Magic Academy's Genius Blinker-Chapter 534: The Dark Mage King (3)

What is studying?

Ma Yu-Seong recently found himself pondering this question as he observed his peers completely engrossed in studying. They spent their days preparing for quizzes, studying for final exams, working on certifications, or cramming for mock exams for special magic towers.

With everyone around him consumed by their studies, Ma Yu-Seong, who wasn’t studying, found himself with absolutely nothing to do.

"Hmm..."

Sitting on a bench in the park, arms crossed and staring up at the sky, he watched as a butterfly fluttered near him. The butterfly danced around him for a while before disappearing from view.

"Aren’t you busy, senior?"

It wasn’t unusual for female students to gather around Ma Yu-Seong, and seeing him seated alone, they couldn’t resist stopping by.

As a second-year student, Ma Yu-Seong wasn’t someone first-years could easily come across, so when they did, they were eager to prolong the encounter.

"Well..."

"Come to think of it, senior, you’re amazing! I heard you’re always ranked first among the second-years, yet you seem so relaxed."

Ma Yu-Seong smiled gently.

"Thank you."

"That’s hardly a compliment! It’s only natural for someone like you!"

"When do you study, senior? Do you have some secret to getting good grades with minimal effort?"

Faced with their eager questions, Ma Yu-Seong found himself unable to give a proper answer.

"Well... I just listen in class, that’s all."

A moment of silence followed.

The female students stared at him in disbelief before realizing he was joking.

"Oh my, when you say it, senior, it actually sounds convincing!"

"Wow, this is the first time I’ve heard Ma Yu-Seong make a joke!"

"Same here."

But it wasn’t a joke.

Since they had already dismissed it as a joke, Ma Yu-Seong decided to speak his mind openly.

"Studying... I don’t really need to do it. Magic is easy for me."

"Wow, senior, your ’annoying arrogance’ concept is so over the top... it’s infuriating!"

"But honestly, I can’t even argue with you because it’s true."

He smiled while continuously justifying himself internally.

It didn’t make sense to him.

Why do people study so much?

For Ma Yu-Seong, who could understand everything from a single reading of a book and grasp magic intuitively without even learning it, it was baffling that these so-called ’geniuses of Stella’ struggled despite all their effort.

Was that the limit of human capability?

No, it wasn’t just a human limitation.

Even in the world of the dark mages, this peculiar barrier of talent existed.

When he was nine, Ma Yu-Seong’s father gave him his first mission.

’Defeat your older brother.’

He didn’t know any magic.

He had never fought before.

Yet his father ordered him to engage in the savage combat typical of dark mages, a command that made all the other dark mages and his siblings watching laugh mockingly.

After all, the children of the Dark Mage King were all exceptionally skilled in battle. Even if his opponent was only three years older, that was enough time to have mastered combat techniques and create a gap in power.

’As expected, Ma Yu-Seong. You won.’

But contrary to the expectations of all the dark mages - no, rather, as the Dark Mage King had predicted - Ma Yu-Seong defeated his older sibling, who had been born earlier and trained longer.

It was purely a difference in talent.

Even in the world of dark mages, the wall of innate talent reigned supreme.

"Now that I think about it, I heard your name is famous in sports, chess, and all sorts of other activities, senior Ma Yu-Seong!"

"Wow, senior Ma Yu-Seong really excels at everything!"

"It’s like you were born perfect!"

While receiving a stream of compliments from the girls, Ma Yu-Seong responded with a bashful smile.

And then, at that moment.

"Were you really born perfect, senior Ma Yu-Seong?"

A boy’s voice interrupted, drawing everyone’s attention.

Standing there was a small-framed boy with gray hair and dusky skin.

His name tag read Taseron, but even the first-year girls seemed unfamiliar with him.

"Who’s that?"

"No idea."

"Oh, I’ve seen him before. He’s in Class F, right?"

"Class F?"

The girls didn’t outright ignore him, but their glances carried a subtle disdain.

To them, Class F represented students who barely managed to enter Stella Academy, people with no significant talent or achievements.

Ma Yu-Seong’s expression hardened ever so slightly as he looked at the boy.

"Taseron..."

"Senior, your expression is a little scary."

"Do you not even remember insulting my father that day?"

Ma Yu-Seong’s words, though spoken politely, carried a weight that made the girls gasp.

"Insulting his father?"

"How could someone do that...?"

"What a terrible person!"

As the girls’ reactions became increasingly hostile, Ma Yu-Seong raised a hand to calm them down.

