WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Mordor
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Surviving the Frozen Dark Fantasy as a Genius Mage ◈
Chapter 108: Mafia
──────
‘Great. At this rate, even the boss should go smoothly.
I got left behind on the third floor, but it worked out even better. I’ll gain a bunch of levels here, get rewards, and leave.’
My plan had gone awry.
...
The flickering lantern light shone on the dead man.
Ned had his eyes closed as though he were merely sleeping peacefully, if not for the dagger embedded in his neck.
Gasp!
Nadia and the vampire recoiled in fear at the sight.
Daisy quickly examined Ned, but his pulse had already stopped.
“A person did this?”
“There are no signs that a monster entered. Besides, would they leave wounds this clean?”
“The murder weapon... It’s Ned’s own equipment.”
We were inside a ship sailing across the sea, where monsters would have a hard time breaking in.
The Cole-Kenny brothers, who had been keeping watch on deck, testified that they had seen nothing.
‘There was no information about monsters appearing in this area.’
“Couldn’t it have been a doppelganger or a ghost?”
“There was no information about creatures like that appearing in Storm-Tossed Waters...”
Of course, reality could always have unexpected variables.
“Wait. May I take a look?”
“...”
My expression turned grave as I examined Ned’s corpse.
There was no particular magical energy.
“Did you find something, Ian?”
“No.”
‘It doesn’t seem like a monster did this...’
“Damn it...”
Everyone fell into confusion.
Including me.
Fuck, was this a Mafia game now?
“Which bastard did this?! Who was it?!”
“Sob...”
Ned’s fellow soldiers wept and raged.
“He had a lover back home, yet he followed me here. We grew up together, running through the alleys since we were children.”
Lucian’s voice was low as he stroked his dead subordinate’s body.
But beneath it burned fury he could not hide.
“I swear before the Holy Five Kings and the god of vengeance. I will surely avenge Ned, my friend and subordinate.”
As Lucian’s sharp eyes turned toward us, Mr. Argus frowned in displeasure.
“What? Are you suspecting us?”
“Who else is here?”
Then Ulric, who had been looking over the gathered people, spoke.
“Wait! Turkan isn’t here!!!”
“Don’t tell me...?”
Fuck?
This was a murder mystery cliché.
We hurried toward Turkan’s room.
“Turkan?”
We knocked and called out, but there was no answer or sign of movement.
“I’m coming in!”
Bang!
Ulric broke down the door.
Then we all stared wide-eyed at the sight before us.
“Mr. Turkan...”
The quiet man who had controlled the wind and rain to make the expedition easier, occasionally flashing us a grin.
He too was dead, slumped against his bed with his tongue hanging out.
...
Unlike Ned, Turkan had claw marks around his neck, and his face had turned bluish.
“Poison.”
Whirl.
Ignoring the phenomenon that had appeared before my eyes, I looked around the room.
“Turkan...”
Even the Cole-Kenny brothers, who had been casually chewing coca leaves for alertness despite Ned’s death, fell silent.
“Who did this?! Who the hell did this?!”
Ulric raged. He and Turkan had both followed folk religions.
Argus, the party leader, grabbed the silent vampire by the collar.
“You filthy vampire bastard!”
“Ghk! Wh-why are you doing this?! It wasn’t me!”
“One person from the noble side died, and now one person from our side died. That only leaves you, doesn’t it?!”
There were also me, Nadia, and Daisy.
But we had built up a reputation through battle and by helping people.
The vampire, on the other hand, had not actively participated in combat. More than that, he belonged to one of the dark races feared alongside dark elves.
“I, I didn’t...”
The vampire struggled as though he had been wronged, but no one believed him.
Argus tightened his grip as though he intended to crush the vampire’s neck.
Crack.
“Ghk... Kgh...”
“I’ll kill you!”
I stepped in to stop him.
“Wait.”
“...Ian. Why are you stopping me?”
“There are too many suspicious points to conclude that he is the culprit.”
“You’re protecting this man when you don’t even know his name?”
The dragonkin’s vicious, vertically slit eyes fixed on me.
“Did this vampire bastard bewitch you? Or are you the culprit?”
Had his companion’s death driven him mad?
The usually cheerful Mr. Argus spoke sharply.
“Now that I think about it, it was strange. You suddenly brought along someone from the Labyrinth who wasn’t in the information.”
‘That lizard bastard really is saying whatever he wants.’
Seeing his reaction, I dropped the honorifics and replied coldly.
“Watch your tongue. Are you saying you cannot even trust a Priest who serves Meia?”
The glare of the enraged swordsman collided with my eyes, lit by spells of many colors.
