Novels online

I got into school for nothing - Chapter 7

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I got into school for nothing (7)

Lesson 2. This is your roommate - 3

For a full day after that, Ban Yuwon moved without rest.

He sorted the relics in his trunk into "those from which only the concepts were to be extracted" and "those to be preserved intact." Besides that, he also bought a large quantity of everyday items from which he could extract concepts.

During this process, the Code Core's capacity proved insufficient, so he urgently needed to acquire items possessing the concept of 'Core'. The solution was remarkably simple.

He discovered that he could extract the concept of 'Core' with a depth of approximately 0.05 from the seeds of any type of fruit.

As a result, he bought such a massive amount of fruit that he might have been mistaken for a greengrocer, ultimately extracting a total of 155 units of 'Core' depth.

The remaining fruit concepts—that is, the fruit flesh—were all gathered together. At first, he tried to see if he could separate these into 'fruit' and 'meat', but it proved impossible.

Through this, Ban Yuwon realized that he couldn't split the concepts of all words composed of Chinese characters, and that it was not easy for a subordinate concept (fruit flesh) to transcend the limitations of a superior concept (fruit).

The gist was that no matter how much he could split language concepts, he couldn't go against the natural order of things.

It was a reminder that one shouldn't try to live life too easily.

"What should I do with this concept? If I put it all into one watermelon, wouldn't it become a ridiculously delicious watermelon?"

"You're not eating it now, so why don't you just make it into preserves or something?"

"Whoa, Sis, are you a genius?"

A single remark from Ban Yumi, who had been watching Ban Yuwon's work, enlightened him.

He immediately pulled out a strawberry jam jar from his packed belongings (he planned to stuff his inventory with Earth's preserved foods like canned goods and instant noodles, as he wouldn't be returning home for a while).

"Why a jar, not a can?"

"Because once you open a can, you have to finish it, but this can be shared."

"Weren't you just trying to get rid of scraps?"

He observed the progression by adding 1 unit at a time (which was by no means a small amount, as even 1 unit required several fruits to create). But seeing no significant external change, he became a little bolder, adding 5 units at a time.

He kept stuffing it in until he came to his senses and realized that all 570 units of fruit flesh, obtained from extracting 155 units of 'Core', had been concentrated into a single jar of preserves!

"Oops, I've messed up...!"

"Hey, this thing's glowing!"

Just as he was preparing to throw the jar away, fearing it might explode, the contents inside began to emit a dazzling light, just as Ban Yumi had said.

In a tense moment, the light subsided, and a notification window from the Babylonia Code appeared before Ban Yuwon's eyes.

[Low-Grade Elixir x5 has been created. The vitality contained in the fruit flesh has been compressed to its limit and sealed. A single bite will significantly boost vitality and greatly influence the growth of 'Life'. However, the seal is currently very loose, making it easy for vitality to escape.]

The moment he heard that, Ban Yuwon generously detached about 5 units of the concept of 'Seal' from the snack bag (which he had separated and collected) and imbued them into the jar.

The change was immediate.

[Low-Grade Elixir x10 has been created. Due to the perfect seal, the contents are perfectly preserved, and their efficacy is also amplified. It is effective for healing wounds, but it is fundamentally recommended to use it for prolonged consumption to induce the growth of the concept of existence.]

"Wow, I'm even making elixirs now."

"What is it? What happened?"

Instead of answering, Ban Yuwon opened the carefully sealed jar, scooped a large spoon of the contents, ate a bite himself, and then fed a bite to his sister.

Stars filled her eyes.

"Mmm, what is this... delicious! Insane, so good...!"

"No more for you."

"Wow, wow!"

"If you're jealous, make your own. Gramps! Come here and have a bite of jam!"

"Eh, Gramps prefers red bean jelly..."

With this, he successfully processed both the 'Core' and the fruit flesh neatly.

He also learned that even seemingly ordinary concepts, when gathered and compressed through special methods, could transform into entirely different concepts.

Now, it was time to depart for Union Academy.

"Don't be discouraged, son. And I'll register you at S University for now. Come back anytime."

"Yeah, I get it, Dad. You have no expectations of me whatsoever."

After receiving his father's spirit-draining, easygoing farewell, Ban Yuwon turned his head to find his mother embracing him tightly.

"Take care, my son."

"Thanks, Mom."

"Will you go even if it kills you?"

"If I die, I can't go. I'll go and come back safe, without dying."

"Honestly..."

"Yuwon."

Grandfather Ban approached Ban Yuwon, who had barely escaped his mother's embrace.

