529th Sentence

529.

,Hmm, the Black Magician, huh…”

,Perhaps you know something about them, Master-nim?

,No, I have absolutely no idea.

Yeah, I figured as much. I didn’t expect anything in the first place. That’s just how Eldritch is.

But today, I need to rely on Eldritch a bit. After finishing the incident in Irene, I came to him to get the Pure White Mark engraved.

Eldritch was mixing sparkling powder with water, adding something else, and chanting a spell. Even I, who am more accustomed to using strength than magic, could clearly tell. An incredibly pure and intense magic power was flowing from it.

,Hmm, all preparations are complete. But please don’t misunderstand me when I say this. To engrave the Pure White Mark, you must first be naked… Is that, uh, alright?

The brush in Eldritch’s hand is shaking. Maybe it’s just my imagination, but it seems to be moving in a somewhat lewd way…

,Why? No, wait, where exactly are you planning to engrave the mark?

,Ah, no, the mark will only be engraved on your back and forehead. But if you have anything on your body, it could disrupt the flow of magic! I’m definitely not saying this with any lewd intentions!

,…Haa, I understand.

Sigh, yeah. Nothing surprises me anymore. This damn erotic game-like progression is really something…

Showing my body to Eldritch, who doesn’t even have a dick, doesn’t really bother me. Deceiving myself like that, I took off the hood and Sacred Armor I was wearing.

,It might feel a bit strange, but please bear with it.

I sat naked on the chair, and Eldritch went behind me and started working. The cold liquid-soaked brush tickled my back, drawing an unknown pattern.

Is this finally the completion of the Pure White Mark? It was quite a long adventure for the first quest I received. Looking back, there really were so many things that happened.

Embarrassing things, enjoyable things, somewhat heartbreaking things, and plenty of happy things. The memories of that adventure and the three companions I met along the way. If someone were to ask me what is most precious to me now, I think I could answer without hesitation.

Even after obtaining the Pure White Mark, what I do won’t change much. I’ll just continue my adventures. If, as expected, the Pure White Mark offsets the curse on my dick or my lewdness, that would be ideal.

Since I’ve gone through so much trouble to get this Pure White Mark, it should have some effect, right? It might be a bit anticlimactic if it doesn’t…

No, considering the difficulty of obtaining the three jewels and their extraordinary magic power, it will definitely have an effect. The Ruby of Passion alone was an item with the power of Utranag. The other two jewels must also have the same level of power.

Well, if I don’t know, I can just ask.

I asked Eldritch, who was diligently working behind me.

,By the way, Master-nim, what is the exact effect of the Pure White Mark?

,It rejects all that is impure. If the lewdness that has taken root in your body was given by someone, I anticipate that you will be able to resist it thanks to the Pure White Mark.

,Hmm, I see.

So, in the end, it’s still not clear whether it will have an effect? Well, there’s nothing I can do if it doesn’t. To be honest, I don’t dislike lewd acts either.

,Well, the mark on your back is complete. Now, I will draw the activation formula on your forehead.

,Yes, Master-nim.

Eldritch, who came in front of me, had a very serious expression. Sweat was flowing on his wrinkled forehead. I could tell that he was concentrating all his mind and skill.

Holding his hair in place with one hand so it wouldn’t fall down, Eldritch’s brush swiftly moved across my forehead. It felt like a complex pattern was being drawn inside a circle.

It felt like the mark on my forehead was taking longer than the one on my back. Perhaps it was because it required more delicate skill since the area was smaller. And finally, Eldritch put down the brush and said.

,Alright, it’s done.

,Oh, ooh…

Is it done?

But I still don’t feel any significant changes in my body. Well, I’ll definitely know if I do an experiment involving exposure of my dick. As I was about to put my clothes back on to go to my companions waiting in the living room, I realized something was wrong.

,M, M, Master-nim…! U, uh? Wait, something’s not right…

,Hmm? What is it, Hero?

,Ah, I can’t… I can’t see! W, what…? E, Eldritch Master-nim?

Everything in front of my eyes is black. It was as if I had been thrown into pitch darkness. It wasn’t just my vision that was being painted black. The feeling was that sound, touch, and smell were all being sucked into the darkness.

Until just a moment ago, everything was fine. The only change was that the Pure White Mark had been engraved. I shouted urgently. Before falling into complete darkness.

