I got into school for nothing - Chapter 250
I got into school for nothing (250)
Lesson 48. Teacher Ban Yuwon - 5
That evening, Yumina, for some reason, called him to her office instead of the academy annex restaurant where she usually met him.
The moment Ban Yuwon stepped inside, he felt a barrier form across the entire office, blocking outsiders, and a chill ran down his spine. But at the sight of Yumina, her eyes wide with surprise as she looked at him entering the room, he completely forgot to ask about the barrier.
"My heavens......"
Perhaps because they had once wielded the same Authority, the Starlight radiating from within Ban Yuwon's body was clearly reflected in her gem-like, sparkling eyes.
She hastily made him sit down in front of her, and after carefully examining him from head to toe, she finally let out an exclamation.
"You've really mastered Starlight......! Now that the Starlight Player is no longer a Constellation, her unique magic."
"What I've realized since coming to Union is that most things claimed to be unique aren't all that unique. You were good too, Professor."
As he frowned and poked the bracelet again, it suddenly contracted, tightening around his wrist, apparently shy.
Yumina watched it and smiled faintly.
"So you called me here just to tell me that? And I was hoping for something else..."
"Last time, Professor, no, Sister."
Under her intense gaze, Ban Yuwon hastily corrected himself.
"You were talking about Starlight Magic, remember? You said only scraps were left... I think I can improve it."
"Ah, yes... I see."
At her lukewarm response, he checked her expression and found her eyes held little expectation.
When Ban Yuwon looked puzzled, she spoke with a bitter smile.
"As I told you last time, I am merely a professor now, and nothing will change if I can wield Starlight again. For me, who lost her and retreated backstage, the right to wield Starlight is......"
She, who had been speaking like an idol disgracefully retired due to scandal, soon lowered her head and muttered in a small, hushed voice.
"No, I'm sorry. The truth is, I just lack confidence."
"I like your honesty."
"I'm scared. ......What if I can't master it? What if I betray Yuwon's expectations?"
"It's alright. Just extend your hand for now......"
"Hand?"
Before Ban Yuwon could finish speaking, she had already taken one of his hands, with a speed that seemed to skip the process and only leave the result.
"Sister, just now......"
"What about my hand?"
"Uh, well."
Ban Yuwon felt a slight awkwardness, yet he focused his consciousness on her clasped hand.
Then, the concepts within her body faintly appeared before his eyes.
He could peer deeper than he had expected, which was likely because their relationship wasn't merely that of a teacher and student, but a special connection forged through Cellon.
"—What are you doing? Hug her! Kiss her, quick!"
'Quiet.'
After silencing Cellon, who was making a fuss via telepathy, he searched for the fragments of Starlight residing within Yumina.
It was a simple task, merely finding a target that resonated with the Authority asserting its presence within him.
XXX[Starlight 337, XXX]
'There it is.'
Unlike the Starlight Magic Ban Yuwon had mastered, it was mixed with other concepts, forming a distinct composite concept, but all elements other than Starlight itself were distorted and destroyed, preventing proper function.
This was likely because the concepts bestowed as Authority upon contracting with the former Constellation, the Starlight Player, were damaged when the contract was forcibly severed.
'Wait, isn't this simple?'
Ban Yuwon tilted his head, confirming the Starlight that remained more intact than he'd expected and was still shining.
It seemed he just needed to clean up those messy traces and make Starlight Magic an intrinsic concept.
That is to say......
"—Kiss!"
Right, if only he could create a connection deep enough to modify the concepts within her body.
But let's think about it for a moment.
Just recently, hadn't he kissed Asha on the lips, claiming to solve her problem?
At least Asha was a companion who had been with him before and would be in the future, so let's set that aside.
Before that, on the grounds of needing to sever the contract with the Follower of Ten Thousand Kalpas, he had even kissed Kiira, a branch member of the Prominence family who he had only recently met.
Although she had shown an interest in Ban Yuwon from the moment they met, without that kiss, their relationship would have settled at the level of acquaintances.
But because of the kiss, what happened? An opportunity arose for them to become more deeply intertwined.
'It's natural. Interfering with the concepts within another's body requires a correspondingly deep relationship. If I try to bestow this ability upon everyone just because I have it, I'll inevitably become entangled in complex relationships with all of them.'
