I Got Into School for Nothing - Chapter 346
I Got Into School for Nothing (346)
Lesson 68. Those Who Desire the Revival of the True Dragon - 2
—Discovered a complete product of the Ancestor's remaining authority, reading and accepting all information and power within. The depths of his All-Seeing Eye, All-Hearing Ear, and All-Speaking Tongue simultaneously reached 1,500. The depth of Domination became 1,000.
—The depth of Yugi reached 2,000, and the depth of Giwon Sword reached 3,000.
—The depth of Life reached 4,500, the depth of Won-gi reached 4,000, and the depth of Soul became 5,700.
This was merely a hypothetical statement, but.
If, in the past two years, Ban Yuwon had been even slightly lazy, and his authority, mana, soul, and martial arts had grown less than they had now.
He might not have been able to withstand the shock of his ancestor's authority being absorbed into him, potentially becoming a ruined shell.
‘Ah, this is dangerous.’
With the shock of his authority being stimulated, blossoming new and grand possibilities.
Ban Yuwon momentarily lost control of his body.
No one could have known why he was acting this way, but the Clarent Family Head saw through it, realizing this was not a weakness he had intentionally revealed.
If so, now, this was the perfect opportunity to kill him—!
Just as the Sword King had done before, he would push his authority to its limits, drawing out all the sword trajectories accumulated over countless years to butcher that bastard!
"[Traitors... realize your sin and kneel]."
"Cough!"
But the moment those words were heard.
The Family Head, who inherited Clarent's blood, lost all strength, bleeding from his mouth as his sword fell to the floor.
A Codeword prepared for the future, perhaps even before the Tower Lord was betrayed.
That was the first thing realized the moment he clashed swords with Clarent.
Though it had weakened slightly over the years, Ban Yuwon supplemented its deficiencies, making it perfectly usable.
"Kuh?!"
"Kyaaaak!"
Behold, similar events were unfolding not only with Clarent but everywhere.
Prominence, Hecate, Fides, and even Amore.
Conversely, Melodia, Ortima, Selene, and Fridwen were perfectly fine.
If Melodia, as a family that inherited the will of the True Dragon, was excluded from the start, then it likely meant the others were never traitors to begin with.
"No, we have to strike before it's too late!"
"It's already too late...!"
"No, now! Kill him immediately!"
In an instant, the hall erupted into chaos.
Both those who had lost their strength and those who hadn't sprang to their feet, each drawing upon their energy, but they all felt distant to Ban Yuwon.
Amidst the chaos, those connected to him were seen quickly recovering their energy.
Ban Yumi, his mother, and Ulrike, all affiliated with Prominence.
Even the other members of Prominence under their command.
Finally, Clio, affiliated with Hecate, suddenly raised her head.
"Lord Yuwon...!"
"Where do these bastards get off messing with my brother right nowwwwww!"
Ban Yumi's flames burned even brighter as she raised her voice.
The other traitors, startled by her showing even greater strength instead of losing it, furiously released their mana to resist the Codeword.
Ban Yuwon, still clutching his reeling head, first snatched the sword from the kneeling Family Head's grasp.
Then, as naturally as slicing tofu with a knife, he plunged it into the bastard's heart.
"Choke..."
The bastard, whose mana was running wild due to the Codeword having been activated just before an explosion of authority, was out of his mind. Yet, strangely, as his heart was pierced by his own sword...
He was annihilated, all his concepts absorbed by the sword, as if it had been meant to happen from the very beginning.
After the Family Head of a Ten Great Family was thus annihilated without even leaving a corpse.
The sword, having finally reclaimed its true form, emitted a dazzling light.
It was the divine sword, Clarent.
"H-huh...?"
"How could that be?"
"W-we still have to kill him."
That the death of Clarent, a Ten Great Family that governed the S-3 Dimension, not some ruler of a remote F-rank dimension, could be so futile.
It was a moment of shock spreading through the hall, but for Ban Yuwon, who had even considered facing all Ten Great Families, it was not particularly surprising.
‘Now that the Codeword has so clearly revealed the relationship between them and me, it's absurd to pretend nothing happened and disperse peacefully. There's no choice but to see this through to the end.’
He recalled the Melodia Family Head discussing Eire's safety.
He, the only one without ties to the term 'Ancestor's Vassal', remained a short distance away, calmly observing the situation, despite this being the perfect moment if he wished to kill Ban Yuwon.
Seeing Eire glare at him, Ban Yuwon chuckled, then declared with renewed force.
"[All traitors, realize your sin and kneel]."
This time, the resistance was more violent.
From all directions, the Codeword clashed with the mana unleashed by those resisting it, creating a terrifying storm of energy.
The amount of Won-gi consumed by the Codeword was terrifying, forcing Ban Yuwon to expend a significant number of Study Talismans accumulated in his inventory. Even amidst this, beings of Family Head-level were overcoming the backlash and rising again.
