I Became A Flashing Genius At The Magic Academy-Chapter 463

A village of Black Mages.

Although not common, there are instances where intelligent Black Mages form communities to live together.

The scale of these villages usually ranges from a few hundred to a few thousand at most, never approaching the size of human settlements.

So when Baek Yuseol encountered a hidden city with tens of thousands of inhabitants, he couldn’t help but wonder how such a place had remained hidden all this time.

“...A village of Black Mages, huh.”

Deep within the forest, past a treacherous region filled with monsters, lay this hidden city.

Occasionally, in these remote areas beyond the reach of the Central Continent’s Mage Association, such places—fully “colonized” by Black Mages—could be found.

Baek Yuseol had never seen one before. With his face covered, he wandered cautiously through the shadowy alleys of the city.

While he felt like stirring up trouble, he refrained. He didn’t know how many Black Mages were present, and unlike the fortress earlier, the security here seemed far more organized.

On the rooftops, Black Mages lounged, smoking or drinking. It was obvious that their presence was to monitor the city’s residents rather than relax.

"The residents... are Narang, huh."

The Narang were a wolf-like beastfolk race, known for their exceptional physical abilities and intelligence. Their chieftains were wise, and they rarely lost wars. When they formed villages, the scale was often massive.

If such a powerful tribe had been subjugated, it meant the Black Mages ruling this city weren’t ordinary either.

‘If I cause a ruckus here, there won’t even be bones left of me.’

It was easier to escape from a single powerful foe like Black Kingdom.

But against an organized and overwhelming enemy force, survival couldn’t be guaranteed.

‘Still, it’s lucky I found this city.’

A city of this scale had one defining feature: an enormous flow of information.

This meant there was a good chance he could gather intel about the Green Core here.

Now, the question was: what position should Baek Yuseol take?

If he clumsily tried to mimic a beastfolk and someone told him to remove his hood, he wouldn’t be able to prove his wolf ears, turning him into a fugitive on the spot.

‘Pretending to be a Black Mage isn’t ideal either. There’s bound to be someone here who recognizes my face.’

There was no choice but to take some risks. He’d have to act like a spy in a movie.

Baek Yuseol hid in the alleys until nightfall. When the moon rose, he finally began to move.

"Ugh, disgusting. Why do those beastfolk keep crawling around? If they’re dogs, they should act like it and obey their masters."

"Disgusting. I need to wash up."

Two Black Mages sauntered into the alley, grumbling. Their tone might have sounded like local thugs, but the reality was far more sinister.

‘That blood on them...’

Their clothes were stained with blood.

It was clear they had been abusing the beastfolk as slaves. Someone must have finally resisted, and these Black Mages had killed them without hesitation.

It wouldn’t be surprising if they didn’t stop there. Lower-tier Black Mages often ate the bodies of humans or beastfolk to restore their corrupted mana, as they had few other means to replenish it.

‘These are the perfect targets to take out.’

Without hesitation, Baek Yuseol sprang into action.

Shlunk!

He used an ordinary, mana-free sword and quickly stabbed one of the Black Mages through the throat.

"Urk..."

The Black Mage died instantly, unable to even scream.

Baek Yuseol twisted the blade, cleanly severing the head, then immediately turned and sliced off the arms of the second Black Mage.

"Ah... gah!"

The sudden, overwhelming pain made the second Black Mage try to scream, but Baek Yuseol grabbed his throat, silencing him.

The Black Mage flailed, trying to grab Baek Yuseol’s arm with his missing limbs, but to no avail.

With both arms gone and the pain and suffocation doubling over him, the Black Mage’s eyes rolled back as he began to lose consciousness.

Before that could happen, Baek Yuseol threw him to the ground and slammed his sword into the ground beside his head.

"Gah...!"

The Black Mage froze. He knew if he said the wrong thing, that blade would rotate and slice his neck. Trembling like a bug, he stayed silent.

"Answer my questions."

"Y-yes..."

"Who’s the biggest head among the Black Mages running this town?"

"The biggest head...?"

"I mean the leader, you idiot."

Smack!

Baek Yuseol slapped the Black Mage with the flat of his blade and pressed a foot down on his neck, preventing him from making a sound.

"Answer. Who is it?"

"The... the tallest tower..."

Shlunk!

There was no need to hear the rest. Baek Yuseol finished him with a clean slice to the neck.

"Seriously. Whether it’s mages or Black Mages, they all love tall buildings."

Now that he thought about it, during the day, he’d noticed the beastfolk slaves constructing a tall building in the city’s center.

He’d already found it strange when he saw the existing 15-story tower, but knowing Black Mages built it made sense.

‘Beastfolk don’t normally build such tall structures.’

With nothing else to learn from these small fry, Baek Yuseol quickly moved to a new location.

‘If the Black Mage ruling a village of this size is their leader, they’re probably at least 8-Risk.’

Such a powerful Black Mage couldn’t be taken down with a sneak attack. Baek Yuseol wasn’t a professionally trained assassin, after all.

Leaping onto a nearby wall to observe the tallest tower, Baek Yuseol’s eyes widened.

‘What the hell is this?’

The defenses were more thorough than he’d expected.

The tower was surrounded by double-layered walls and metal fences. Between them, pairs of Black Mages patrolled in shifts.

The sight of Black Mages, who were usually chaotic and self-serving, operating with such systematic precision was deeply unsettling to Baek Yuseol.

