The Game of the Greatest Black Mage-Chapter 167

[Translator - Prøks]

[Proofreader - Prøks]

Chapter 167

A cat ghost.

He had figured that if there were cat merchants, there would be ghosts too, but to think there was one loitering right at the entrance.

He was a little surprised, but Seonghyun didn't show it.

He lightly absorbed the cat's memories.

[You have accomplished something impossible at your current level with an ‘Unknown Power’.]

[Intelligence +2, Wisdom +2, and Dexterity +1 have permanently increased.]

‘Hmm. The stat increase is nice, but…’

...the memories didn't seem very helpful.

It was the ghost of a cat who had died after a long service as a soldier.

The memories were mostly filled with various duties he had to perform here during his long tenure.

-An outsider is interesting-nyan. No one ever came when I was on duty, so this should be fun-ong.

The cat ghost chattered on, but there was no need to pay it much mind.

Anyway, putting the ghost aside, he looked at the living cat soldiers.

Two cat soldiers stood guarding the castle gate, holding spears.

Walking on two legs and wearing helmets with holes for their ears, they looked quite cute, but...

How should he put it...

Their wary expressions also looked a little pitiful.

Of course, they were only doing their duty.

The soldiers shivered as they gripped their spears.

Seonghyun opened his mouth to speak, but then he paused.

His gaze settled on their equipment—the spears, the helmets, the breastplates covering their upper bodies.

He realized they were no ordinary soldiers.

Then again, the cat ghost's memories also showed them wearing some rather fine equipment.

Seeing it now, he checked the items' rank.

‘Unique?’

Every single one of them was at least a Unique-rank item.

Nowadays, Seonghyun picked up Unique-rank items like they were pebbles, but they were still a considerably rare rank of item.

To be honest, even Epic-rank items were precious.

But for every piece of their equipment to be Unique-rank?

Unlike their cute appearances and pitiful expressions, they might actually be skilled fighters.

He had no intention of forcing his way through, but he figured he should be as polite as possible.

“We stumbled in here by chance while exploring.”

As Seonghyun stepped forward to speak, Helena and the other familiars all fell back behind him.

They remained on guard, however, just in case the situation went sour.

At Seonghyun's polite words, the two cat soldiers tilted their heads.

“Hrmmm, nyaang. Even so, we can't just let an outsider in-ong!”

“That's right-nyan!”

The two cat soldiers chattered with perfect timing.

Was there no other way?

Forcing his way through here wasn't a good option.

They weren't marked as monsters; clear NPC icons floated above their heads.

If he used force here, he would surely accumulate infamy.

He decided to wait quietly for now.

“If you wish to enter our city, you must pass a test-nyan!”

“Only then can you be treated as a guest-ong!”

The two cat soldiers spoke one after another, like twins.

He almost let out a slight laugh at the sight, but he barely managed to hold it in when he saw the stern and solemn expressions the two cat soldiers were trying to make.

He then recalled what the ghost's memories said about the test.

According to the memories, the test was…

“The test is a card game-ong!”

“A very difficult gamble-nyan!”

“Hrmm.”

‘So it's this, then?’

Seonghyun wondered what to do and glanced at his familiars.

All the familiars, except for Helena, bowed their heads to show they would follow his decision.

Helena, on the other hand, just smiled at Seonghyun, her eyes filled with a mischievous look that said this would be fun.

Well, he planned on entering anyway.

Whether it was a gamble or something else, he figured he had to do it.

“Very well. I'll take the test.”

“Hehehe, it will be a harsh test-nyan.”

“Hehehe, I bet the outsider will be eliminated easily-ong.”

It seemed they wanted to look cunning when they smiled, but they didn't look cunning at all; they were just incredibly cute.

Once Seonghyun agreed to take the test, the two cat soldiers led him through the castle gate.

‘Was it really okay for them to open it this easily?’

He let out a slightly dumbfounded laugh as he followed them.

Helena sidled up next to Seonghyun and asked,

“So, are you any good at gambling?”

