Chapter 17: Evan’s Hidden Card

Evan was clearing out the area around the goblin village with the knights.

He had decided to devote all his remaining time before their arrival to hunting.

‘It’s about time I purge the residual mana poison in my body. To do that, I need to get my level up to at least the mid-30s.’

Heres and Hilton would be arriving soon.

Until now, various factors had delayed him, but there was no more time for hesitation.

Growth was important, but eliminating the penalties affecting his body was even more critical.

‘I really want to get rid of all this dead weight.’

He was finally getting used to his body, but it still felt slow and cumbersome to move.

‘My physical stats have improved to a decent level. My mana sensitivity has become quite usable as my level increased. It’s time to give it a shot.’

To increase the chance of success, he needed to raise his level as much as possible.

With his fighting spirit burning, Evan dashed forward.

Sfx: Slicing!

His sword cut clean through the neck of a charging wolf.

[Level Up!]

Graaaar!

Evan’s blade didn’t stop—it continued cutting down wolf after wolf.

Sfx: Slash!

Another wolf was sliced and slammed to the ground.

Grrrr!

‘As many as possible.’

All of this was experience points.

That thought alone made Evan move faster and faster.

[Skill Activated: Wolf’s Sprint]

[Movement speed increased by 150% (Duration: 03:00)]

The cooldown of the Dire Sword ability had just reset.

Its effects synergized powerfully with Evan’s swordsmanship talent.

His hunting speed accelerated dramatically.

The knights following behind could only look on in shock.

‘Young Master’s growth rate is terrifying. He gets stronger with every fight.’

From a teacher’s perspective, Alan couldn’t help but be amazed by Evan’s extraordinary rate of growth.

He was no longer the delinquent young master Alan once knew.

At this rate, Evan could only be described as a swordsmanship prodigy.

‘He hasn’t even used aura yet. When did he master such sword techniques?’

Of course, these weren’t official sword techniques passed down by the family.

But they were just as smooth—if not better.

It felt like swordsmanship forged purely for real combat.

Such a level of mastery was something only battle-hardened knights could usually achieve.

“Alan, are the rumors about the Young Master really false?”

Reynold, who had caught up beside Alan, asked with sparkling eyes.

Seeing that, Alan hesitated for a moment before nodding.

There was no need to shatter Reynold’s admiration.

“Well, there are reasons behind those rumors. But he’s the son of Knight Commander Clyd, after all. Of course his swordsmanship is exceptional.”

“Is that so? I knew it… The others following behind are all shocked too.”

Reynold grinned as he pointed to the other knights trailing behind.

When Alan turned to look, he saw the 10th-class knights struggling to keep up with Evan’s hunting speed, staring at him with stunned expressions.

‘This works out well. They won’t look down on him anymore.’

When Alan turned his head forward again, he saw Evan had stopped.

Evan raised a hand, signaling for everyone to halt.

“Young Master? Is something wrong?”

Alan hurried over and asked.

Evan, with a thoughtful expression, responded.

“Look over there.”

Alan followed Evan’s gaze.

A massive number of wolves were devouring goblin corpses.

“Where did all those come from?”

Cold sweat ran down Alan’s back as he glanced at Evan.

Evan stared at the wolves like a hunter eyeing prey.

“They’re all gathered in one place.”

From observing Evan’s recent actions, Alan could already guess what he was thinking.

‘He plans to hunt them all in one go, doesn’t he?’

Sure enough—

Before Alan could finish the thought, Evan gave a command.

“Alan, go bring all the knights here.”

“Are you really going to take on all of those?”

“You didn’t need me to say it, huh?”

“…Still, please don’t rush in recklessly this time.”

Alan was still concerned, but he knew Evan’s personality all too well—

Once he made up his mind, there was no changing it.

He had no choice but to follow Evan’s orders.

Alan turned to gather the knights who had been waiting in the rear.

Meanwhile, Evan opened his shop window.

‘The second tier of the shop just unlocked. There should be some decent hunting gear available now.’

Recalling what he knew, Evan focused on a few select items.

[Hunter’s Trap – 5,000 Contribution Points]

[Crude Snare – 8,000 Contribution Points]

[Tracker’s Harpoon – 12,000 Contribution Points]

[Shoddy Poison – 3,000 Contribution Points]

Among the various items, only about three looked immediately useful.

The trap-type items like the Hunter’s Trap and Crude Snare caught Evan’s attention.

