I got into school for nothing - Chapter 318
I got into school for nothing (318)
Lesson 62. Change - 3
On Monday, when the two-week long-term exploration, marking the grand finale of—no, the entire academic year—was about to begin, among the students gathered before entering the Tower.
As always, Rebellion garnered immense attention.
This was due to Aire, who had finally joined the team to fill Dokgo Yeon's empty spot.
“Aire really joined that team...”
“If you've seen the videos recently uploaded to the Rebellion channel, you could have guessed as much.”
“Still, it's absurd. Aire is practically a symbol of the higher dimensions. But for someone like her to be with those low-rank—no, special admissions students.”
“Have you forgotten that special admissions student took first place this time?”
They had no desire to make a fuss or display their power unnecessarily.
This was because for Ban Yuwon, and indeed for any of his team members, the other first-year students—and even the students of Union Academy in general—were no longer their rivals.
During their recent expedition, they had undergone tremendous growth, both physically and mentally.
Their growth was far too significant to merely be laughing and blending in among the other students.
“It's a shame for a team that managed to climb all the way to the 300th room in a single academic year.”
“It can't be helped. With a core member missing, who knows when they might retire? It’s a much wiser decision to reinforce their strength and start over from the beginning.”
“Aire, who had gained solo exploration privileges, switching to a team... What could the Dragon's Scion be thinking?”
“Who knows? Perhaps she intends to make them her vassals?”
Aire couldn't help but let out a quiet chuckle at the words she overheard from among the students.
Vassals—she thought there couldn't be a more unsuitable word to describe the relationship between herself and Ban Yuwon.
“Aire?”
“No.”
Shaking her head to dispel the concern in the man's eyes, she reached out and carefully gripped his sleeve.
The moment she touched him, a tempting yet unpleasant impulse began to subtly rise within her.
The instinct that had awakened within her on the day she battled Zenon was now inciting an outrage against her own will.
Clenching her teeth, Aire shook her head to cast off the impulse, then tightened her grip on Ban Yuwon's sleeve and spoke.
“Let's go.”
“Yes. We must.”
In front of the Tower, as always, Yumina was waiting.
Yumina, who had taken on the vice-chancellor position at Union Academy in place of the vanished Zenon, had for some reason seemed to be subtly avoiding Ban Yuwon.
The reason was obvious.
Even though Yumina bore no fault whatsoever for the recent incident, the mere fact that she had become vice-chancellor under the orders of the Chancellor, who was the mastermind behind everything, must have made her uneasy.
It was a pitiable situation.
“Professor.”
“Everyone...”
They each had much to say, yet none of it was appropriate to share in that moment.
Yumina, who had met each member's gaze one by one, finally looked at Aire, extended her hand, and firmly grasped hers.
“Aire, please take care of our team.”
“Yes, Professor.”
Aire, who respected Yumina, stiffened her posture with renewed determination at the professor’s personal request, made while holding her hand.
Yumina seemed content with just that and began to withdraw, but Ban Yuwon didn't let her.
With a 'thunk,' his hand settled on her shoulder, and Yumina stiffened like a cat in a doll's costume.
“I know everything, so it’s okay.”
“Yuwon, ah...”
“I'll save everyone. Everyone.”
“Do you understand what I mean?” Yumina, rendered speechless as she met Ban Yuwon’s gaze, remained silent for a moment before slowly nodding and giving Ban Yuwon’s hand on her shoulder a firm squeeze before letting go.
“Thank you, I’m counting on you.”
“Alright.”
Ban Yuwon offered a faint smile, then passed her by.
The other team members followed, each uttering a word as they passed her.
“Tomato will call you big sister now.”
“Five centuries...”
“Leave Yuwon to me, Professor.”
Yumina pondered whether to grab Rucell by her hair for openly bringing up her age under the guise of talking to herself, but Rucell had already shrewdly latched onto Ban Yuwon's left arm.
Amidst countless gazes of interest, envy, jealousy, and concern, Rebellion entered the Tower.
Of course, because a new member had joined, their Tower conquest record was reset, forcing them to restart from Room 1—but no one was concerned about falling behind others in their climb.
And for good reason.
“Elite monsters... it seems the Tower is really determined.”
