The Game of the Greatest Black Mage

Chapter 71

[Translator - Prøks]

[Proofreader - Prøks]

Chapter 71

Seonghyun greeted the innkeeper, who welcomed him warmly.

"Hello."

"Are you here for a meal? Or lodging?"

Straight to the point.

Satisfying.

He was supposed to meet Ashin here.

It wasn't for lodging, but for a meal.

"I'd like a meal."

"Hee hee! What would you like to order?"

"Hmm, I'll have the potato stew and rye bread, please."

"Alright! Have a seat wherever you like and wait!"

"Thank you."

Seonghyun went inside and sat down at a table, watching the hearty innkeeper shout something to the kitchen.

There were no other customers.

He was a little worried that the food might not be good, but...

He wasn't here for the food anyway, but for a quest.

So, it didn't really matter.

In Eternal World, even taste was realistically rendered, making gourmet dining quite popular.

Come to think of it, this was his first time eating anything in Eternal World.

Seonghyun waited, sitting there.

Before long, a steaming bowl of warm potato stew and rye bread arrived.

"Oh? It looks better than I expected!"

The texture and taste were just like real food.

The potato stew was perfectly seasoned and savory, and the rye bread wasn't too hard, making it perfect for dipping in the stew.

The unexpected deliciousness made him understand why people enjoyed gourmet dining in Eternal World.

Not long after he finished his meal, the inn's door opened, and someone came in.

The dining area was around a corner from the entrance, so he couldn't see who it was, but he could hear the sound.

Along with the sound of the door opening, he heard the innkeeper's cheerful voice.

"Welcome..., oh, it's you, Philip?"

The innkeeper quickly sounded disappointed.

Seonghyun was a little curious at the tone and listened intently.

Then, he heard a familiar voice.

"Hey, hey! I'm a customer too, you know?"

"What are you going to have today?"

"Hmm, I came here on an errand, but while I'm here, I'll have some potato stew."

"Watch your mouth. Alright, sit down. I'll bring it to you soon."

"Yes, yes~"

Along with the casual tone, he heard footsteps approaching the tables.

Seonghyun turned his head towards the sound and, as expected, saw a familiar face.

"We meet again?"

He didn't recognize the name Philip, but he knew that voice and face.

It was the young apprentice blacksmith who had come to him with a message.

Saying someone wanted him to deliver it, when he was stirring things up under the name Ashin.

It was him.

Was his name Philip?

Well, whatever.

"That's right."

"Sigh, if I weren't in debt, I wouldn't be doing errands like this. Damn debt."

He grumbled and naturally sat down across from Seonghyun.

Seonghyun smiled slightly at the sight.

They had the same purpose anyway.

He could sit down without being told, couldn't he?

He didn't really care.

The apprentice blacksmith Philip looked at Seonghyun, chuckled, and then asked.

"So, did you really get them all?"

"Of course."

Seonghyun confidently replied and took out twenty webbed feet of the River Troll from his inventory and handed them over.

Philip's eyes widened as if they were about to pop out of his head, looking quite surprised.

His expression was a sight to behold.

As Seonghyun remained silent, the astonished Philip scratched his head and muttered.

"What did he ask you to do, catch these? Whew, that guy's not right in the head either."

A message popped up along with Philip's words.

[You have cleared the hidden quest, ?Treasure Goblin Kahku's Helper?.]

[You have received a reward.]

[You have earned the trust of 'Ashin'.]

[You have not yet received a message.]

[It will take some time before you receive the next quest.]

It wasn't as difficult as he thought.

Or rather, it was because of the Flingky he encountered along the way that he was so distracted.

But thanks to that, he also gained a good skill.

He had no complaints.

As Seonghyun handed over the webbed feet, Philip took out a bundle, wrapped the webbed feet in it, and muttered while sweating profusely.

"Oh dear, how am I going to carry this all?"

At his words, which sounded quite distressed, Seonghyun looked at Philip as if asking if he had forgotten something.

Only then did Philip realize something, with an awkward smile.

"Ahaha, I almost forgot. This is the message for you."

As soon as Seonghyun received the message from Philip, a message popped up.

[You have met the hidden quest conditions.]

[The quest will continue as a linked quest.]

[The hidden quest, ?Treasure Goblin Kahku's Helper 2?, has been generated.]

