The Game of a Legendary Genius Dark Mage-Chapter 394

After saying that to Yoo-bin, what Seong brought back were things like an inner tube and various inflatable toys you’d expect to play with in a pool.

He’d grabbed a bunch of stuff, but once he had it all out, none of it looked particularly useful.

“Hmm.”

Seong carried them out and started organizing.

Lee Geon-dong came out too, and so did An Yoo-jin and Yu Mina.

When Mina saw all the gear laid out by the pool, she burst out laughing.

“Pfft, you brought a lot of odds and ends, huh?”

“Hmm, it does look fun.”

“Right.”

Everyone was interested, and since Geon-dong and Seong had already used the pump to fill everything with air, they tossed it all into the pool at once.

Then Geon-dong was the first to charge into the wide pool.

Splash!

“Whoa! It’s really cool in here!”

“Oh? For real?”

“Lemme see.”

At his words, Seong jumped right in. The water wasn’t icy, but on a hot summer day it was the perfect, refreshing temperature.

When Seong slipped into the water with a pleased look, the women followed one by one.

“Wow, it really is cool.”

“We could dunk a watermelon in here.”

“We have a fridge—why would we?”

“It’s just a saying!”

They hadn’t played in the ocean, but the five of them played their hearts out in the pool.

At first, Seong and Yoo-bin were a little awkward around each other, but once everyone got into it, things quickly felt natural.

They kept on playing, and the sunset-splashed sky finally went dark as the sun dropped completely, and the lights around the pool flicked on.

The atmosphere was even better than expected, and everyone chatted warmly.

“Wow, the vibe is amazing.”

“Seriously.”

“These were in the photos, but it’s even better than the pictures.”

“It’s really pretty.”

“Love it.”

They admired the lovely pool and lighting for a bit; then, as night fell, the cool pool started to feel chilly, and the women spoke up first.

“It’s getting chilly.”

“I’m getting hungry after all that. Should we start the barbecue?”

“Sounds good.”

With the three saying that, Seong and Geon-dong got out of the pool too.

They all got out, towel-dried, then went back to their buildings to shower and bring out the ingredients.

It looked like the women weren’t out yet, so Seong and Geon-dong started the setup first.

They spread ingredients and snacks out on the outdoor table, then dragged the outdoor grill over near it.

Prep done—time to light the fire.

The pension had provided charcoal in advance, so getting a flame going wasn’t hard.

Once Seong had the grill going, the women started coming out one by one.

“Gasp—what? You two prepared everything?”

“For real?? You could’ve called us.”

“Y-yeah, seriously.”

Seeing them flustered that Seong and Geon-dong had done it all, Seong waved it off.

“Doesn’t matter who does it. Just have a seat. I’ll grill the meat.”

“Then I’ll go make a quick stew.”

At Seong’s words, An Yoo-bin chimed in, and Yoo-jin and Mina’s eyes lit up.

So that’s why the two of them looked so happy—

“Wow, when we ask, you never do it like that.”

“Yoo-bin’s cooking is out of this world.”

They whined like that.

Flushing a little at her sisters’ words, Yoo-bin said,

“I—I’ve been busy, okay. A-anyway, I’ll get started.”

With that, she went inside to put a stew on.

Seong chuckled watching her.

So she’s good at cooking. With that thought, he figured he might as well go all in, and recalled the memories of a chef ghost he’d absorbed before.

How to grill meat for the best flavor.

Which cuts to cook how to make them shine.

He grilled with crisp, precise technique, and did the same for the seafood.

He knew how to maximize the umami of shellfish, so with a touch of prep, he set them on the grill; watching Seong move, Geon-dong, Yoo-jin, and Mina stared, eyes wide like lanterns.

“Whoa, what is that?”

“He’s moving like an actual chef???”

“Was Seong always like this?”

All three had known Seong for a long time, so the unexpected sight amazed them.

While they were all surprised, Seong finished the meat beautifully; just as it was nearly done, Yoo-bin came out with a bubbling pot of stew.

“Please try it.”

Unlike her usual self, she was brimming with confidence, like when she was Luna in the game; Seong stepped over and tasted it.

Then—

“Wow.”

“This is so good.”

“Right? Right?”

“It’s seriously delicious, for real.”

All four of them praised it with thumbs up for Yoo-bin.

At the reaction, Yoo-bin looked a little shy and took a seat.

Next came Seong’s meat and seafood, grilled perfectly and set on the table.

There was still more to cook, so as he brought plates of meat {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} and seafood to the table, Seong said,

“Start without me.”

“Okay.”

“Don’t grill the whole time—come eat.”

“Yeah, eat as you go.”

“Time to try this.”

They each picked up a piece of meat Seong had grilled with care and took a bite.

Their pupils dilated.

The first bites were all beef—no one was sure which cuts—but the heat had penetrated through just right, and it chewed like sous vide—tender, with juices bursting as you bit in.

The beef’s aroma filled the mouth without any unpleasantness, and what could have been cloying fat and juice were balanced by the seasoning on the crust—spice and salt coming together in harmony.