“Umm… If it's poker, I at least know the rules.”

“Ahaha! Then you better go win!”

“That's the plan.”

He wasn't particularly confident, but Seonghyun nodded in understanding.

If he lost here, he would have to find another entrance or a different method, though he could already guess what that other method might be.

Still, it wasn't a sure thing.

Passing the test here was his best option.

“Hehehe, this is our breakroo— I mean, the testing grounds-nyan!”

“Hehehe! You will take the test in this place-ong!”

The place the two soldiers led him to, speaking as if it were some terrifying location, was…

‘No matter how I look at it, this is a break room.’

It appeared to be a place where the soldiers took their breaks.

There was a cat tower, a cat wheel, and things like nets and boxes.

It looked like a room designed for having a lot of fun.

With that thought, Seonghyun sat down at the table they had guided him to.

As if things were going perfectly, they brought out a deck of cards.

It was a standard deck of playing cards, familiar to Seonghyun.

As he sat at the table and the cards appeared, a message popped up.

[Hidden Quest, 『The Gatekeepers of Ninyaru, City of the Labyrinth Troupe』 has been generated.]

‘Let's see what the rewards are.’

『The Gatekeepers of Ninyaru, City of the Labyrinth Troupe』

→《Hidden》

→ Ninyaru, City of the Labyrinth Troupe, is presumed to be the city of the cat merchants who occasionally appear in the labyrinth.

You have used small clues from the labyrinth to reach the city's entrance.

However, you have been blocked by the two fearsome soldiers guarding it.

As is their right, the two guardians cannot let just anyone in and have decided to issue a tremendous test.

That test is none other than a gamble!

If you can relieve their boredom with a gamble, the two fearsome soldiers have promised to let you pass and enter Ninyaru, City of the Labyrinth Troupe.

Gamble with them and relieve their boredom.

There is an additional reward for an early victory.

→ Restriction: User who has discovered the entrance to Ninyaru, City of the Labyrinth Troupe.

→ Reward: Entry Pass to Ninyaru, City of the Labyrinth Troupe.

→ Failure: Entry Pass to Ninyaru, City of the Labyrinth Troupe, and gamble for 2 hours.

He had been reading it quite seriously, but it was a completely adorable quest.

In any case, didn't this mean they would let him pass no matter what? To think they gave him an entry pass even if he failed.

However, there was the condition that he'd have to play with them for two hours.

‘It's probably best to win, then.’

Killing time meaninglessly wasn't his style. He decided he should end this quickly.

“Hehehe, the three of us will gamble-nyan! The person who runs out of these chips I'm giving you goes bankrupt-ong!”

“Hehehe, the person with chips at the end is the winner-nyan! The game is poker-ong!”

“Understood.”

As Seonghyun agreed, the cat soldiers casually took off their spears and helmets and dealt the cards across the table.

Seeing how skillfully they dealt the cards, it seemed they had played quite a lot.

When Seonghyun received his hand, he found that it was better than he expected.

However, he didn't know what kind of hand they had.

‘How should I bet?’

Just as Seonghyun was deliberating, the ghost spoke.

-I can't stand to watch these greenhorn juniors get a free ride-nyan! This guy has one pair-ong!

He gave a slight smile, seeing the ghost helping him.

1.

“Whoaaa!!! Are you the god of poker-ong?!”

“Hnyaaaang!!! I lost too-ong!”

How could he possibly lose when he knew his opponents' hands?

Seonghyun had snatched victory in an instant.

Wiping their tears, the two cat soldiers had no choice but to acknowledge Seonghyun.

To think he had retired them both in such a short time! It was with a feeling of, 'As expected of this extraordinary outsider!'

“That was some incredible skill-nyan. Take this-ong.”

“It's an entry pass to the city-ong. Carry it with you at all times-nyan.”

“Thank you.”

[You have cleared the Hidden Quest, 『The Gatekeepers of Ninyaru, City of the Labyrinth Troupe』.]

[Rewards will now be distributed.]