“...”
Because of a murderer who had suddenly begun sowing discord, the atmosphere became razor-sharp in an instant.
The Cole-Kenny brothers quietly moved their hands toward their quivers.
Kind-hearted Daisy stood beside me, gripping her mace tightly as she looked at those we had fought alongside as though they were enemies.
She looked ready to take a blade for me if necessary.
Of course, I would never let that happen.
“Stop!!!”
Funnily enough, the most levelheaded person here was the barbarian, Ulric.
Though he belonged to Argus’s party, he defended me instead.
“Everyone is too worked up! Doesn’t Ian have a point?”
“Even you, Ulric...”
After Ulric spoke, Argus finally released the vampire’s collar.
“Then who is the culprit? Do you have anyone in mind...?”
Kraaaash!
“Damn... Is it already time?”
More precisely, a deafening roar rang out from outside.
The boss battle was approaching.
“Follow the plan!!! Everyone, move!”
“We’re going into battle with a murderer behind us.”
“I expected better from a respected mage.”
Argus and the Cole-Kenny brothers each threw out a remark as they gathered their weapons and headed for the deck.
“Young master!”
“We deal with the Outer Dimension Guardian first. We search for the murderer afterward.”
Lucian’s group followed behind them.
Ulric slung his axe over his shoulder, stretched, and spoke.
“You must have a reason, right? Genius spell-slinger Ian.”
“Yes. But why did you help me, Ulric?”
With his personality, I had expected him to smash the vampire’s head in immediately.
“This vampire is not a warrior. He’s a shady mage. But why would a mage do something that would get him suspected right away?”
Barbarians might look ignorant at first glance, but they were never fools.
Their simple way of speaking came only from their unique culture.
‘He’s looking at the situation rationally, just like me.’
“Until expedition ends, I protect Daisy and Ian. That was promise.”
Ulric patted my shoulder and left.
The vampire bowed his head to me.
“Th-thank you, Ian.”
“Don’t misunderstand. It’s not because I trust you.”
“Then why...?”
“The circumstances are too suspicious.”
They were pushing the blame too openly.
Of course, this was a primitive world where people drew swords before thinking when things went wrong, so it was hardly enough reasoning to believe the vampire innocent.
‘But there’s someone I have in mind.’
If I was right, killing the vampire would only be a pointless death, and that person would be the only one laughing.
“If you want to live, do your best in this battle.”
“Y-yes!”
The vampire headed onto the deck with a determined expression.
“Nadia, stay close to us.”
“...Okay.”
Daisy whispered to me.
“Ian, who is the culprit?”
I carefully looked around with only my eyes, then wrote down the person I suspected and showed it to Daisy alone.
“...?!”
Daisy’s eyes widened in shock.
“Get yourself together and focus. We deal with the boss first.”
“Okay!”
With grim expressions, we headed onto the deck.
* * *
Rumble...
The moment we stepped outside, the icy air and rain soaked us to the bone.
Darkness surrounded us.
There was nothing but the vast blackness of the rough sea and sheets of rain.
‘It feels like we’re in the middle of a typhoon.’
The final area, Storm-Tossed Waters, lived up to its notorious name.
“Damn it, without Turkan, it’s hard to keep our balance!”
“Tie yourselves down so you don’t get swept away!”
Creaaaak!
Turkan’s absence was especially severe because he could control the weather.
In the even fiercer storm, the ship began pitching violently.
Ugh, my stomach...
My seasickness worsened as well.
While I staggered and gritted my teeth, Daisy tightly secured us with rope and tied us to the mast.
Then, without even a moment to spare.
Screeeech!
“They’re here!”
The Wave had begun before the boss battle.
Beneath the black sea churning under the downpour, the bluish eyes of undead and fishfolk glowed like phosphorescence.
Like moths drawn to light, they rode the waves toward us. Scraping at the bottom of the ship, they began climbing aboard one after another.
Kihihihik!
A bolt of lightning crashed down, illuminating the grisly forms of bare skeletons and fishfolk.
“Hold them back!”
“Kill them!”
Knight Pierre gritted their teeth while crossing blades with an undead sailor wreathed in blue ghostfire.
A soldier beside Pierre swung a hammer coated in Holy Water, but meanwhile, a fishfolk harpooner hurled its weapon.
Clang!
“Urgh!”
The soldier was struck hard in the chest, staggered back, slipped, and struck their head.
The dead Ned.
At that moment, the absence of one frontline fighter was keenly felt.
“Grrraaaah!”
Another soldier left the front line to fill the gap.
