What? Trapped? Even by your contractor?”

[Yes. I still can’t calm down.]

The tone was as calm as ever, but the huge eyes were bloodshot.

“Could it be that the contractor is…….”

And what I could predict.

“Is it Juan Delema?”

The guy who made the card by hand a thousand years ago. And if he was a skilled person who could trap and seal a Constellation, Juan Delema was the only one who came to mind.

The guy who carved mountains with one gesture and moved the sea to create a tsunami with another.

‘I haven’t seen anyone like that until now.’

I didn’t want to admit it, but Juan Delema’s magic seemed to have already surpassed that of humans.

He, who had even mastered black magic, was a stronger opponent than anyone I had ever met.

However, at that moment, a rapid change swept through this dark space.

[Juan Delema!]

A strong pressure that seemed to squeeze the whole body. The energy that sprang from the eyes began to take over the black space.

‘Keuk!’

The huge eyes were filled with blood. As if there had never been any whites in the first place, the red eyes were glaring at me.