"Descendant of the hateful one—!"
The Fides Family Head, who had been sweating profusely and fled after exchanging greetings with Ban Yuwon earlier, swelled into a muscular giant and growled.
The voice that bastard emitted was mixed with the power of countless other beings, and that alone caused the ceiling chandeliers to swing wildly.
"How dare you try to put a leash around our necks again, without even an ounce of shame!"
"I don't know what happened with your ancestor, and it's not something I want to hear from people trying to kill me."
Ban Yuwon laughed, seeing that the hall's appearance had once again transformed.
The seats that had risen around the dueling ground, like an arena, had disappeared, and now others stood, encircling Ban Yuwon in the center of the vast hall.
Those unaffected by the Codeword he had unleashed wore confused expressions, but even among them, Prominence, who had somehow regained their strength under their Family Head's command, and Ortima, who had resolved to side with Ban Yuwon, moved quickly to protect him.
In judgment, Clio Hecate cried out at that moment.
"Do you see, sinners! This is the moment my words are proven true. The prophecy you ignored, no, the future that was already determined! It has finally arrived in reality!"
"Clio...!"
Her mana-infused voice brought the [sinners] to a halt.
Flap— The bandages that had concealed her for ages completely unwound, revealing her mystically gleaming, violet eyes.
As the bandages unfurled and swirled, forming clothes to cover her bare body, Clio raised both her arms high.
"Our Master has returned, so rather than fear and meaningless resistance, prostrate yourselves, confess, and seek forgiveness immediately. The Master's embrace is unlike that of the predecessors; it is infinitely vast and warm, so all who confess their sins and repent now will be accepted."
"You... how...?!"
The Hecate Family Head's eyes widened in shock at the sight.
The astonishment among members of other families was no less than the reaction when Yumina appeared in the hall today.
‘As expected, there must have been some terrible circumstances connected to her being completely wrapped in bandages,’ Ban Yuwon thought, clicking his tongue.
Hecate continued, wearing a mysterious smile.
"Have you forgotten the existence of miracles? That which exists beyond your reach. That which only our Master can bestow. I have merely received it. It is proof of forgiveness."
"Grrrgh...!"
Perhaps Clio Hecate's liberation was such shocking news, for the Hecate family members, previously full of animosity, visibly faltered and retreated.
Yes, it was indeed a trump card.
Originally, Hecate's secret was not meant to be revealed in this manner.
The situation had escalated rapidly because Ban Yuwon, clashing with Clarent, instantly read the ancestor's information and unleashed the Codeword.
Hecate's timely 'coming out' had such great power that it even broke the momentum of her adversaries.
"Would you also hear my story?"
It was at this precise moment that Yumina stepped forward and spoke.
The traitors, especially the swordsmen of the Clarent family, enraged by the loss of their Family Head, were gritting their teeth and closing in, determined to kill Ban Yuwon despite suffering from the Codeword.
As Yumina lightly stepped through them, heading towards Ban Yuwon, many dropped their swords and collapsed as if intoxicated by the flower fragrance scattering in all directions.
The powerful authority of Juventa, a destroyed Ten Great Family, was flaunting its might to its fullest.
"I am Selene's daughter and the last descendant of Juventa, Aurora Juventa. You may perceive me as a pitiful flower trapped in the garden called Union, unable to escape—but I have found my freedom. Yuwon gave it to me."
A golden flower blossomed in Yumina's raised hand.
It was a harmonious blend of Stella's Starlight and Yumina's authority.
"Ban Yuwon is not the Tower Lord you feared. He is perfectly willing to engage in dialogue, as long as you don't draw your spears and swords first. Furthermore, as Yumina, the adopted daughter of Union's Chancellor—I tell you that Yuwon's will is not the Chancellor's will."
At this moment, officially, Ban Yuwon and Yumina stepped out of the Chancellor's shadow, standing solely by their own will.
At the very least, the Ten Great Families, who had considered them and the Chancellor as one entity, would have no choice but to accept it as truth.
"Of course, he is also not like the predecessor Tower Lord, so you must judge him solely as Ban Yuwon, an individual. However."
Golden flowers began to bloom throughout the hall.
A stage setting she had prepared with Stella's help since immediately after arriving here.
A flower garden she could make bloom on a grander scale thanks to Ortima's cooperation.
The power of the stars, capable of crushing all transcendent beings, blossomed brilliantly, ready to strangle her enemies at any moment.
"Nevertheless, if you still intend to kill him, you will have to face me first."
"Hmph."
At that point, the Selene family finally made its move.
The Selene Family Head was an extremely old elder with glowing tentacles sprouting from his head, like those of an anglerfish. It was surely just a trick of the mind, but—he didn't not look a little like Yumina.