‘If I apply the Shoddy Poison to them and use them together…’

He might just be able to hunt down all those wolves.

[Purchased 1 Shoddy Poison]

[3,000 Contribution Points deducted]

Evan bought one vial of Shoddy Poison to test it out.

He pulled the glass bottle from his inventory.

Click!

The moment he opened the cap, a toxic vapor began to seep out.

“Urgh, that stinks.”

The poison vapor entered Evan’s respiratory system immediately.

[You have been exposed to an unknown poison]

[Poison Resistance Skill activated]

[Poison resistance increased by 70%]

[Poison damage reduced by 20%]

Of course, thanks to his resistance, the poison’s effects on Evan were minimal.

He glanced back at the glass vial.

The early-shop poisons were notoriously hard to use.

All of them carried some risk of poisoning the user as well.

Normally, one would need airtight suits or mana-sealing protective gear.

But this world didn’t have such equipment.

The technology from his previous world made such gear possible.

‘These low-grade poisons are hard to handle…’

But Evan was confident that he could manage them now.

He immediately began purchasing traps and poisons in bulk.

Enough to wipe out the entire pack of wolves.

His plan was to scatter them across the forest and set everything up.

[Level Up!]

[Level Up!]

Crash!

.

Grrk!

Howls of pain echoed throughout the forest.

Wolves collapsed after triggering hidden traps.

All Evan had to do now was calmly walk over and finish them off.

The 10th-class knights were currently luring wolves into the traps Evan had placed.

‘This is a total jackpot. I didn’t think I’d get to do this kind of easy mass-hunt with no real cost.’

Any experienced hunter from his previous world would have been seriously impressed.

It was unthinkable to monopolize all the experience without offering anything in return.

But in this world, it was possible.

‘I have subordinates who move solely for my sake.’

Evan smirked as he contemplated how to exploit the rank-10 knights even further.

With that, Evan didn’t stop hunting until he reached his target: Level 35.

***

The next day.

Evan had finished preparing everything and was now waiting.

‘Today’s the day Marquess Armeria is supposed to visit.’

Until the Marquess arrived, Evan reviewed documents detailing his movements.

He had acquired basic information through Alburton.

Knock knock.

“Young Master. The Marquess has arrived. He’s waiting for you in the drawing room.”

Alburton knocked on the door and delivered the message.

“He’s here earlier than I expected. Got it, I’ll head out now.”

Evan set the documents aside and left his room, following Alburton toward the drawing room.

Clunk!

As Evan opened the door to the drawing room, he saw a man with black hair and red eyes.

‘That’s the Marquess Armeria?’

Somehow, that black hair reminded Evan of his previous world.

‘According to the information, he’s from the Northern Empire. Black hair is a common trait there.’

He didn’t know the exact circumstances of how the man came to be Marquess of Armeria in the Kingdom of Lupes.

Regardless, this man was now the head of the Marquess family.

Evan activated his Eye of Insight to check the man’s information.

[Darwen Armeria]

[Disposition: Good]

[Race: Human]

[Gender: Male]

[Affinity: 0%]

[Potential Abilities: Fire Attribute, Elemental Magic, Bloodline Power, Archaeology]

[Known Skills: 6th Circle, Magic Analysis Lv.101, Mana Sensitivity Lv.110, Mana Control Lv.97, Fireball Lv.30, Wind Cutter Lv.16, Ice Arrow Lv.21…]

Your current level is too low to view this soul’s memories.

‘Ho?’

Evan raised the corners of his lips with interest.

A long list of skills that were difficult to register at once—he was clearly an exceptional mage.

‘If he’s at the 6th Circle, that’s probably equivalent to an S-rank Hunter in the magic class. In this world, they say 8th Circle makes one an Archmage, right?’

It was clear the man was no ordinary spellcaster.

‘There’s no doubt about his magical prowess.’

He had more than enough talent to become the Master of the Mage Tower.

But even if Darwen’s abilities were proven, that didn’t mean he could be trusted.

What mattered most was earning true trust.

Evan attempted to access his memories for more information.

[The target’s level is too high. You cannot view the soul’s memories at your current level.]

A strange message appeared before his eyes.

‘Wait, I can’t access his memories?’

Evan only realized it after checking the last line in the status window.

His level was too low to access Darwen’s memories.

This was a first.

While he couldn’t see exact numbers, it was now clear that memory access was also influenced by level.