It was on par with steak you’d be hard-pressed to find even at a high-end restaurant, and everyone stared, dazed, at the meat and then at Seong.

This wasn’t “he cooks pretty well”—it was are you sure you’re not a chef?

They gaped at Seong, dumbfounded.

“This isn’t just good—it’s insane.”

“Seriously, we could eat ourselves to death and not even notice.”

“What, were you a chef or something?”

“I-it’s really delicious.”

As they gushed, Seong smiled in satisfaction.

“Eat up.”

Even as he said it, he kept grilling, and they started devouring without a thought.

Normally they’d fuss over making sure Seong ate, but—well, it had to be this good.

They lost all sense and just kept eating, and Seong matched their pace with meat and seafood off the grill.

They experienced a knockout barbecue, sipped drinks, and the night deepened.

They chatted about this and that until it got late enough that—

“Let’s wrap it up.”

“Man, that was so good.”

“Right?”

“We’ll handle cleanup—go on in and get ready for bed.”

“Mm, okay.”

Everyone agreed with Mina, and Seong and Geon-dong headed inside first.

They’d set the table and Seong had kept grilling meat, so this much was only fair.

Once the barbecue and the cleanup were done, they each turned in for the night.

6.

Morning broke.

The downside of a one-night, two-day trip hit them squarely.

“Uuugh, I want to stay longer!!!”

Hearing a wail from somewhere, Seong snorted a laugh.

It was the other villa, but he could tell it was Mina yelling; he shook his head.

He did agree with wanting to stay longer, but did she have to scream like that?

Chuckling, Seong and Geon-dong started packing up.

They’d already put away all the stuff they’d used, so there wasn’t as much to pack as expected.

Yoo-jin had already been up and getting ready to go, so the car doors were open.

They loaded everything into the trunk, and everyone exchanged greetings.

“Sleep well?”

“Yeah, I slept great. You, Geon-dong?”

“Hello.”

“Good morning.”

Yoo-jin and Geon-dong were saying hi, and Yoo-bin and Seong were doing the same.

Watching them, Mina spaced out for a second, then snapped.

“You punks! Flaunting your couples in front of a single!?”

“N-no, we’re not.”

“What? Why?!”

“Ahem, ahem.”

“Hrm.”

At Mina’s jab, Yoo-bin frantically waved her hands, while Yoo-jin answered brazenly instead.

Seong and Geon-dong coughed and looked away.

Mina narrowed her eyes at them—but what could she do.

Shaking her head, she muttered,

“Fine, I’ll go accept some blind dates or something.”

Grumbling, she went to finish packing with a scowl.

The others snickered; Seong glanced at Yoo-bin.

Seeing Yoo-bin smiling faintly, he thought she looked pretty and smiled too.

They’d been getting closer, and now that they’d even come on a trip together, the fondness felt even deeper.

Feeling that, Seong scratched his head.

Anyone with a bit of sense would notice.

Still, he was busy for now.

'Let’s see how the timing looks.'

With that thought, he moved on.

Just then, the packing was finished and everything was in the car.

Once they were all set, Yoo-jin said,

“Alright then, let’s grab breakfast!”

Since she’d barely drunk last night, Yoo-jin took the wheel again; everyone found their seats, and off they went for breakfast.

It was only a simple one-night, two-day trip, but everyone seemed satisfied—it had been time well spent.

7.

While Seong was away on the trip and the Mihael party had two empty days, the three of them still came to the party hideout on schedule and went hunting elsewhere together.

All three felt, painfully clearly, how much they lagged behind Seong. This was only natural.

Besides, there was a massive buzz in Belhadan right now.

Namely, that Rapid’s Demon King backup team was blazing through Mugan like they were challenging the deep layers in Belhadan.

And the rankings board showed a jaw-dropping pace—clearing down to the 31st floor in just a single day—so of course people were shocked.

“Three of the Demon King’s backup team came?”

“And the speed’s insane.”

“T-they reached the 31st floor in one day.”

“Hm, but they’re taking two days off???”

At that, Mihael felt something was off.

Didn’t Seong—Yu-seong—also say he was taking two days off?

It gave him a funny feeling. He tried to shrug it off—nah, no way.

Right then, Lowell said she’d found something weird online.

“O-oppa? Look at this.”

“What is it?”

Saying that, she flipped her screen around.

[Title – The New Guy in Mihael’s Party, Yu-seong’s Identity]

[Author – ManaDeprived]

『Among the parties currently challenging the deep layers in Belhadan, Mihael’s party is leading the pack—and a new recruit just joined them.

I figured out who this user “Yu-seong” really is.

Watch the videos I posted first.

Video 1.

Video 2.

Video 1 is a cut of the new recruit Yu-seong’s skills from Mihael’s party.

In Video 2, you see skills that look very similar, right?

And the owner of those skills is none other than one of the vassals of Rapid Guild’s “Demon King,” the user Seong.

Is that really a coincidence?

If you ask me, he’s probably borrowing a vassal’s power and disguising himself as a mage.』

“W-what is this???”