I got into school for nothing - 109
I got into school for nothing (109)
Lesson 23. Even If It's a Lie - 4
There were two patterns to a Trick Room's rules.
The first applied to every single element that made up the room.
The second limited the scope of application.
For example, in Room 23, the rule that one must not attack the innocent naturally did not apply to the group of murderers.
However, the rule that those not contracted with a Constellation could not act within the city at night applied to everyone.
You might want to argue, "If the rules are going to be so arbitrary, why have them at all?"
Ultimately, the purpose of a Trick Room's rules was to make the climb difficult and worthwhile.
‘It’s an extreme example, but everyone who could violate the rule against attacking the innocent was a criminal. This room is probably the same. “You cannot attack first unless attacked.” If this condition applied to everyone, a truly peaceful world would arrive, after all.’
Furthermore, the second condition given in this room was consistent with the first.
Anyone who attacked them first would, at the very least, be branded with the crime of assault.
A criminal, in other words. They could be mercilessly struck down.
‘However, unlike before, I can’t attack and kill criminals the moment I discover them.’
Could it be that the Trick Room's rules actually changed based on their actions?
As Ban Yuwon pondered such thoughts seriously, As Light stomped his foot beside him.
"Is that important right now? What’s important is that it’s become a Chain Room all the way to Room 24! What are we going to do? That’s a 4-Chain Room!"
"Now that you mention it, you're right. Considering the foolish things we pulled in Room 23, we might actually expect a reward for Room 30, don't you think?"
"Ah, this has become quite troublesome,"
Dokgo Yeon said with a gloomy voice, looking up at the city walls that had, by now, drawn near.
The vigilance of the guards was incomparable to that of the small town in Room 23.
They didn't immediately shoot arrows upon seeing the group, but everyone was prepared to attack them at any moment.
There were two gates: the large one was tightly locked, while a smaller one beside it stood open, allowing people to pass.
"Come this way."
The guard, having spotted their figures, beckoned them over.
The group, as if by prior agreement, pushed Ban Yuwon to the front and approached the guard.
"We didn't use to conduct inspections like this, but these cultists have been running wild lately, so we have no choice. Where are you from?"
"We are coming from the small town."
When Ban Yuwon spoke the name of the small town, the guard’s complexion immediately turned pale.
"What?! You mean the city where a god descended? They say pillars of light and darkness shot up there. Rumor has it that this entire situation began escalating after that... What on earth was the situation like there?"
"It wasn't too bad, but... how did the rumors get out?"
According to the guard, the two pillars that had erupted from the small town two weeks prior had become a huge topic of conversation.
Fearing divine retribution, people had supposedly stopped even pissing in the direction of the small town after that.
If something major had truly occurred, there should have been people fleeing the small town, but there were none.
Thus, the small town was officially regarded as having been annihilated.
"Indeed, it would be logical to assume as much. In reality, though, it was quite the opposite."
"The opposite?"
"Of course. At that time, a group of cultists was secretly operating in the small town with the power of a Constellation, and it was I who..."
"You?"
"That is correct."
Ban Yuwon then adopted an expression of utmost piety, nodding his head.
And then, without so much as wetting his lips, he spun a total fabrication.
"It was I who punished them. In the name of a most holy being."
With those words, Ban Yuwon conjured a sphere of light above his palm.
It was a Photon Magic spell he had only just learned, but perhaps because its activation principle wasn't vastly different from the Elemental Magic he diligently practiced, casting the spell itself proved not very difficult.
"What?! No, it can’t be! Then that pillar of light?!"
Was magic that manipulated light truly so exceedingly rare?
The guard’s gaze instantly transformed.
Good. It was now clear that no individual associated with the 'Wings of Justice' was openly active in this city.
And with that confirmed, from now on, it was Ban Yuwon’s turn!
"That is precisely it. Of course, I’ve been recuperating for a while, suffering the after-effects of borrowing too much of His power... *Ahem*, so I’d like to hear the detailed accounts of what’s been happening lately."
"Hooooh...! Does that mean you would also provide assistance in resolving incidents here? No! We shouldn't be standing here like this! Please, come inside immediately! Your companions, too!"
The guard hastily called his colleague from inside, handed over his duties, and then bowed deeply, personally guiding them inside the city walls.