Naturally, that affected Argus’s group, who had been holding another section.
Kreeeeek!
Strengthened by the seawater soaking its body, a fiddler crab fishfolk charged at the dragonkin, using its massive carapace as a shield.
Argus shattered its shell with his greatsword and tore through its insides, but even while spewing bloody foam, it raised its pincers menacingly and tried to take Argus’s throat.
“Ghk...”
Thunk!
An arrow pierced the fiddler crab fishfolk’s eye, but that was only a temporary measure.
“Kenny!!!”
“Damn it! Somebody beat these bastards down!”
Around the Cole-Kenny brothers, who were firing arrows wildly from the watchtower, undead sailors who knew neither pain nor fear were slowly climbing up with swords clenched between their teeth.
“Uooooooh!”
The rain blurred our vision. The wet wooden deck and weapon grips were slippery.
Meanwhile, aquatic monsters unaffected by such conditions sprang out and attacked from every direction.
[The hand of Galio, the senior soldier holding a shield, slipped!]
[His elbow was cut by a fishfolk’s spiked blade!]
[Agh! It stings!]
It was a desperate battle.
The uncertainty over whether there was a Mafia made it even harder for us to cooperate like before.
Everyone was too busy watching their backs to focus completely on the enemies before them.
[Knight Pierre is watching their back!]
[The dragonkin Argus is watching his back!]
[The brothers Cole and Kenny are wary of the vampire Clive!]
The only one who could turn this situation around was, as expected, me, the mage.
[Chain Lightning][2] [Arcane Ray][2] [Ice Armor][2] [Arcane Firefly][2]
[Charge][2] [Water Mist][3] [Frost Burst][3] [Arcane Barrier][2]
[Lightning Arrow][2] [Magic Missile][3]
I recalled the spells I had engraved and extended my staff.
“Everyone, get down!”
[Arcane Ray]
Bzzzzzzzz!
Destructive light swept through the battlefield, but even I could not completely reverse the unfavorable situation.
Unlike before, Turkan was not here to nullify the drawbacks of my strongest force, lightning magic.
‘Everyone is tangled up with monsters, and we’re all soaked.’
‘If I use lightning magic in this situation, we’ll all be electrocuted to death.’
[Blessing]
[Holy Flame]
[Heal]
Daisy had saved her power for the boss battle, but she finally cast spell after spell on Ulric, who had been pushed onto the defensive.
“Uooooooh!”
Empowered by divine grace, the wounded barbarian let out a savage roar and cut down the monsters pouring toward us in one stroke.
Even then, the ship, covered in monsters, continued onward.
Rumble...
Kraaaash!
Before we knew it, drifting wrecks filled the waters around us.
‘A graveyard of ships.’
Reaching this place meant...
“It’s coming!!!”
The boss of this Secret Dungeon.
The Outer Dimension Guardian was appearing.
Rumble...
With tremors beyond anything before, the center of the sea split apart, and a shadow like a mountain rose from the depths.
“Kuoooooooh!”
Its roar shook even the storm.
“Ghk...”
“Hup!”
Ignoring the ringing in our ears, we looked ahead and saw a massive figure well over ten meters tall.
As its hideous upper body emerged from beneath the sea, shipwreck masts and skeletons tangled behind it and swayed like seaweed.
With a single motion of its webbed hand, our ship listed so hard that it looked ready to overturn.
Grrrrind!
“W-we’re being pushed back!!!”
“Hold on tight!”
Clutching wrecks and shuffling forward like undead crawling from a grave, the figure that emerged was a green-skinned giant.
“It’s here!!! A sea giant!!!”
“Kuooooooh!”
[Old and Sick Sea Giant Gunbar]
‘It’s here!’
“H-hic!”
“Ahhh...”
There was an enormous gap between theory and practice.
Hearing about something and seeing it yourself were completely different.
Whirl.
Coins appeared above everyone’s heads.
[Heads/Tails]
‘Heads.’
[Failure]
[Failure]
[Success]
The giant’s overwhelming presence intimidated those weak of heart.
“Fuck, it’s even bigger in person...”
Giants were normally classified as high-level monsters that appeared on the fifth floor or deeper.
This one was weakened in many ways, as its title indicated that it was old and sick. Even so, it was incredibly dangerous because of its enormous body and the underwater bonus it received.
‘It can’t wield divine spells like Hodrick, but...’
‘Its overwhelming physique is power in itself.’
‘If we leave it alone, the ship will sink in no time. We need to move quickly.’
Some of us would handle the lesser monsters while others fought the sea giant, then activate the nearby mechanism to weaken it.
