I got into school for nothing - 327
I got into school for nothing (327)
Lesson 64. Freshmen - 2
That afternoon, Ban Yuwon, who had come out to Ronica, met Heukseol at a cafe traditionally frequented by the Student Council, and she smiled mischievously, tossing out a joke.
"Word got around that you made someone cry so quickly, Leader."
"That's malicious media manipulation."
More than that, Ban Yuwon wondered how Heukseol, who wasn't even a Union Academy student, knew about it, when she then clearly showed him a group chat screen he had never been invited to.
There, women with diverse saved nicknames, whose true identities could be uncannily discerned, were conversing.
—Puppy: It's an Ortima again. Seriously, what grudge does that family hold against Master? Is she trying to get revenge on behalf of her brother?
—Ear-wearer: But what's this talk about that bitch going around asking about the Union Tour Club? No way, is she trying to target our darling too? What a thieving cat!
—Lizard: A new Ortima heir? If she does something like that, she's an utter fool.
—Fool: The Ortima heir changed? Is that a good thing...?
—Horned one: I'm telling you, our new president's radar is absolutely incredible. He just uncannily picks out the prettiest freshman again.
—Ear-wearer: Shut up, Shatie.
Just seeing that much was already making him dizzy, so Ban Yuwon waved his hand to dismiss it and urged Heukseol.
"First, make sure you properly change everyone's names."
"It's fine. I have no intention of showing my communicator to anyone but the Leader."
Heukseol, who had put away The Mirror, spoke, offering an excuse that wasn't really an excuse.
"The Rebel Force mercenaries are said to be arriving soon. They said to meet in the outskirts, but I don't know the exact location yet."
"I know. I've prepared a place in a nearby dungeon. And stop calling them the Rebel Force."
"...A dungeon, meaning a monster-infested lair where creatures appear? You're meeting the Rebel Force inside that?"
"If you take appropriate measures, a dungeon can become the safest meeting place. And I told you to stop calling them the Rebel Force, didn't I?"
Following Ban Yuwon, who rose from his seat, Heukseol awkwardly got up, wearing a blank expression.
Leaning against the cafe counter, the employee who had been watching their conversation could be seen looking at Heukseol with an expression that said, "Another one added to the list."
They had come too far to clear up the misunderstanding, so he paid the bill without a word and teleported to the dungeon in the outskirts.
"Whoa."
Thanks to the environment being modified to be suitable for human habitation, warm air enveloped them as soon as they entered the dungeon, and appropriate lighting illuminated the interior.
Seeing the wide table, the sofa arranged in the rest area, and all sorts of furnishings scattered around, Heukseol let out an inappropriate exclamation and clapped her hands.
"I've heard that in monster-infested lairs, the flow of energy is so violent that it's impossible to bring in and keep objects. But it turns out that depends entirely on the person, doesn't it?"
"Even in the Shin-gyo, they use formations to control the flow of energy, don't they? It's a similar principle."
"Shin-gyo practitioners can create pseudo monster-infested lairs in empty spaces, but they can't remodel an existing one..."
Heukseol, sighing as she replied, spotted a teapot and began to brew tea.
While Ban Yuwon had stepped away, after using his Giwon Sword to gather and annihilate all the dust that had settled in the hideout, he leaned back on the sofa, and at that exact moment, dozens of people poured into the hideout.
"Alright, everyone, come on in and make yourselves―― *cough*."
"The Stonemason who rudely coughs when seeing people, come over here."
As Ban Yuwon wiggled his finger, Cartro El Fassis, wearing the official Rebel Force uniform... the Stonemason, rolled over.
Due to his unique Authority that dramatically boosts his comrades' abilities by nearly 30%, Ban Yuwon, playfully "rolling" this Stonemason, who had surprisingly been registered as the new head of the Rebel Force, checked on the mercenary members.
The seniors who had been part of the Union Tour Club and graduated from the academy, including the Stonemason, had all newly joined the Rebel Force, and the only remaining original members were Anneri and Seldon, who called her Nunim and followed her.