Ban Yuwon, wearing a benevolent smile as if he were truly a saint, followed behind, then glanced back at his companions with a "Did you see that?" expression.
"This man is truly absurd... Even if he entered the Murim Alliance as a penniless beggar, he’d still manage to become its leader."
"My conscience is pricking me. Why should I feel guilty when Ban is the one lying?"
"That's probably because, As Light..."
"...Rucell, why are you stopping mid-sentence? Huh? Rucell?"
The group received exceptionally lavish treatment.
Moreover, after a knight appeared to receive the report and confirmed that Ban Yuwon’s light magic was no hoax, their already excellent accommodations were upgraded even further!
"Ah, I think I could live here for a while."
"No."
In the knight’s mansion.
Dokgo Yeon replied flatly to Ban Yuwon, who was patting his belly with a satisfied expression after having enjoyed a sumptuous meal.
"Don't forget that this is merely a part of the Tower and a space for trials. It’s not a place to settle down comfortably."
"I know, I know. That’s why I just ate the meal."
"Huh? The meal?"
As Light, who had been leaning back in his chair with a languid expression due to having overeaten—perhaps the food here suited his taste more than the academy’s student cafeteria—blinked at those words.
"What about the meal? It was delicious, wasn’t it?"
"You blockhead, did you eat without even realizing there was poison in the food?"
"Poison?"
"And it was a potent poison."
As Light’s face crumpled.
In fact, due to his contract with the Holy Sword, he possessed a constitution that inherently nullified most poisons.
Thanks to that, he had probably munched down the poisoned meal without noticing a thing.
"Ban, wasn't this supposed to be a place where we could relax comfortably?"
"There's no such place in this world."
"As long as I'm by Yuwon's side, I can rest comfortably anywhere... ♡"
"Beast, stop making such shrewd appeals every chance you get."
Ban Yuwon sighed and activated the Language Magic of ‘Dissolution,’ completely eliminating the poison that had entered his companions’ bodies.
In truth, powerful individuals like Dokgo Yeon or Rucell possessed such strong resistance that he might not have needed to intervene... but he eliminated it just in case of any unknown after-effects.
"You all knew?! Was I the only one who didn't know, eating happily like an idiot? Why? Why did you just eat it?"
Of course, the moment Ban Yuwon confirmed there was poison in the meal they received, he had weakened it.
Specifically, he had isolated and absorbed only the character ‘맹’ (Potent) from the string of characters forming 맹독 (Potent Poison).
If so, why had he not eliminated all the poison, leaving a small amount behind?
That was...
"Because we had to be subjected to a preemptive attack. And poison is an excellent means of attack."
Ban Yuwon sighed in response, then rose and surveyed the situation outside.
In fact, it had been incredibly suspicious from the moment they were told to eat leisurely by themselves and their hosts had vacated the premises.
It seemed they were afraid of getting poisoned themselves.
What was important now was discerning who was an enemy and who was an ally, and for now, the knight was definitely an enemy.
Because in Ban Yuwon's ‘Myriad Poisons Eye,’ the fellow appeared stained jet black.
"In other words, he's the one who ordered the poison to be put in."
"Why?"
"I don't know. He could be a cultist following the ‘Claw of the Dark Forest,’ or he could be someone trying to kill us after receiving a tip-off from the ‘Wing of Justice.’ But that's not very important."
"Not important?!"
"Exactly. Regardless, it's certain that we've been attacked by him."
As expected, As Light still hadn’t grasped the true nature of this Trick Room.
Even though, fundamentally, it was no different from Room 23.
"As Light, let's say an incident occurs here. What would be important then?"
"Uh, well... the reason the incident happened...?"
"The answer is the criminal. We don't need to know why or how; we just need to catch the criminal. And the next most important thing is the person who caught the criminal."
"Ban, don't you often hear that your ideology is twisted...?"
"Just wait. Here, take this popcorn. ...*Kughak!*"
Ban Yuwon took popcorn out of his inventory, handed it to his companions, then opened the door and stepped outside.
As the gaze of the soldiers on guard inside the mansion focused on him, Ban Yuwon, who had been perfectly fine, suddenly coughed up blood that resembled bright red paint!