Afterward, we would exploit an opening and finish it off.
That was the core of our newly prepared plan.
But...
‘Right now, we can’t draw its attention, and we don’t have enough damage.’
Our numbers had decreased, and because everyone was wary of the Mafia, we had failed to clear out the Wave monsters as planned.
They were blocking our path to the sea giant.
“Kuoooooooh!”
The Guardian merely swung an arm once, but a massive tidal wave rose up.
“It’s coming!”
“Hold on!”
The ship that had endured even the storm overturned.
“Ahhhhh!”
“Jadin!!!”
Several unlucky people were swept away by the waves.
“Ghk...”
I barely managed to endure it myself.
Argus had also held on by driving his greatsword into the deck. He shouted at me.
“Ian!!! Pour every spell you have except lightning into those monsters! I’ll draw the Guardian’s attention while you do!!!”
It was a tactic only he could use because he possessed Dragon Blood, a powerful authority that granted immunity to all physical attacks.
It was not bad for an improvised plan.
Was I not currently sealed off from my strongest spells because of the environment?
But...
‘This is my chance while it’s still far away.’
“No! Everyone, fall back and protect me!!!”
“What?!”
There was a better plan.
I had not created my strategy before entering the Secret Dungeon with the assumption that we would have a shaman capable of controlling the weather.
‘A cumulonimbus cloud.’
If I lacked teeth, I would make do with my gums.
Now that I had fusion spells, I could compensate for the penalty of electrocution.
“Heh heh heh!”
Ignoring the protests around me, I touched the Tome of Starlight and prepared my chant.
[Ian did not blink even before the terrifying giant.]
[Powerful mana is rising from Ian’s entire body.]
* * *
[The Grimoire of Lightning is answering its master’s call.]
[Ian is preparing to call lightning.]
The pouring wind and rain.
The churning sea.
The occasional bolts of lightning.
Rumble! Kraaaash!
It was the perfect environment for calling lightning.
‘I’ll roast you whole!’
I grinned and prepared the spell.
There was no need to create a new spell from scratch.
‘I’ll interfere with the vast source of energy that is the storm and twist it slightly with magic.’
‘The target is huge. There’s no way I can miss.’
Unlike Hodrick, the first-floor special boss, the sea giant had exceptional physical ability but was not particularly intelligent.
Perhaps because wrecks and seaweed were tangled around its body, it was crawling forward.
Boom! Boom!
“Uooooooh!”
There was plenty of time.
‘It’s dozens of meters away.’
There was enough distance for safety too.
“Are you trying to kill us all?!”
“Turkan isn’t here to block it with a barrier or anything! You crazy bastard!”
The problem was those fools who did not understand this genius’s plan.
“Do you have some way to prevent electrocution?”
[Because Ian protected the vampire Clive, his credibility has dropped.]
Except for the noble Lucian, everyone was causing a commotion.
“Daisy! Ulric!!! Keep those bastards away from me!”
I pointed at Argus’s group and Lucian’s subordinates, who were trying to stop me.
“Don’t stop Ian!”
“None of you come closer!”
[Water Mist]
[Water Mist]
[Frost Burst]
[Frost Burst]
I burned the Inner Parchment within me, focused my mana, controlled the trajectories, and cast my spells.
Remembering the Floor Master incident, I once again created a small artificial thundercloud near the sea giant.
Boom!
“Uooooooh!”
The sea giant finally pulled itself from the water and beat its chest as it roared.
Without even realizing that ominous clouds had gathered around it.
Rumble!
Of course, this alone was not enough.
The occasional lightning bolts were striking near the giant, but unless one hit it directly, they would be nothing more than mosquito bites to it.
So...
‘I’ll guide them.’
Naturally, I could not use Lightning Arrow as a catalyst like before.
If I did, we would be struck by lightning as well.
That was exactly what the other Expedition Party members were worried about.
Without knowing I possessed this spell.
[Charge] + [Arcane Firefly]
After dozens of experiments, I had discovered that fusing these two spells allowed me to use them like this.
[Mark of Lightning]
The small butterfly that rose from my palm gave off ominous sparks.
Crackle, crackle!
‘Lightning strikes the nearest point with the least resistance.’
[Ice Armor]
Then...
‘Pure ice without impurities is an insulator that does not conduct electricity well.’
After wrapping it in that...
‘I’ll fire it!’
When I flicked my finger, the butterfly flew.
It scattered beautiful blue light as it drifted gracefully and lightly through the air.
Then...
Crack-crack-crack!!!
There was light in the darkness.
A destructive light beyond anything before.
[Lightning Storm]
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