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Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 190

A few days had passed since Luke acquired the Plant Sensor skill. It changed the way he explored the forest. As a botanist, he could gain experience by analyzing plants, especially new or rare specimens, and now, he could do it remotely, within the radius of his perception field. Of course, the experience gain wasn’t anything dramatic. As his profession advanced, the system demanded more to level up.

Still, Luke wasn’t one to turn down help, no matter how small. He spent entire days...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 189

A brutal impact came from above. Luke threw himself sideways on instinct. Something slammed into the ground where he’d just been, a shockwave burst outward, hurling him into the trunk of a tree.

[Forest Minotaur – Lvl 52]

Luke hit the ground and rolled, coughing hard. “Shit…”

The minotaur stood there, staring him down. It drew a deep breath through its nostrils, and Luke understood what it was doing. It was smelling him on purpose. Then the beast c...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 188

The moment Luke confirmed his new profession…

[New profession acquired: Botanist of Mother Freya]

[Skill evolution complete!]

A new, unexpected notification lit up on the interface. He frowned.

[Herbology (Common)] -> [Herbology of Mother Freya (Ancient)]

“…Holy shit.” Luke’s eyes went wide. “I just got a skill with an insanely high rarity!”

He didn’t know all the possible rarity leve...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 187

The five profession options floated before him like pages from a magical book, suspended midair on the system’s interface: Veteran Herbalist, Venomous Herbalist, Alchemist of Ardan, Botanist of Mother Freya, and Beekeeper of Mikhayla.

They ranged from a shadowy chemical sect whose followers treated alchemical compounds as a form of faith, to the fanatical servants of a multiversal hive, an insectoid cult led by a honey-worshipping deity that sent entire swarms to spread its doctrine a...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 186

Before Luke, five options glowed across his system interface, each one a potential evolution of his profession as Herbalist. He had seen something like this before, when his Assassin class evolved, and again when Princess Charlie’s warrior path transformed. But this… this felt different. It was deeper.

“I can’t stay in the room,” Kalysto said, her tone more serious than usual. “This is a personal choice. I’ll leave you to it.”

She didn’t wait for a reply. Her foo...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 185

Kalysto watched the human work in the lab, her expression unreadable. From time to time, she made a comment, usually clipped, occasionally biting, but for the most part, she preferred silence, arms folded, eyes narrow. Her gaze scanned every movement he made, like a teacher waiting to catch a student's mistake. Still, she offered the occasional, sharp observation when something particularly idiotic or unexpectedly clever caught her attention.

“What are you doing?” she asked, arms cr...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 184

Luke was back in the cave. The room he now occupied had been transformed into a makeshift Herbalist’s lab. Nothing sophisticated, just bowls, spoons, cloth filters, and other basic tools. According to Samael, the place had equipment for every profession. But Luke was currently using Kalysto’s. Anything more advanced would probably only confuse him at this stage.

“You really did bring back quite a haul,” Kalysto said, eyeing his overstuffed bag with clinical focus.

The task...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 183

[Savior Nettle (Common)]: Empowered by the ambient magical energy, this plant retains its natural toxin-fighting properties, now enhanced. Its leaves are ideal for crafting effective antidotes against mild to moderate poisons.

The next plant Luke found was especially promising. Without hesitation, he began gathering a generous handful of the nettles.

“I wonder if using more at once would boost the antidote’s potency…”

That thought lingering in hi...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 182

It had been a day since Luke had acquired the Herbalist profession, and he had spent every hour of it immersed in the book Samael had given him. Unlike the volumes in the library, which were broader and more generalized, A Study in Green: Beginner’s Herbology by Mother Freya was deep, technical, and incredibly rich in detail. Luke had chosen to study it thoroughly before stepping into the field.

The content was impressive. It described an ecosystem entirely different from Earth’s, f...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 181

Jonathan walked through a silent cave, each of his steps echoing like a muffled thunderclap against the narrow, damp walls. The air was thick, heavy with moisture and the strong scent of ancient earth, as if time itself had stopped in that place. The stones beneath his boots were slick with moss, demanding careful footing with every move.