,Something’s wrong! The Pure White Mark… Something’s seriously wrong…

,Hmm, there’s nothing to worry about, Hero. That’s not the Pure White Mark, but the Pure Black Mark. It seems to be working normally. I’m glad, I’m glad.

,W, what did you say? Eldritch… you…!

My eyes are already completely blind. I frantically waved my arms towards Eldritch, who should be right in front of me, but in a state where I couldn’t feel anything, I couldn’t even be sure if I had grabbed him.

There is only one skill I can trust in times like this. I shouted the skill name in a voice that I couldn’t even hear myself.

,Overdrive!

Pure white light. Pure white light began to appear in front of my eyes, which were already covered in darkness. Other senses also began to return.

,Hoo, this is surprising. To resist the Pure Black Mark. Yes, there were still many parts of your Overdrive that were uninterpretable. Even so, it’s surprising.

,Did you betray me? Eldritch…! Since when…!

,Hehe, betrayal… How amusing. Who betrayed whom? Since when, you ask? If you ask me that, I’ll tell you. My beloved disciple was, is, and always will be only one person, Elena.

,W, what…?

The person in front of me was not the Eldritch I knew. The Hero’s master, who was full of 허당/heodang (a person who seems smart but is actually clumsy) and played the role of a quest bundle. The Eldritch I had known until now did not exist there at all.

Could the identity of the Black Magician be…

I opened my mouth to call my companions, but no more voice came out. The white light of Overdrive was gradually being eroded by the darkness of Pure Black.

I was sucked into the deep darkness as it was.

Into a pitch-black space where I couldn’t see or feel anything.

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,Wait a minute… That pure white light is… the Hero’s Overdrive!

,Something’s wrong. What’s going on inside the workshop…

,I have a bad feeling! Let’s go quickly…!

The Hero’s three companions approached the door leading to the workshop. But at that moment, the door burst open and Eldritch appeared. Beside him, the Hero, wrapped in a black magic power that seemed to be alive, floated in the air and followed him.

,Hero-nim!

,Eldritch…! What did you do to the Hero!

The three’s judgment was by no means slow. Although it was the familiar face of the old man, they judged him as an enemy almost immediately from the Hero’s condition. Blade’s sword, Selina’s magic, and the succubus Riel’s black cloth flew towards Eldritch at the same time.

The purple Eldritch. It was an attack that an old man who handles purple magic, which is not suitable for combat in the first place, could never have received.

But…

,How boring.

The attacks of the Hero’s companions were all deflected before they even touched Eldritch’s body. What was surrounding his body was not purple magic power. A black magic power, as dark as pitch, flowed fiercely as if following him.

,Is this the level even in this iteration, which has been repeated with chance encounters? How pathetic, really. Companions of the Hero.

,Black Magician…! That was you, Eldritch!

,Yes, it’s me. It was all me.

The black magic power that flowed around Eldritch and the Hero gradually condensed into a single sphere. A mass of terrifying black magic power. The power felt there was something that the Hero’s companions had experienced before.

,That power is… Could it be… the Black God’s… E, Epsilon’s…

They had heard from the Hero after the fight with Epsilon. The power and magic of Epsilon, who had turned to ashes, became a black sphere and went into the hands of the goddess Yustea. But they had no idea why Eldritch had it.

Eldritch put the sphere of black light into his mouth. A powerful wave of magic power erupted around Eldritch. The wrinkled old man’s appearance changed. A black cloak made of magic power and eyes that were all black. He looked like he wasn’t human.

,I am no longer the purple Eldritch. Now call me the black Eldritch. Well, you won’t have a chance to do so.

Black magic power spread along the floor in the shape of a snake and wrapped around the Hero’s companions. It was an attack that they couldn’t even react to. The black snake, baring its fangs, engraved a mark of black magic power on the heads of the Hero’s companions.

,That mark is the mark of death. How does it feel to wait for an unavoidable death, unable to move or speak? Well, it won’t be long. Everyone will die in 5 minutes.

As he said, the Hero’s companions couldn’t move a finger. They could only watch. Eldritch opened a black portal and took the Hero away.

,Don’t worry too much. After all, this world will be reset soon. Your adventures will start again. With the Hero.

Leaving those words behind, Eldritch took the Hero and disappeared into the portal.

The remaining three could only savor the time of despair. Unable to cry or shout.

But just then, a new portal mark began to appear in front of them. Someone is coming here.

What appeared from there was Rene.