In truth, Anneri had no particular reason to remain in the Rebel Force, but the powerful buff effect created by the newly appointed head, the Stonemason, was immense, and since her objective for the time being was to assist Ban Yuwon anyway, she decided to simply stay.
The same went for Seldon, who had set Anneri as his life's goal.
More than anything, he had already half-achieved his grand goal of crushing the existing Prominence Family, thanks to Ban Yuwon, so he didn't really have anything else to do.
Ban Yuwon, having exchanged eye greetings with Seldon, opened his arms to Anneri, who rushed into his embrace, and received her with a wry smile.
"Anneri, it's been a while."
"Master Yuwon――You truly become more formidable every time I see you!"
As Ban Yuwon gently placated Anneri, who had a habit of trying to maximize physical contact whenever he received her, she soon spotted Heukseol quietly sipping tea behind him and her eyes widened.
"C-could it be that you found a ninja to replace me?! You mean you don't need me anymore!"
"Being from the same profession, you recognized it uncannily well. No, it's not like that, but she's someone who will help me with my work."
"I am Heukseol."
Heukseol, who had quietly greeted them, individually placed teacups in front of the members who had found their seats.
Her carrying dozens of teacups at once, even mobilizing her martial arts skills, truly seemed like she was showing off her abilities to Anneri, and it was amusing.
"Agh, I believed this position would never overlap with anyone else...! So this is what they meant when they said the characteristics of a Part 2 heroine also apply to a Part 1 heroine, what a humiliation!"
"Hoohoo..."
In Ban Yuwon's heart, Anneri and Heukseol had never once been heroines, so he merely wore a disinterested expression even as he watched the two of them engage in a staring contest.
"Head, give your report."
"Huh? Oh, right!"
The Stonemason, who was once again realizing the truth that there were many beautiful women in the world, but only a select few men could capture their hearts, hastily picked up the report he had prepared when the word "Head" was directed at him.
"As you can see, there are a total of seven new members recruited from outside this time. Three were from dimensions that had already been lost, and were already active as mercenaries, and the remaining four were rescued from disappearing dimensions. We were actually planning to enter those dimensions one more time."
"Coordinates?"
"Here――."
Once business talk began, everyone stopped chatting and focused on their conversation.
Ban Yuwon started by hiring the Stonemason, who had become virtually his personal vassal, and then employed the graduates from the Union Tour Club.
1.1.1. The mercenary group Rebel Force, newly formed with them at its core, was focusing on rescuing those affected by the dimension loss phenomenon, understanding the phenomenon, and recruiting new members.
The existing members had to follow Ban Yuwon's will no matter what, and the newly recruited members, seeing the dimension's demise as their own concern, tended to follow enthusiastically.
While some were skeptical, wondering if it was even possible to "interfere with dimension loss," Ban Yuwon's goal had remained unwavering for two years.
"Next, regarding the Exodus matter―― Anneri?"
"Yes, fortunately, we managed to salvage something this time. Unfortunately, it seems some restriction was placed on Exodus as a whole, so we couldn't have a proper conversation."
Anneri sprang up and handed the data to Ban Yuwon.
It was paper material that seemed to have been produced decades ago, but fortunately, it appeared to have preservation magic applied and was in relatively good condition.
Its topic was directly related to Exodus's ultimate objective―― Constellation Liberation.
Ban Yuwon, who quickly skimmed through the material, clicked his tongue softly.
"...There's no core information. Is it because it's just promotional material?"
"The Constellations would have used false bait to attract people in order to be liberated themselves. For example, by sharing their power unconditionally."
"I can filter out lies. Any kind of material is fine, so please continue to collect all information related to Exodus."
"Yes."
What Ban Yuwon was trying to do was, in a way, closely related to Exodus.
Although they had fallen and crumbled, it was unlikely such a huge organization would vanish without a trace.
Anneri was focused on retrieving those things, and Ban Yuwon would always extract information he could utilize from all the records she brought.
"Lastly―― Seldon."
"Yeah."