As Seonghyun accepted the entry pass and gave his thanks, they all waved their paws at him as if they'd had a lot of fun.

“Farewell-ong!”

“That was fun-nyan!”

-Let me know if you need help-ong!

With the three of them—even the cat soldier ghost—seeing him off, Seonghyun walked into the passage leading to the city.

Helena pouted, as if to say it had all been anticlimactic.

“I thought it was going to be an intense gamble…”

“It would have been fun if the cats were like that,” Seonghyun replied.

“But considering Nyao, this makes sense. Ah, but Nyao would be an adult by now, so maybe he'd be different?”

Nyao.

The cat merchant Helena had known in the past.

Seonghyun wondered what had become of him.

As he nodded, looking curious himself, Helena continued.

“The beastkin here in the labyrinth, especially the feline ones, are cute and playful, but they tend to either get fat or become more like wild beasts as they get older.”

“Oh?”

“I think Nyao is likely the latter. Even back then, he was royalty, so he had all the makings of a wild beast.”

Hearing that made it even more interesting.

And royalty, at that.

He wondered what kind of person he would be and how he would react to seeing the newly reborn Helena.

This would be quite useful for his future plans.

Filled with anticipation, Seonghyun moved forward.

As he followed the long passage, brilliant lights began to appear at the end.

It should have been dark by now, yet such magnificent lights shone ahead.

‘What kind of place is this?’

His curiosity made his steps gradually quicken, and as Seonghyun emerged from the passage, he saw countless houses decorated with dazzling, brilliant magic lights.

And between those houses, innumerable cats strolled about on two legs.

Shining things that looked like dragonflies flew about in the sky, and on every street, merchants selling their wares chattered boisterously.

“An opportunity that doesn't come every day-nyan!”

“The fish is fresh today-ong!”

“We have high-quality Churu-nyan!”

Each one was shouting something different, but…

Seonghyun's eyes were captivated by the splendor and scale, which were on a completely different level from Pentagrid.

“Wow.”

He never thought he'd come to a place that felt like a real city while playing this game.

It gave him the illusion of having arrived in a magical metropolis.

As Seonghyun looked around in wonder, a series of messages appeared.

[Entering the Hidden City, 『Ninyaru, City of the Labyrinth Troupe』.]

[You are the first to discover this Hidden City!]

[You have acquired the Title, 『One Who Set Foot into the Unknown』.]

[You have acquired the Title, 『Butler of Ninyaru』.]

[First discovery rewards will be distributed.]

[Quest rewards generated in the Hidden City, 『Ninyaru, City of the Labyrinth Troupe』 will be doubled.]

[You currently possess the Unique Item, 『Whistle of the Labyrinth Troupe』.]

[The effect of the Unique Item, 『Whistle of the Labyrinth Troupe』 will be applied to the entirety of 『Ninyaru, City of the Labyrinth Troupe』.]

He received a message saying he had entered the hidden city and obtained two new titles.

To think the whistle's effect applied to the entire city.

‘Does that mean I get a discount?’

‘Not bad.’

Just coming to such a dreamlike city was good enough, but to get double quest rewards and a discount on top of that.

It was the icing on the cake.

As Seonghyun surveyed the charming city, lost in the scenery, the residents noticed the tall Seonghyun and cried out in surprise.

“Nyaang!? A human came in!?”

“Hmph! Not just a human! An outsider!”

“Nyanyang?! It's our first time seeing an outsider-ong!”

“No, child. It's our first time seeing a human at all.”

“Aha! I didn't know-nyan!”

Some of them attached "nyan" and "ong" to the end of their sentences, while others spoke normally.

It seemed the younger ones were the ones who used the verbal tics.

As everyone stared at Seonghyun in wonder, someone spotted him and shouted.

“Aaat!? C-Customer, how did you get here-nyan?!”

The familiar cat, Beki, approached Seonghyun in recognition.

Somehow, he had run into Beki.

“Fancy seeing you here.”

“Nya-, Nyao-ong!?”

[Translator - Prøks]

[Proofreader - Prøks]

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