‘Is this even possible?’

Even in the game, such organized Black Mages didn’t exist.

In Aither World Online, Black /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ Mages were designed to be selfish.

They wouldn’t help each other even in the face of danger, instead attacking separately and getting picked off one by one.

But with Black Mages as coordinated as this... even if this was just a game world, it would be impossible to take them all down alone.

‘Who could possibly control Black Mages this effectively?’

Maybe he should’ve interrogated the Black Mage earlier for more details.

But no, that would’ve been too risky.

The alley was frequented by many Black Mages, and staying there too long might’ve drawn unwanted attention.

As soon as he got his answer, Baek Yuseol swiftly decapitated the Black Mage. It wasn’t out of cruelty but practicality.

‘No choice. I’ll have to question these grunts one by one.’

To cross-check their answers and get reliable information, he’d likely need to kill at least ten of them.

Without wasting any more time, Baek Yuseol sprang into action.

The only place with structured security was the central tower, so he focused on patrolling the outskirts of the village.

During the day, beastfolk slaves had been visible all around, but at night they were confined to their prison-like homes. The streets, meanwhile, were crowded with Black Mages.

The Black Mages roamed aimlessly, smashing things, breaking into locked homes, dragging out beastfolk, and beating them to death, laughing all the while. It was a stark contrast to the disciplined Black Mages guarding the central tower.

‘No, this is closer to what Black Mages are really like.’

Completely unrestrained.

Doing whatever they pleased, killing anyone who opposed them on the spot, devoid of humanity or morality.

Because of that, Baek Yuseol felt no hesitation in killing them.

“Who... are you...?”

After killing five out of six Black Mages who had been beating a beastfolk in a corner of the village, Baek Yuseol left one alive. The lone survivor glared up at him, gritting his teeth.

Black Mages were known to lack fear, but death was the great equalizer.

The primal instinct to survive took over.

“You don’t need to know that. Just answer my questions.”

“Hah! I bet you’re going to ask why we do this. Well, it’s because it’s fun—”

Thwack!

Baek Yuseol cut him off with a kick to the face, folding the Black Mage’s body backward unnaturally.

Crack!

He clamped a hand over the Black Mage’s mouth, preventing any sound from escaping.

“Who’s in charge of the central tower? Talk.”

He released his grip slightly, allowing the Black Mage to speak.

“Save me—!”

That was as far as he got before Baek Yuseol caught on to the pointless plea. He silenced him again, this time stabbing his thigh with a knife.

“I read somewhere that Black Mages feel pain here too,” he muttered.

The Black Mage’s eyes rolled back, his body convulsing uncontrollably. Baek Yuseol, mindful not to push him too far, let go.

Finally, a proper answer came.

“T-the High Priest of the Black Magic Cult! The High Priest controls the bell tower...”

“The High Priest?”

So they called the central tower the bell tower.

“Where’s the bell, then?”

Visit fгee𝑤ebɳoveɭ.cøm for the best novel reading experi𝒆nce.

“T-the beastfolk... they’re building it...”

“Got it.”

Baek Yuseol stepped on the Black Mage’s head, pressing it into the ground. The creature twitched, struggling to breathe, but couldn’t overpower Baek Yuseol’s strength.

‘A High Priest and a bell tower, huh.’

From the terminology alone, it was clear this was some sort of church.

Building a towering structure to symbolize their faith and forcibly instilling devotion into the locals—it wasn’t hard to see their intent.

For isolated beastfolk communities like this one, it might only take five years, or even as few as three, to indoctrinate them through torture and violence.

If you don’t worship our god, your parents, children, and friends will die.

Newborn or young beastfolk wouldn’t know any better. Raised in pain and terror, they would come to accept the Black Magic Cult as a natural part of life.

‘It’s vile but disturbingly systematic.’

Such calculated expansion was almost unthinkable for Black Mages.

‘This has to be the work of the Black Magic Cult Leader, Huiyeon.’

With that thought, Baek Yuseol drew his sword and prepared to move on.

“Wait!”

Sensing his impending death, the Black Mage shouted desperately.

“There’s something else! Something important for a mage like you!”

“What is it?”

“If I tell you... will you spare me...?”

“I’ll decide once I hear it.”

Baek Yuseol tilted his head, signaling for him to speak.

“In two days... the Black Magic Cult Leader is coming to this village...”

“Oh? Really?”

Now that was valuable information.

“Are you part of the Black Magic Cult?”

“Y-yes! That’s right!”

“And you’d betray your cult leader just like that? What a disloyal little scumbag. You deserve divine punishment.”

Shlunk!

Baek Yuseol stabbed the Black Mage through the heart. After disposing of the bodies in a corner, he turned his gaze to a young beastfolk girl hiding in the shadows.

Her body was covered in bruises and blood, caked with dirt. She could barely open her eyes, staring at him with a mixture of fear and confusion.

It was understandable. She had just witnessed him ruthlessly slaughter the Black Mages.

“Go home and rest. Don’t tell anyone about me.”

He handed her a piece of bread. The girl clutched it tightly to her chest, nodding vigorously before running off.

Watching her retreating figure, Baek Yuseol shifted his gaze to the central tower.

‘The Black Magic Cult Leader, huh...’

Now that he had the chance, meeting them face-to-face didn’t seem like a bad idea.