"We remember the Tower Lord—."
Shudder, each time the lantern-like tentacles vibrated, a unique mana wave spread, augmenting the light of the flower garden Yumina had created.
"Furthermore, if we remember that Juventa's last descendant, one of our own roots, came from us. Even to pay the price for our sin of failing to rescue our bloodline from a dying dimension and remaining silent—we have no choice but to lend our strength to Juventa, and to her partner, the new Tower Lord."
"Do you truly remember the Tower Lord, Selene!"
Again, the hulking pig of Fides.
He, who was undoubtedly the most threatening in appearance, roared loud enough to shake the ceiling.
"To acknowledge him means returning to a time long ago when we were mere servants, crawling on the ground, unable to defy our Master's will! Can't you see how he, though still a naive youth, is strangling us with a single Codeword? Just a little more, just a little more growth, and he'll be holding the leashes of all the Ten Great Families ruling this universe and shaking them!"
"That seems to only apply to those you call traitors. It's quite amusing to watch these high-nosed individuals, whose abilities don't match their arrogance, as high as ours in Ortima, rolling on the floor. Don't you agree?"
As Ortima's Acting Family Head, watching the unfolding situation with an intrigued expression, made a comment, the ruler of the S-1 Dimension, Amore—who appeared outwardly to be nothing more than a benevolent and virtuous middle-aged lady—opened her mouth.
"Hmph, Ortima still doesn't know, even after reaching this point. How foolish."
Naturally, that lady was the Amore Family Head.
No, in fact, with the exception of the Ortima Family Head, who lived solely for his own glory, all the rulers governing the current Ten Great Families were gathered in this place!
Considering that Ortima's heir was properly present, this was a rare sight, one that might occur once in several millennia.
It also clearly showed how much they valued this gathering and Ban Yuwon.
If someone wished to eliminate them all at once, it was truly an unmissable, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
"Ortima was merely absent because they had stolen the seed of the Absolute One and gone into hiding, but in essence, they betrayed him all the same. No, would the current Ortima family even have known of the Tower Lord's existence to begin with? Fridwen, do you know?"
The Family Head of Fridwen, a Ten Great Family known for the impressive ship emblem seal on their shield, silently shook his head.
"I only knew that you were overreacting to this gathering, as if you were terrified of something. That's why I, the Family Head, came in person. It seems the traitors knew the gravity of their betrayal and passed it down through generations, making them wary of the birth of a new Tower Lord. Ah, that's the expression of someone caught red-handed."
"I'm scared. Of course I'm scared. I, who have lived for over a thousand years, cannot properly unleash my authority because my mana is tangled by a single word from that whippersnapper!"
The Amore Family Head's voice rose.
Ban Yuwon, who had been replenishing his mana by drinking blood wine, suddenly noticed a gaze fixed on him and calmly raised his middle finger at the Amore Family Head.
The Amore family was famous not only for their innate authority but also for actively utilizing the power of Constellations, much like Prominence in the past. Surprisingly, however, this space was now dominated by Yumina's Starlight flower garden, preventing any Constellations from setting foot within.
That's probably why that woman was getting so worked up.
‘Alright, so what now...?’
He was currently contemplating how to end this situation in a way that would be most advantageous to him, wouldn't harm the balance of the universe, and would aid him in conquering the Tower in the future.
In truth, much of the serious crisis had passed.
With Clio's actions causing the Hecate family to falter, and Yumina, whose symbolism was already high simply by being the last descendant of the Juventa family, unexpectedly bringing her Selene kin into their alliance, the balance of power had completely shifted to their side.
However, Ban Yuwon didn't want to kill all of them, even though they were his enemies.
Of course, he had cut down the Clarent Family Head without hesitation, but that man had been the one who provoked Ban Yuwon and lured him to this place, and he had directly tried to kill him, so there was a need to punish him, if only as an example.
If he killed everyone he disliked, his mind might be at ease, but what would become of this universe? The agreements between the Ten Great Families would all turn to foam, and in the worst case, a great conflict could erupt, engulfing dozens of dimensions or more.
Therefore, the most effective course of action in this situation was, naturally, something that could bind everyone in this space with a single promise.
Wasn't it time for Woohyeolrin's technique, the Covenant, symbolizing peace and trust, love and the future, to step forward—.
—KWAANG!
The moment he finished that thought, a massive impact struck the entire asteroid.
Ban Yuwon twitched an eyebrow and immediately looked back at the Melodia Family Head.
Everyone shared the thought—who would dare disrupt this gathering of the Ten Great Families?—yet only the Melodia Family Head wore a calm expression.
And he immediately understood.
"So this was it."
"What is that... wait, huh?!"
Asha shrieked, pointing at the massive airship that had appeared in the dark sky visible outside the hotel window.
"It's the Dragon Fang Soldiers!"
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