‘So if the level gap is too wide, I can’t read memories?’

It was new information.

But more importantly, it meant a critical variable in his current situation.

‘Looks like I won’t be getting much from this route…’

Letting go of his disappointment, Evan opened his mouth first.

“Marquess, thank you for responding to my sudden summons.”

He greeted him with appropriate courtesy.

Darwen stared at Evan, visibly intrigued.

“Hmm…”

“Is something the matter?”

“No, I’m just surprised. You’re not quite what I expected.”

Darwen hadn’t had a good impression of Evan.

The young lord’s infamous reputation preceded him.

Everyone knew him as a notorious troublemaker.

Of course, Evan also quickly noticed that Darwen didn’t think highly of him.

The man’s subtly dismissive tone and look of distaste were hard to miss.

‘But the one holding the reins here is me.’

Evan returned a polite smile.

“Is that so? I appreciate the compliment.”

Darwen said nothing and simply lifted the teacup from the table.

As he sipped, he thought to himself:

‘I heard he was a rude, idiotic brat with a broken personality…’

But the young man in front of him was calm and surprisingly well-mannered.

It was far from what he had imagined.

Still, Darwen shook off the surprise.

‘That doesn’t matter.’

He calmly set the teacup down and got straight to the point.

“Did you really draw the magic circles mentioned in the letter?”

It was an ancient magic circle related to a spell he had been desperately researching.

A trace he hadn’t found in any ruin—yet this so-called brat knew of it.

Evan responded smoothly.

“Yes. I heard you had a deep interest in ancient magic, Marquess. I actually wanted to ask you about the magic circles as well.”

Darwen nodded slightly in acknowledgment before continuing.

“Very well. Can you take me to the site where the magic circles are inscribed? I’ll make sure you’re well compensated.”

Evan hesitated for a moment, then shook his head.

“Before that, there’s something else I’d like to discuss.”

After all, the magic circle was just bait to lure the Marquess here.

It wasn’t the real focus. Evan swiftly moved on.

But in that moment, Darwen’s gaze turned cold.

“What? I came here for the magic circles.”

His voice was stern, as if he refused to hear anything else.

Evan had expected this reaction.

Still unfazed, he responded calmly.

“I think you’ll change your mind once you hear what I have to say.”

Evan recalled everything he knew about the Armeria family.

It was common knowledge, but to him, it would serve as a leash.

‘The Armeria family is in worse shape than I thought.’

Surrounding factions had cut off the family’s major sources of income.

They tried to survive on the royal magic research funds, but when mages started leaving, even that dried up.

In short, they were on the brink of ruin.

“You’re saying you have urgent news for me, young lord?”

Darwen’s red eyes locked onto Evan.

His gaze was sharp.

Evan met his eyes and was certain—

The timing was perfect.

“Marquess, don’t you wish to reclaim your former glory?”

“What? What exactly are you saying?”

Evan’s lips curled into a grin.

“I’m asking if you’re interested in becoming the next Master of the Mage Tower.”

Tap. Tap.

Darwen began tapping the armrest of his chair.

It was a habit of his whenever he was deep in thought.

‘The magic circle… and now the Mage Tower…’

The magic circle was indeed a crucial clue for his research.

But the proposal of becoming the Mage Tower’s master piqued his interest even more.

Considering the Kerthen family’s prestige, and the discovery of a magic circle of this caliber, it might very well be connected to the Mage Tower.

‘If so, then this might be more important than I thought…’

And yet, Count Kerthen himself hadn’t even bothered to show up—he had sent only a young brat.

On top of that, they were being suspiciously vague about the Mage Tower.

‘Normally, I’d have walked out already.’

But for some reason, he couldn’t shake the strange feeling he got from this boy.

‘Was there really something more behind all this?’

Evan, smiling confidently, met his gaze.

“There’s nothing for you to lose, Marquess. And if you’re not interested, well… that’s fine too.”

He spoke with an air of total indifference, as if he had nothing to lose.

His utter confidence left Darwen stunned—and uncertain.

Darwen thought again of his situation.

A guild in decline.

An empty title.

And his one and only daughter.

‘If it’s just a conversation, I suppose there’s no harm.’

His expression softened slightly, and Evan noticed.

Then Evan reached into his coat.

“What I’m about to share is classified.”

As he finished speaking, he pulled out a scroll.

Darwen frowned as he stared at Evan.

“You’ve brought something quite interesting, young lord.”