Ahead of him, the old figure known only as the Hanged Man led the way with calm, measured steps, as if he had walked this labyrinth a thousand times b...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 180

The notification appeared before Luke’s eyes. He had gained a profession. It was a defining choice, one that could alter the course of his entire journey. He still didn’t know whether it was possible to change professions later, and just like with classes, he suspected it wasn’t.

Samael was watching him closely.

“Before I give you the answer,” he said, “what was the line of reasoning that led you to this decision?”

Luke didn’t look away.

“You said wit...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 179

Luke took a deep breath. The cool, slightly damp air of the room slipped into his lungs, carrying with it the faint scent of old wood and worn ink. He pulled the bowstring back firmly, his fingers pressing against the arrow with controlled tension. The rough leather grip pressed into his palm, and the weight of focus settled across his shoulders. It was much harder than it looked.

Over the past few days, he’d been practicing with the bow in one of the quieter rooms of the place. It ha...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 178

A week had passed since Luke arrived in that place. During that time, he’d tried asking Samael a few questions, about the tutorial, the system, even bloodlines, but the window for that kind of conversation had long since closed. Those few minutes right after their first encounter had been his one and only chance. It was over now.

Still, some things had become clearer to him. For one, he gained a deeper understanding of how the tutorial itself worked. The gods had interacted with it to...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 177

“If you fail,” Samael said, opening a book without even glancing at it—just moving through a ritual long memorized, mechanical, dulled by centuries of repetition—“I’ll teach you the profession you picked. Even if it’s idiotic, useless, and leads your entire journey straight into a ditch.” He gave a soft laugh, the kind that told Luke he truly didn’t care either way.

Luke stared at the mountain of books, a weight blooming in his gut. Each volume looked like it carried n...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 176

The Special Orb mission had updated in Luke’s system interface as completed—but just as the notification faded, another one appeared:

Assassination Contract (Exclusive)

Objective: Assassinate the Orc Lord.

[Mission Failed]

The contract had been forcefully updated. In that moment, Luke understood—this quest hadn’t come from the System alone. It had come from a god. And then, one more notification appear...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 175

Luke stared at Samael. He had interrupted the conversation about his demonic bloodline—because, to him, there was something far more important at stake.

“My mother joined a tutorial years ago... and never came back,” Luke said, his voice firm. “The reason I ended up in this tutorial… is because I want to know how she died.”

Samael went silent. His expression didn’t change, but something in his eyes sharpened—focused.

“It’s possible to find out,” he repl...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 174

Jonathan had been wandering the Wild Zone for days. Alone. The trees stretched in twisted columns, their gnarled branches clawing toward the overcast sky. Moisture clung to the wide leaves, and the ground gave way beneath his boots with a soft, wet squelch. Hidden thorns beneath moss tore at his soles as he moved in total silence—like the world itself had forgotten that life still lingered here.

Even without his right arm, he faced everything in his path with raw, almost feral determi...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 173

Samael had just revealed something important. A new layer beneath the mechanics of that world. The System might be absolute, but tutorials... tutorials could be shaped. By gods. And not just to train or level participants, but to observe them, test them, filter them. To search for worthy bread.

But this tutorial, the one Luke was facing, was different.

"What do you mean... the place where the System originated?" Luke asked, curiosity sharpening his voice.

Samael drew a breat...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 172

Luke sat in an armchair beside Samael—a true god, a servant of the Darkness that had granted him his bloodline. And now he knew something crucial: the Darkness had a name. Azazel.

Footsteps echoed down the hall. Luke turned toward the corridor as a woman approached.

“Don’t worry. She’s with me,” Samael said calmly.

She wore a pristine white maid’s dress. Her skin was porcelain-pale, her fiery red hair nearly orange, her face dusted with freckles. She carried a tr...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 171

Luke had arrived, guided by Artemis, and now stood deep within the cave—face to face with a man who, by the way he dressed and carried himself, didn’t seem like someone enduring the same hellish tutorial as the rest of them. He wore a black suit, his beard was immaculately trimmed, and until seconds ago, he’d been sipping wine from a crystal glass.