“Here it comes, a multi-shift.”
“Let’s not let our guard down. The Constellations are probably—also watching us.”
Ban Yuwon's authority to find the fastest path.
The multi-shifts prepared by the Tower for capable climbers, and the corresponding increase in difficulty.
The Constellations' attention was fixed on the members of Rebellion, who had directly confronted and annihilated the true forms of Constellations and had been at the center of the recent events in many ways.
Now, they welcomed all of it.
How far had they climbed the Tower? They couldn't tell the exact time, as they hadn't entered a field-type room, but it felt like around evening.
―Groooaaaaarrrr!
“Oh, so even on the lower floors, when rooms overlap ninefold, such a horrifying monster appears.”
Ban Yuwon murmured in admiration, facing the result of a multi-shift that had occurred immediately upon exiting Eden and entering a room, where a staggering nine rooms had merged into one.
Elite monsters born from multi-shifts typically appear in one of two patterns: one is a chimera-like monster, seemingly a combination of all the creatures from the skipped rooms; the other is a true monster, possessing special powers that transcend its species' limits due to the intent of a specific Constellation or worldview.
From Ban Yuwon’s perspective, naturally, he preferred the latter, desiring to contact and collect various language concepts. However, on the lower floors, it was all too common for flimsy, chimera-like elites to appear.
“It's as if the Tower wants to send us up quickly, argh!”
―Kee-heck!
With dozens of eyes, dozens of arms, and an unpleasant chitinous carapace, Rucell offered a plausible theory while dispatching the chimera-like monster, which resembled a centipede moving upright, with a single flick to the forehead imbued with lightning.
“That makes sense. They're probably targeting us. They wouldn't want us dawdling on the lower floors.”
“It’s what we want, too. Let’s quickly climb to the higher levels.”
“Indeed.”
Listening to their conversation, Aire felt a slight dizzy spell.
Even if they were re-climbing the Tower, it was rare for anyone to experience such drastic changes. Seeing Ban Yuwon and Rucell accept the multi-shifts so naturally, Aire couldn't help but be flustered.
“Asha.”
Feeling the monster disappear and a shift to Eden occur, Aire quietly called her friend's name.
Asha, who had been bored due to having no chance to even swing her sword once, turned her head and responded with a questioning, “Hm?”
“How many times have you two experienced a multi-shift?”
“How many times, you ask... It’s been like this every time we’ve entered the Tower?”
“...”
On that day, having entered the Tower and endured several multi-shifts, the group finally reached Room 40 in just one day.
“Ah!”
“Finally!”
When Aire saw Ban Yuwon exclaim in awe upon reaching Eden—for the fourth time that day alone—she tilted her head and looked around, indeed finding something astonishing.
The Fruit of Eden, a sight that even diligent students climbing the Tower at Union Academy might never see once until graduation if they were unlucky.
That Fruit of Life, which could fill one's stomach with a single bite, heal all manner of wounds, and even, with a rare chance, enhance one's abilities, hung abundantly from the tree branches that grew across the ceiling.
Even Aire, who had consistently achieved excellent results during her solo explorations, rarely saw so many Fruits of Life, and her eyes were shining. Suddenly, Ban Yuwon stretched out his hand into the air.
“Yuwon?”
“Ah, Aire probably hasn't seen this yet.”
“They certainly edit it out of the videos uploaded to the Rebellion channel.”
Soon, a scene unfolded that was hard to believe even with one's own eyes.
Flowing along the threads of golden mana emanating from Ban Yuwon’s hand, the Fruits of Life in Eden began to transform into golden strings of characters, streaming towards him.
Their destination was a jam jar held in Ban Yuwon's other hand.
That, Aire was very familiar with.
“Ah, that’s...”
Aire had already surmised that Ban Yuwon's authority was an omnipotent-type power, allowing him to interpret and manipulate all things in his own way.
But to think he could even freely manipulate the Fruits of Life, which were only allowed one per person!
Watching him collect all the Fruits of Life, leaving just one for each member of the party, and turn them into jam, Aire muttered in disbelief.
“So that’s why those candies were so amazing...”
She had only been exploring with them for a single day, yet Aire felt like she had been astonished enough for a lifetime.