"—Stop spouting nonsense and kiss her already! Don't you know this girl likes you right now?!"
Ban Yuwon ignored Cellon's words and continued to ponder.
He wasn't, all of a sudden, agonizing over his relationship with Yumina.
To avoid becoming entangled in complex relationships with others every time something happened, he needed to learn a simpler and more efficient way to wield his Authority at this point.
This was even more true considering he would soon have to deal with Shati's Authority as well.
"—You can worry about that later, but for now, hug the girl in front of you!"
Cellon, who was chattering as if this had been her plan all along, Ban Yuwon finally stored away in his inventory.
Of course, he couldn't block the messages even then, but he could at least avoid her immediate intuition.
"Ah......"
After grasping the concept, he let go of her hand for now, and Yumina, who had unconsciously sighed, cleared her throat, letting out a small cough, and spoke.
"How was it? Is it too difficult, after all......?"
"No, I think it will work out. Because all you lost was your Constellation's Stigma."
"Stigma......?"
So that's where it was.
Ban Yuwon explained the structure of a Constellation's Authority to her.
A Constellation's unique ability combines with its Stigma and is transmitted to the contractor, and Yumina had become unable to wield her unique ability due to the disappearance of the Stigma.
Would it be appropriate to describe it as a situation where the game account is still there, but you've lost the password and can't log in?
Of course, this wasn't a common situation, and it was only possible because Cellon had not withdrawn her power from Yumina until the moment she lost her status as a Constellation.
"Right, the Starlight Player was......"
"But a contract with a Constellation is essentially a cheat code that allows humans to easily wield abilities that are inherently difficult to manage. If one deeply understands the ability, it should be normal to wield it freely, even without being contracted to a Constellation."
Indeed, Ban Yuwon freely wielded the Authorities he had ripped from various Constellations.
Of course, adding a Stigma amplifies the ability, but that's all; it's impossible for an ability to become an empty shell just because the Stigma is absent.
"So first, let's fix your perception, Sister. The core of the Authority is still inside you. It's just that you're trying to use magic through the Constellation, which is why it's not working."
"Through the Constellation, through the Starlight Player. Right, Starlight...... I've always used it that way."
At his words, Yumina muttered faintly, and then, as if recalling something, she chuckled softly.
"I shouldn't keep relying on her forever, should I...... And Yuwon, I hope you don't feel any unnecessary burden either."
"Pardon?"
"She was a person full of worries, and she might have said all sorts of things to you, making you concerned. But I'm not that weak, Sister, so you don't have to worry too much about me."
See? Even she caught on to Cellon's clumsy scheming!
Ban Yuwon sighed, yet he reached out and took Yumina's hand again.
"Ah......?!"
"As for Cellon—ah, that's what I call the Starlight Player—although I'm getting a lot of help from her, you don't have to worry, as I won't be swayed by her. Rather, I'm glad I can help you thanks to Cellon."
"Really?"
"Of course. What with organizing the Rebel Force and all, you know how grateful I am to you, Sister. There's no way I'd feel burdened by something like this."
"Is that so......?"
Yumina was embarrassed, yet she didn't pull her hand away from his grasp.
She gripped Ban Yuwon's hand a little tighter and opened her mouth to speak.
"If you put it that way...... would it be alright to lean on you a little?"
Just a little.
The affection Yumina held for Ban Yuwon, and the hesitation proportional to it, were palpable, and their distance narrowed just that tiny bit.
At the first open advance from his 500-year-old 'Sister', Ban Yuwon was flustered.
'Huh? Didn't the flow change a little?'
"—Didn't I tell you?! Didn't I?!"
At Cellon's nagging response, like she used to before her memories were unsealed, he genuinely thought it was annoying, yet as he observed the emotions overflowing from Yumina, he found himself unable to treat her coldly.
It would be a lie to say there were no pure, pink emotions, but most of what remained was filled with longing and emptiness.
These were emotions he had never seen when dealing with girls his own age.
Whether it was her story or her emotions, they were too heavy to be handled easily.
'You're bad too, Cellon.'
"—I know, that's why I'm doing this......"
Cellon probably knew Yumina's condition was more serious than Ban Yuwon vaguely thought, and had egged him on, hoping he would comfort her heart.