Nothing in that place felt like it belonged to the tutorial. It was clean. Organized. A strange fusion of library, laboratory, and liv...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 170

Luke was surrounded. The Beast Lord had coiled its enormous body around the very ground he stood on. He knew there was no winning this fight. His eyes scanned the streets, the alleys, the crumbling buildings—even the debris at his feet. His mind raced, exploding with possibilities, but every scenario led to the same end: death. Prolonging the battle by even a minute would seal his fate. The Beast Lord watched him, its slit eyes gleaming, its face almost twisted into a smile.

He had no...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 169

In front of Luke, two massive yellow eyes stared him down. Slitted pupils like blades. The scent of the city mixed with something heavier, something rotten. The stench of the serpent. It was the reek of old blood, wet moss, and damp earth.

[Frankzaroth, the Great Serpent (Beast Lord) - Lvl 83]

Its body was as thick as a freight train, scales black and uneven like scorched iron plates fused together. It didn’t move. It only watched. Judging. Calculating. Tasting....

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 168

Luke followed a narrow trail that cut deep through the dense forest of this new section of the Wild Zone. The capital was still far off—its presence lingering beyond the horizon—but the quiet, steady march served as a rare opportunity for reflection. Now, with Artemis chattering in his ear, he found himself seeing recent events from a different perspective.

Ever since leaving the fortress and crossing the barrier, his thoughts kept circling back. To the choices he’d made. The name...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 167

Before the group set out on the special raid event to seize the second fortress—before Luke had even left the new area of the tutorial—things had been anything but simple. The journey up to that point had been long, marked by loss, choices, and a silence that never quite left him. And now, as his steps carried him toward the entrance of the second mechanism’s fortress, his mind betrayed him—dragging him back to where it had all begun.

To the exact moment he opened the barrier ga...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 166

A line was forming at the fortress gates, drawing in everyone from the camp. Under the moonlight and the tense hush of night, the group moved forward with a quiet seriousness, preparing for what lay ahead.

Luke watched in silence as Mason handed out large metal shields to each person in line. They were heavy—crafted from repurposed armor plates, salvaged scrap, and materials collected over the past few months. Improvised, yes. But also ingenious.

In addition to the shields, each...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 165

Everyone was on their way to the second fortress. They moved through the Wild Zone in tense silence, descending a steep trail along the cliffs until they reached the lower ledge. At the bottom, a clean jump sent them straight into the cold river waters. Time was working against them—according to Allison and Evangeline, it was vital to activate the second mechanism as soon as possible and occupy the fortress, bringing in civilians to reinforce the position.

Luke walked at a distance, k...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 164

Luke was walking outside. Snow was falling steadily, and the wind blew hard against his coat. Around him, people huddled near campfires. The street had turned into a makeshift camp. Everywhere he looked, he saw survivors. Some were carrying firewood. Others stirred food in dented pots over weak flames.

Some faces he recognized from the Haven. Others were new. As he passed by, he received a few cold stares. No one confronted him, likely following Allison’s orders. That small group in t...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 163

Luke had walked out the door, leaving behind a silence that felt thick and weighted. Those who remained in the room were now forced to deal with a new reality—or at least, the possibility of one. Doubt hung in the air like mist. No one was entirely sure whether Luke had been telling the full truth.

Some faces showed open distrust. Others, a quieter unease. The room felt strange. Unsettled. As if a new piece had just been dropped onto the board, and no one knew if it was a bluff or che...

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 162

Everyone stared at him, stunned. The silence in the room was thick, and even Allison and Evangeline kept their eyes locked on Luke, waiting for an explanation. He leaned calmly against the wall, as if the weight of their attention didn’t bother him at all.

“You really killed the Beast Lord?” Evangeline asked. Her voice was steady, but curious.

“Yes,” Luke said without hesitation.

“Bullshit,” muttered Dustin, the bald giant, crossing his arms with clear disdain....

Becoming the Dark Lord - Chapter 161

Everyone had their weapons drawn, eyes locked on Luke as he calmly returned his kukri to his inventory. The tension was thick. Some watched him, waiting—maybe even hoping—for him to make a move. The anger in the room was palpable, but Luke didn’t care.

“Lower your weapons,” Allison said firmly. “Haven’t I already explained his side of the story? Haven’t I proven to you that Bartholomew’s been lying to us—hiding a mechanism all along?”

“And we’re just supp...