Surprisingly, Seldon was in charge of the final agenda item.
No, upon closer thought, it wasn't surprising at all.
It was related to the unit he had newly accepted into the Rebel Force as a subordinate organization two years ago――.
"Have you found any traces of the 'True Dragons'?"
"I've been stirring up the higher-ranked dimensions with the kids, but it feels like we've got the wrong idea."
Seldon, reporting while scratching his head.
The "kids" he was referring to were the organization he had once belonged to, the Crimson Spear.
The Crimson Spear, like Exodus, had been shattered two years ago―― but after dealing with the Prominence Family matter, Ban Yumi had led the effort to salvage the useful individuals, and Seldon became their overall supervisor because he had left early and joined this side.
The minor problem was that the task of "salvaging the useful ones" took a very long time, and the organization had only been fully restructured a few months ago.
"There's no way the Ten Great Families wouldn't have noticed what we've figured out. Most things would have already been thoroughly picked clean by now, so perhaps it would be better to search lower-grade dimensions, like the one you previously obtained something from in a D-rank dimension."
"Hmm―― that's a good point. I'll have to create a more precise locator."
Ban Yuwon vaguely nodded at Seldon's words.
In truth, he already surmised that even searching higher-ranked dimensions wouldn't yield any traces of True Dragons.
The real goal was to appeal to the other Ten Great Families.
Wouldn't those who reacted strongly to the keyword "True Dragon" be the culprits?
This was possible because he had a firm confidence that it would be fine even if things went wrong and he clashed head-on with the Ten Great Families.
At the very least, if they were on the same level as the Prominence Family Head he had faced two years ago―― he was confident he could overwhelm them even in a one-on-one fight.
"I think that's enough for the report. Now, let's do a buff enhancement and then have a meal."
Ban Yuwon let out a deep sigh and gestured to the Stonemason, who approached obediently, yet grumbled.
"You swindler. Boosting my Authority with your ability, does that even make sense?"
"If you're so annoyed, then grow strong enough not to need a buff enhancement."
As Ban Yuwon spread his hand, dozens of paper talismans, filled with Won-gi, popped out of his inventory and lined up in mid-air.
As the new mercenary members, who had never properly witnessed his Authority in action, gazed at it with astonished eyes, the Stonemason concentrated and activated his Authority.
"[Amplify.]"
At Ban Yuwon's brief declaration, the ally-strengthening Authority originating from the Stonemason naturally melted into and merged with the dozens of talismans.
As he gestured, the talismans flew to their respective owners.
"Oh my."
In the midst of this, Heukseol, seeing her own talisman gently settle into her palm, let out an exclamation of admiration.
"It seems like a very powerful spell, does it apply to me too?"
"You don't seem to know this yet, but I'm also skilled in sorcery."
"Indeed, I understand. The Leader is always so unlucky."
As the members, whose power had greatly increased in an instant, began to murmur, Ban Yuwon clapped his hands twice to draw their attention.
"Attach them firmly inside your clothes and never forget them. It's annoying to renew them one by one. Now, let's have a team-building activity. Oh, and don't give any alcohol bottles to the Stonemason."
"No, why! Isn't it too much to bring up a mistake from two and a half years ago even now?!"
"Yes, yes, senior Kshana told me last time that she was annoyed because she was hit on by senior Stonemason when he was drunk――."
"Wow, Head..."
"That's really bad..."
"Ah, a-a-ah――! I told you to keep that a secret――!"
The Stonemason sacrificed himself and instantly lightened the mood.
Perhaps it wasn't his intention, but since the mood was uplifted anyway, it was a good thing regardless.
The drinking party, attended by Ban Yuwon, Heukseol, and eventually even the current 5th-year members of the Union Tour Club, made all the other students, except Ban Yuwon, late the next day.
Thus began Ban Yuwon's first semester of fourth year.
The Tower breakthrough record set by Team Rebellion in the previous semester was 560 rooms.
They were just one room away from the highest record officially recorded in Union.
Everyone was thinking only that.
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