Ban Yuwon finding ways to clear rooms quickly, as if it were obvious.
Multi-shifts occurring multiple times, skipping rooms 1 through 9 entirely.
And him greeting the rare Fruits of Life in Eden as if he had been expecting them, then sweeping them all up.
These were feats that any student climbing the Tower normally wouldn't even dare to dream of.
‘As expected, Yuwon is different.’
No wonder the Chancellor had been paying attention to Ban Yuwon.
Yumina had no choice but to rely on Ban Yuwon and place her hopes in him.
Aire herself had believed she knew enough about Ban Yuwon, but what she knew was merely half, or even less.
“It would have been great if Blood Dew was also flowing, but it seems that was too much to ask, probably because we're on the lower floors.”
After finishing his work, Ban Yuwon bit into the apple he had saved for himself and sat down on Eden’s plush bed.
The Fruit of Life boasted a sweetness incomparable to anything else.
Enough that one would nod in agreement even if someone said they climbed the Tower just to eat a Fruit of Life.
‘Ah, the fruits have ripened. Hmm... It’s only natural, given how much we’ve accomplished this time, too. Hmm, hmmm.’
He had tried hard not to think about it.
But he couldn't help but recall the sight of Dokgo Yeon, a bright smile gracing her lips when she saw the Fruits of Life ripened in Eden.
It was quite adorable, too, how she had tried so hard not to show her joy at seeing the Fruits of Life to her teammates.
Her eyes, sharp enough to pierce through a person's true intentions—even sharper than Ban Yuwon's 'Myriad Poison Eye'—were truly clumsy when it came to concealing her own.
So strong, yet such a truly endearing person.
“Shall we stop here for today?”
At Rucell's words, spoken with a faint smile as she watched him sitting idly, lost in thought, Ban Yuwon sprang to his feet in surprise.
“No, let’s go a little further. After dinner and a short rest, let’s clear all the way to Room 50, cleanly.”
“But I want to rest with Master, heh.”
“You.”
Rucell, acting childishly, clung to Ban Yuwon.
Just as Aire was about to frown and raise her voice, Asha stopped her, shaking her head.
Then, all of a sudden, she stretched unnaturally and spoke.
“Ah, I’m tired too! And I’m so hungry I don’t think I can explore any more today.”
“What?”
“Yuwon, I really want to eat that thing from last time. Shrimp stir-fried in oil...”
“Hah, you bunch of spoiled brats.”
Ban Yuwon offered a wry smile at his clingy teammates, yet readily complied with their demands.
Only then did Aire realize that they were acting out of consideration for Ban Yuwon, seeing that the anguish and sorrow that had clouded his face had gradually faded.
She, too, wanted to melt into that warmth.
She couldn't replace Dokgo Yeon, but in truth, she had no desire to.
She wanted to be Aire of Rebellion, not Dokgo Yeon.
“...I’m curious about Yuwon’s cooking too. Feed me.”
“Nothing but whiners around here. Alright, then let’s rest today and go full throttle starting tomorrow. Our goal is to return to our original position within two weeks, meaning reaching Room 300.”
At Ban Yuwon's declaration, made with renewed vigor, Rucell also smiled and joined in.
“Even when we were much weaker than now, we broke through from Room 250 to Room 300 in just three days. It shouldn't be difficult now.”
“We’ll be running a lot, I should get my legs massaged. Yuwon, can’t you give me a massage?”
“Light?”
“No, what’s a little massage to me.”
“Oh, you’ll really do it?! Wait, wait. Then, then, there’s here and here, and also here...”
“Liiight?”
Despite focusing on coordinating with the new member during the two-week exploration, Rebellion broke through the Tower with unstoppable momentum, successfully reaching Room 250.
Although it wasn't the target of Room 300, it was an absurd pace, and even this alone placed them at the forefront of all first-year students.
As the Tower grew taller, the difficulty increased sharply, so such an unprecedented breakthrough might become impossible going forward. Furthermore, they felt that the difficulty had inexplicably risen even more compared to their last exploration...
No matter how high the difficulty, there was no time to dawdle.
To avoid that, there was someone they had to ask for help.
Ban Yuwon decided to seek out Cheonma.
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