"Guys, I’m sorry, but I’d like to have a word with this student alone. Could you give us a moment?"

"Of course, senior!"

"As expected from you, senior. If it were me, I would’ve been furious, but you’re so calm and kind."

"Honestly... amazing."

The girls left, still fawning over Ma Yu-Seong, while Taseron let out a faint scoff.

"Senior, why are you so worked up?"

"Who wouldn’t be upset when someone insults their father?"

"Ah, I see. Did you think I wouldn’t know because I’m part of the Dark Mage Cult?"

Taseron smirked subtly, his gaze taunting.

"I already know that you despise your father to the extreme, senior. So, the reason you lashed out at me for insulting him was just... venting your anger, wasn’t it?"

Previously, in Arcanium, Taseron had deliberately confronted Ma Yu-Seong and insulted his father. It wasn’t out of ignorance but rather a calculated experiment, knowing Ma Yu-Seong wouldn’t kill him.

The result? Ma Yu-Seong had beaten Taseron to a pulp.

He didn’t scold him, didn’t yell, and didn’t even show anger in his eyes. Ma Yu-Seong had silently cornered Taseron to the brink of death.

If, by sheer chance, Baek Yuseol hadn’t intervened at that moment, Taseron might very well have died.

"Ah, just thinking about that day still sends chills down my spine. Who would’ve thought you’d use me as a punching bag for your anger, senior?"

"Whatever feelings I have toward my father, it doesn’t make your actions any less unforgivable."

"Oh, absolutely. But isn’t it true that you don’t just dislike your father, you hate him? Haha."

Something about him was deeply irritating.

Ma Yu-Seong eyebrows twitched as he took a step closer to him.

"Oh my, are you going to hit me? No matter how strong you are, even you would struggle to get away with that in Stella, right? And if you’re counting on the vice principal for protection, that won’t work either~."

Hearing that, Ma Yu-Seong stopped in his tracks and spoke calmly.

"Just spit it out. What’s your game?"

"Eh, no game at all, really."

"Then why did you enroll in this school? There must be a reason."

"Well, sure, there’s a reason. Like teasing you, for example~?"

"...I see."

Surprisingly, instead of angering him, that statement seemed to cool Ma Yu-Seong’s rage. He had figured out Taseron’s purpose.

He was deliberately sent by the Dark Mage Cult to provoke Ma Yu-Seong’s emotions.

"Oh? You’re not mad anymore?"

"I don’t see the point."

"Then should I insult your dad some more? You know, senior Baek Yuseol got really mad about that last time~. He even used some strange words that were hard to follow. Something about getting beaten for impiety if this were a Confucian country? That guy’s a bit unique, isn’t he?"

Now, even Baek Yuseol was being dragged into this. Taseron’s intent to deliberately provoke Ma Yu-Seong’s anger was painfully obvious. This only helped Ma Yu-Seong maintain his composure even further, making his judgment sharper.

’They know about my abilities.’

Previously, Taseron had insulted Ma Yu-Seong’s talents, calling them shallow and meaningless.

Ma Yu-Seong’s abilities, however, stem from his absolute control over his emotions.

Standing at the perfect crossroads between mage and dark mage, he can wield the powers of both. In fact, his potential makes him one of the most powerful individuals in existence.

But what if he were to lose control of his emotions?

One of those powers - either mage or dark mage - might be stripped away.

A select few dark mages were aware of this vulnerability. Among them were the Dark Mage King, a handful of his closest advisors, and the most significant:

The Dark Mage Cult Leader.

When Ma Yu-Seong was born, the Cult Leader, Hui-Ryeon, was as close to the Dark Mage King as his right hand.

For some reason, from the moment Ma Yu-Seong was born, the Dark Mage Cult Leader completely separated himself from the Dark Mage King and established the peculiar Dark Mage Cult.

However, no matter how cunning the Cult Leader may be, he wouldn’t dare recklessly reveal Ma Yu-Seong’s weaknesses. Doing so would risk providing the Dark Mage King with a reason to act directly.

Currently, the Dark Mage King remains neutral due to an old pact that restricts his actions. A prudent Cult Leader would avoid crossing such a dangerous line.

But for that first-year student to know such information...

It likely means that the Cult Leader himself sent this student as an important agent.

’Why are they provoking my emotions?’

What could they possibly hope to gain? If Ma Yu-Seong’s emotional boundaries were breached and he went berserk, he might lose some of his magical abilities. But even so, how would that benefit the Dark Mage Cult? They would gain nothing from such an outcome.