?Treasure Goblin Kahku's Helper 2?

??Hidden-Epic+?

?Linked Quest.

?The treasure goblin Kahku's helper 'Ashin' is a very cautious person.

'Ashin' has given you several tests to test you.

As the first test, you have captured the River Troll and successfully acquired the webbed feet. The second test is to find 'Ashin'.

Find out 'Ashin's' identity and why he has hidden it at the three blacksmiths in the village.

? Restriction: Holders of the ?Treasure Map of Treasure Goblin Kahku? and users who have completed ?Treasure Goblin Kahku's Helper?.

? Reward: Important clues and the key to the ?Treasure Map of Treasure Goblin Kahku?.

? Failure: Loss of important clues and the key to the ?Treasure Map of Treasure Goblin Kahku?.

The long-awaited linked quest.

As soon as he saw the reward, a smile spread across his face.

This was the last quest, and he would finally get the key.

He nodded as he read the quest details.

'The quest is about revealing his identity.'

If the first test was to check his strength, the second must be to test his wisdom.

However, Seonghyun already smiled and waved the message around, saying, "I don't think this will be necessary, will it? 'Ashin'?"

"Huh? What are you talking about? I'm just here to do a favor..."

Philip blinked his eyes, looking truly dumbfounded as he looked at Seonghyun.

He knew it.

Didn't the quest also say to reveal the reason?

"First of all, despite your young face, your hands are those of a master craftsman, not the hands of an apprentice blacksmith that one would expect."

"Ahaha, I put in twice the effort of others..."

"And more importantly, there's a distance between the smithy and here, and it didn't take me that long to arrive in the village for you to have seen me coming and then sent you on an errand. And the same goes for the time it took you to rush here after hearing the name Ashin. You were the person at the third smithy I visited, right? Even then, you came too quickly for you to have been sent on an errand. The timing doesn't add up."

"Well, I'm in debt, so they keep pushing me..."

"Lastly, looking at the traces of calluses, it seems you mainly make small things, not large equipment like weapons or armor. Like small keys. As far as I know, I haven't heard of a locksmith or jeweler in this village."

This was the reasoning Seonghyun had found.

Well, there were other things, like his way of speaking and behavior, and some actions that an apprentice blacksmith wouldn't normally do, but...

This much should be enough, right?

And most importantly.

'I already knew his face from the start.'

Seonghyun had absorbed Kahku's memories and experiences from the beginning.

He had pretended not to know to cooperate with the quest for the materials, but...

This was a different kind of quest.

When Seonghyun got to this point, Philip erased the denial from his face and readily admitted it.

"...You're right."

"I have a bit of a knack for observation."

It was Hunter Apic's knack for observation, though.

If he hadn't been asked to explain the reason, Kahku's memories alone would have been enough, but...

Since he had absorbed the memories and experiences, they were also Seonghyun's.

If it weren't for Hunter Apic's keen eye, it would have been difficult to notice.

Lastly, the story about there being no locksmith was a lie.

'It's a good thing I knew he was a locksmith through Kahku's memories.'

He didn't have time to investigate in the first place, so...

He had just made a guess based on Kahku's memories, but it seemed to have worked out very well.

[You have cleared the hidden quest, ?Treasure Goblin Kahku's Helper 2?.]

[Receive the reward from 'Ashin Philip'.]

Seeing the final message, Seonghyun was finally relieved.

He couldn't very well deny it after having acknowledged it, though.

As Seonghyun rejoiced, Philip nodded, seemingly impressed.

"Honestly, I didn't think you'd pull it off. Although Kahku passed away, I couldn't just hand over his treasure to anyone."

"I understand."

"I was trying to honor my friend's last wishes, so please don't take it too personally."

"Of course, I don't."

Philip looked slightly relieved at Seonghyun's words.

However, his expression soon darkened.

"I apologize to the rightful heir, but it will take some time to make the key."

"Ah."

It was slightly disappointing news for Seonghyun, who was thinking of going on a raid right away.

But what could he do?

If it was going to take time.

Seeing Seonghyun's obvious disappointment, Philip said, a little flustered, but composed.

"The materials are all here with these webbed feet, but it will take some time to make it. Still, if I start right away, it should be done by tomorrow morning."

"Hmm, it's a bit of a shame, but I understand. It can't be helped."

Philip's expression brightened as Seonghyun agreed.