Ban Yuwon was a little indignant that he, who possessed an Authority to literally see emotions, knew less about a person he considered quite close than Cellon, who had only just regained her memories.
'It was your method that was bad.'
"—Well, I was in a hurry... I'm sorry."
But as expected, human relationships cannot flourish with external interference.
Thinking it was a relief he hadn't done anything rash, Ban Yuwon brushed a hand over his chest.
"Yuwon, do you know 'Star Finding'?"
"It's the magic needed to borrow the power of external stars, right?"
"You learned it properly. That's...... Ah."
A little, then a little more, Yumina's shoulder drew closer and touched his.
The moment they touched, she flinched and pulled back slightly, then cautiously closed the distance again.
It seemed she physically wanted to lean on him.
"When my mana wasn't that abundant, I couldn't use Starlight Magic without borrowing the power of the stars, no matter what."
Yumina, who had successfully leaned her shoulder against him, looked up at the Union night sky visible through the large window in her office and continued speaking.
"That's why 'Star Finding' was the first thing I learned from her. A magic that resonates with the stars in the sky using mana infused with starlight, enhancing their sparkle and borrowing their power...... It was incredibly beautiful."
"Shall I try it?"
"Could I ask you to?"
Ban Yuwon nodded, then extended a hand.
Starting from light magic, it broke through into its unique domain, infused itself with Starlight, and transformed into a magic circle that generated its distinct wavelength.
The moment the magic circle was complete, the stars twinkling in the night sky beyond the window began to shine brighter, one after another.
It was difficult for those who couldn't wield Starlight Magic to recognize, but for Ban Yuwon and Yumina, who were present, it was a spectacular night performance, like a fireworks display.
'If this were Earth, I would've at least taught her about the Summer Triangle.'
That's Deneb, Altair, Vega......
He had remembered it well, planning to use it if he ever got a girlfriend!
Just as Ban Yuwon was feeling frustrated, something dropped with a soft plop onto his shoulder.
Ban Yuwon, who realized it was a tear without even turning around, remained rigid, while Yumina hastily pulled away from him, covering her face with her hands.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to do this. I just felt a little nostalgic......"
"I told you it's alright."
"Isn't it pathetic? A full professor at the Academy, no less."
"Sister......"
Why was it that, though it wasn't a particularly fitting thought for the current situation, the moment he observed the various concepts vibrating within Yumina's body and their flow, Ban Yuwon found the answer to what he had been pondering earlier.
A way to induce changes in internal concepts without creating a deep relationship.
"You can do it again too, Sister."
"But."
"Just like I did, [repeat after me.]"
She, who had been sniffling, raised a hand.
The Starlight, buried amidst the complex conceptual remnants left by the Constellation, began to glow brightly.
Ban Yuwon's declaration, imbued with his will, was unleashed, charged with Won-gi, and cleanly swept away everything that was obscuring Yumina's Starlight.
[Man-eon-sun's depth became 360. Domination's depth became 125.]
By imbuing his own words with power, the Codeword that actualized it had manifested.
And the result――.
"Ah......!"
The stars in the sky, which had begun to lose their light as Ban Yuwon's magic faded, started to emit an even greater brilliance than before.
The magic circle that emerged from Yumina's fingertips had completed itself as an independent Starlight Magic.
At the Starlight Magic, which had manifested for the first time since her contract with the Starlight Player was terminated, Yumina widened her gem-like eyes in astonishment.
"Yuwon, I just."
"See? I told you it was simple."
"Truly...... how?"
The dumbfounded expression on Yumina's face felt adorably out of place for her age.
Ban Yuwon smiled proudly and held her hand again.
Though he would have to practice in various ways to truly know, it seemed the worry of gaining the infamy of being a 'kiss maniac' had completely vanished.
"—It's good that your ability is developing, but why now of all times?! Why?!"
Cellon, who had been scheming to bring Yumina and Ban Yuwon together, was incredibly frustrated when her desired outcome didn't materialize, but for Ban Yuwon, it was a far more satisfactory result.
"Thank you, Yuwon......!"
Though Yumina burst into tears again because of it.
After crying her heart out, she ended up falling asleep leaning on him, meaning he couldn't leave her room for a while.
......And from the next day, Yumina's attitude towards Ban Yuwon was so clearly different that everyone noticed that something had happened between them!
Comments