"Oh? Leaving already, senior?"

When Ma Yu-Seong silently turned away without responding, Taseron clicked his tongue as though disappointed and remarked:

"Well, I’ve learned something valuable. That the esteemed senior doesn’t even realize what kind of seed is growing inside him."

"...What did you say?"

Startled, Ma Yu-Seong turned around quickly, but Taseron was already gone.

"What on earth does that mean..."

Something was moving quickly in the shadows of the underworld, something Ma Yu-Seong didn’t yet understand.

’Are the dark mages preparing to act?’

What exactly is happening?

Even though Ma Yu-Seong detested the Dark Mage King, being born as his child means he couldn’t escape the massive storm brewing within that world.

Perhaps, soon he would be swept up into it.

’I’ll need to prepare... I must go to see my father.’

***

Caw, caw!

At the edge of a crimson-drenched cliff, dozens of enormous crows, each the size of a house, took to the skies in a swarm.

Amid the violent black tempest, a lone dark fortress loomed conspicuously against the backdrop of chaos.

Thud.

Lying before the fortress was the Earth Dragon.

Its massive body lay bleeding with mud-colored blood oozing from its wounds, its maw vomiting entrails onto the ground.

Before the dying beast stood a man, his arms crossed, unscathed and unshaken.

The Dark Mage King.

Indeed, the predictions of the Dark Mage Cult Leader, Hui-Ryeon, had been wrong. The Earth Dragon’s attempt to self-destruct and distort the surrounding space upon its death, in a final effort to inflict a fatal blow on the Dark Mage King, had utterly failed.

The moment the Earth Dragon met its end, the Dark Mage King sensed the spatial distortion and simply grasped it with his hand, twisting it out of existence.

"Sigh... Hui-Ryeon, your methods are disappointing."

An aged dark mage watched the scene unfold through the eyes of a crow and muttered as he idly toyed with the four pairs of horns sprouting from his head.

"We granted him the position at the cost of dismantling the Dark Mage Alliance, and yet..."

Hui-Ryeon closed his eyes, his expression rigid.

The old man, Rangtal, was the president of the Dark Mage Alliance and one of the 9 Risk. His words held no falsehood.

Rangtal was known as the mediator of unnecessary conflicts among the dark mages. He had united them under the pretense of maintaining peace. However, even he was not without his ambitions for the throne.

So Hui-Ryeon deliberately coaxed Rangtal, promising to deal a fatal blow to the Dark Mage King and offering Rangtal the final strike to seize the throne of the dark mages.

However, from the very beginning, everything fell apart.

Who would have predicted that the Dark Mage King would so effortlessly evade the traps painstakingly prepared by Fawn Prevernal Moon?

"Well... it doesn’t matter. It seems he didn’t emerge completely unscathed."

"What do you mean by that? The Earth Dragon couldn’t even graze the Dark Mage King."

"Ha, President, don’t you sense it? The Dark Mage King’s magical power is fluctuating unpredictably."

"Hmm..."

Rangtal focused his attention once again on the Dark Mage King through the crow’s proxy.

"Indeed... so the rumors were true. They say the fatal wound inflicted by Elthman fifty years ago hasn’t healed yet."

"Even with such an injury, he wields a power befitting the strongest. However, it seems that using his strength imposes a tremendous burden on him."

"I see. Elthman Eltwin must have feared that ’authority’ of his and deliberately targeted it with a curse..."

"Exactly. It’s not an external fatal wound but rather a severe internal restriction on his ability to use magic."

A sly smile crept onto Rangtal’s face.

"In that case...!"

Now, with the Dark Mage King exhausted from battling the Earth Dragon and his powers significantly burdened, this was the perfect opportunity for Rangtal to seize the throne.

"Go now and claim the crown. Become the king of all dark mages, Rangtal!"

"Of course!"

Rangtal swiftly swapped his original body with the crow’s proxy, revealing himself directly in front of the Dark Mage King.

Simultaneously, tens of thousands of crows transformed into the forms of dark mages, surrounding the Dark Mage King’s dark fortress.

"Now, today shall be the day a new Chapter in history is written!!"

With that declaration, a massive war broke out between Rangtal, the head of the Dark Mage Alliance, and the Dark Mage King.

...And in less than 30 minutes, Rangtal and his forces were completely subdued.

There was no need for an army to be deployed.

Just one person.

The Dark Mage King.

He alone annihilated the army of tens of thousands of dark mages, leaving not a single survivor.