Well, Seonghyun was not likely to cause trouble, but...

Now that it was revealed that he was friends with a goblin, there was bound to be some awkwardness.

Seonghyun didn't think much of it.

'Then I'll have to come back to pick it up tomorrow morning.'

As he thought so, Philip happened to say,

"I'll leave it here early in the morning. The innkeeper here is trustworthy."

"Ah, yes. I understand."

"I'll do my best to make it."

Seonghyun nodded in agreement, watching Philip bow his head. He then naturally left the inn.

He was supposed to pay for the food, but Philip offered to pay, so he just came out.

The quest was completed, and there was nothing particular to do until tomorrow morning, so...

Just as he was about to go hunting, a voice came from outside the capsule.

[A voice message has arrived from outside.]

[Seonghyun~ It's time for dinner~]

It seemed like today was going to end here, unfortunately.

[Eternal World, Eternal World will be waiting for you.]

With the now familiar message, Seonghyun logged out.

0.

As he came out of the capsule, the delicious smell wafting through the house made his mouth water.

"Phew."

It had been quite a while since lunch, so it seemed he was responding immediately.

Judging by the smell, was dinner bulgogi?

The other smells mixed with the bulgogi suggested that today was a feast.

As Seonghyun followed the enticing aroma and went to the living room, he found his father, Yoo Gwangjin, who, surprisingly, had come home early, helping his mother, Lee Nakyeong, set the table for dinner.

"Oh, Seonghyun's here."

"Father, you're home?"

"Yeah, my work finished early today, so I came home early."

Seonghyun chuckled, seeing his father, Yoo Gwangjin, look a bit embarrassed at his own words.

Noticing his reaction, Yoo Gwangjin coughed and continued to help Lee Nakyeong.

Lee Nakyeong also noticed that Seonghyun had come out and said,

"Ah, Seonghyun's here? Go wash your hands. It's almost ready."

"Yes, Mom."

Seonghyun thought about helping his mother, but since his father was already helping, he didn't think there was a need and went straight to the bathroom to wash his hands.

By the time he came back from the bathroom, his sister, Yoo Mina, had also come out of her capsule, yawning lazily.

She saw her father and her eyes sparkled.

Was it because her father had come home early for the first time in a while?

No.

That look in her eyes...

"Dad! Dad! Today Seonghyun..."

It was definitely the expression she made when she was about to tease him.

Seonghyun tried to stop Yoo Mina somehow, but his father, Yoo Gwangjin, beat him to it.

"I heard. You got first place? That's amazing. Good job. Ahem."

"Ah, thank... you."

Yoo Gwangjin only praised him that much, perhaps feeling a bit awkward.

Seonghyun was just as embarrassed.

As it was with most fathers and sons, praising each other was a bit awkward, but...

It wasn't a bad feeling.

However, his sister, who was trying to provoke this, was an exception.

Yoo Mina, who openly made a face as if to say it was boring, was glared at by Seonghyun, who said,

"Go wash your hands."

"Yes, yes~"

"Everything's ready~ Hurry and wash up~"

"Okay~"

Even his mother urged her on, so Yoo Mina had no choice but to go to the bathroom and quickly wash her hands.

It felt like it had been a long time since they had a meal together, even though they had eaten together when Seonghyun was discharged from the military not too long ago.

As they ate, they talked about various things.

Nothing particularly important.

Whether the game was fun, Seonghyun saying it was, and...

Yoo Gwangjin saying that his company was doing well these days.

Yoo Mina saying that she was planning a raid soon.

Lee Nakyeong saying that Jimin's husband had run off with someone else recently.

Wait, was that last one important?

Anyway, they were talking about such things when...

Suddenly, Lee Nakyeong, out of curiosity, asked Seonghyun,

"Now that you've been discharged, aren't you going to see your friends~?"

It was a question asked somewhat out of courtesy, but...

Seonghyun happened to have an appointment, so he replied,

"Ah. I'm going to see them tomorrow. I have an appointment."

Lee Nakyeong nodded, understanding, and then Yoo Mina, with a playful face again, chimed in.

"Ah, you mean the appointment with that girl~?"

At Yoo Mina's words, the eyes of Lee Nakyeong and Yoo Gwangjin twinkled as they stared at Seonghyun.

[Translator - Prøks]

[Proofreader - Prøks]