"What's wrong, sir!"
"Poison, someone poisoned the food! It must be cultists...!"
"My word! Quick, treat him!"
"Who cooked today's food!"
"Ha, hahaha... You are the cultist!"
"What?"
At the opportune moment, the knight stepped forward.
He gripped a thick sword, one perfectly suited for cleaving off heads, and glared fixedly at Ban Yuwon.
Surprisingly, his greatsword was emitting a brilliant light.
Light Enchantment! He was a magic swordsman.
"You imitated it quite plausibly, but you couldn't replicate His true power. Indeed, His words were correct. You are an evil that must be erased from this place!"
"My word, light?!"
"Surely not our knight!"
The knight aimed his pure-white, glowing greatsword at Ban Yuwon.
Just at that moment, Ban Yuwon stumbled, taking a blow from the knight’s sword on his shoulder and falling to one knee.
"Keuk!"
"It must be hard even to stand. To ensure your demise, I mixed in a potent basilisk poison, one drop of which can kill even an ogre."
"Cowardly scoundrel! For one who claims to follow the light to use poison...!"
Ban Yuwon thought to himself, even as he cried out as if in agony.
‘Just in case, I took a hit, and it seems the rules really don’t apply to those guys.’
—Ordering the poison to be used is already tantamount to directly attacking you.
‘Still, I had to be sure. Anyway, this means the second rule doesn’t apply to all contractors of the [Wings] and [Claws].’
Watching the stumbling Ban Yuwon, the soldiers looked indecisive.
Could it be that the knight they trusted and followed was attacking someone contracted with a Constellation of Light?
Moreover, he himself was wielding that very light!
The not-so-bright soldiers gave up trying to judge who was good and who was evil.
Of course, they felt a sentimental trust toward the knight they had known for quite some time, but the impact of the giant pillar of light that had erupted from the small town two weeks ago was also significant, so they couldn’t rashly make a judgment or take action.
So, the conclusion they reached was to simply wait until one of them died.
In such cases, the victor is usually the righteous one.
"This is the judgment of light! Die!"
"The true light—!"
Good, anyway, I’ve pretty much got the information I needed to know.
Just as the knight raised his greatsword high and brought it down, aiming for Ban Yuwon’s head.
"It is precisely this!"
Ban Yuwon, who had been kneeling, gained momentum, jumped, and thrust his sword into the knight’s now-empty neck!
"Ka-haaak?!"
The knight, having dropped his greatsword, stumbled backward with a deflating sound.
A large hole was pierced through his neck.
Ban Yuwon raised the Executioner’s Longsword, now enveloped in a clean and beautiful light, stood tall, and shouted.
"He healed me and bestowed power upon me to punish the cultist who dared to impersonate His light! I shall purify this city with His light!"
"Cu-culti-cultist...!"
The knight fell to his knees.
A black light, originating from his wounded throat, gradually enveloped his entire body.
It was a sight very similar to the deaths of cultists discovered thus far.
Ban Yuwon truly considered it fortunate that the magic he had acquired was Photon Magic.
"Ooooooh!"
"My word, for the knight to have been a cultist...!"
"The Warrior of Light has punished the cultist who was hiding in disguise!"
The soldiers, deeply shocked by the knight’s death, yet cheering even louder to erase their agitation.
And Ban Yuwon, silently conjuring light, further cementing the soldiers’ faith.
The Rebellion members, who were still inside the room, watched Ban Yuwon's performance from behind, their eyes wide with disbelief.
"So, how long do we have to keep doing this?"
"As Light, there's a saying: ‘결자해지 (結者解之).’"
"What does that mean?"
"It means to let the person who caused the problem deal with it."
Indeed.
So, there was such a profound meaning behind Ban Yuwon giving them popcorn.
As Light nodded and decided to obediently just eat his popcorn.
They might not have known, but those Constellation bastards vastly underestimated Ban Yuwon.
Ban Yuwon, who gladly poured oil onto the flames ignited by the Constellations, soon escalated the situation uncontrollably, rampaging gleefully under the Trick Room’s rules.
Thus, when the Chain Room progression reached Room 27, Ban Yuwon’s party was visiting the palace of an ancient kingdom.
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