To his surprise, his grandfather had remained perfectly lucid ever since Ban Yuwon first told him about the Tower of Babel. Even now, standing there in neat clothes, he brought back memories of his days working actively.

He was exactly the grandfather Ban Yuwon had always admired and followed.

"I entrust you with the family's cherished ambition."

"I'll somehow summon you to the Tower before graduation."

"You make me proud, my grandson."

In this place, only the grandson and grandfather shared an intense longing and desire for "the Tower."

They embraced tightly, and after finishing his farewells, Ban Yuwon said to his sister, who was staring blankly at him.

"Sis, don't get caught doping when you're competing."

"You idiot, if you're going to use cheats, why even compete?"

Her attitude was unchanged, even though her younger brother was going to another world whose location she didn't even know.

Well, that's why he felt at ease.

"Alright, do well. I'm off then."

Ban Yuwon chuckled, glanced at his family, and then responded to the message that had appeared before his eyes a moment ago.

[The entrance ceremony for Union Academy is about to begin. Student Ban Yuwon is being summoned.]

* * *

He closed his eyes and opened them again, finding himself in a massive auditorium.

Startled by his sudden appearance, the people on either side of him seemed to flinch, then frowned when they saw his uniform.

"What, are you a bottom-dweller? Why are you here?"

"Get lost over there."

"Oh, thanks."

What kind of incredibly kind people are these, even telling him where to go?

Ban Yuwon waved at the freshmen who had shown him his spot and headed towards the seating reserved for students who had passed the Special Admissions for Lower-Rank Dimensions.

He hadn't expected them to discriminate even with the seating; this, just as Light said, might get a bit tough from now on.

He only just realized now that their uniforms were different too, after all.

'Besides, the auras emanating from all directions... Ugh. These are all freshmen, right?'

Though still a novice, Ban Yuwon had, after all, cleared a dungeon, gained insight into the concept of mana, and spent an entire night sparring with Ban Yumi, who was more skilled than him, learning to some extent how to read an opponent's aura.

Yet, even the weakest-looking individuals around him now felt more than ten times stronger than Ban Yuwon.

If he could touch them, he might attempt to interpret their language concepts, but there was no way he could ask those radiating blatant hostility, "Can I hold your hand for a moment?"

For now, he had no choice but to walk with his shoulders back, feigning courage as much as possible, and find his seat as quickly as he could.

'If Grandfather Ban hadn't supported me, I would have truly been at a loss. It's a relief that, thanks to that, I've faithfully gathered my trump cards.'

He arrived with a shudder to find only four chairs placed there, distinguishing them from the other new students, making it feel as if they had been exiled.

"Ban!"

"Light, hey. So this is our spot. This special seating is totally awesome."

"Aw-awesome? Haha..."

There, besides Light, who was giving a wry smile, flustered by Ban Yuwon's liberal use of slang, were two more female students.

"Oh, hello."

"Mmm, hello."

One was a beauty with unusually bright pink eyes and hair like bubblegum, with a section of her bangs dyed black, giving her a docile and cute, dog-like impression.

However, Ban Yuwon tried to prevent his gaze from lingering on her conspicuously swollen chest, more than her voluminous, vibrant hair or face.

She seemed aware that her chest was a noticeable size, as her default posture was to hunch herself as much as possible. Feeling pity for her, Ban Yuwon made an effort to suppress his instincts.

"Hmm, hello to you too."

"...Hmph."

The other person, meanwhile, had another set of excessively striking features.

Her long hair was strangely lustrous white, and her eyes were entirely black, with no distinction between the whites and pupils, and a silver cross floated in the center of her irises.

Here, Ban Yuwon's understanding of humanity's concept was slightly surpassed.

Is that some kind of demonic eye from a manga or something? He felt needlessly intimidated at the thought.

'No, but are these really from the Special Admissions for Lower-Rank Dimensions? All three of them exude an aura strong enough to chew up the general admissions students...'

As Light, whose skill he had already experienced firsthand two days ago, and the white-haired, black-eyed girl (because her hair was white and her eyes black) radiated such a chilling aura that he wondered if she might even surpass a professor, and even the dog-like girl, who was trembling like a lamb, felt incredibly stronger than him!

Fortunately, fitting the reputation of the best academy in all dimensions, amidst the enrollment of all sorts of bizarre-looking races, at least these individuals appeared human.

And all of them with captivating appearances!

'One of them didn't really look human, though... but if you look at her, there's something eerily charming about that too. Yes, 'eerie charm' would be the right word.'

As expected of a language ability user, Ban Yuwon felt satisfied, having found the perfect words to define the other person.

Then he suddenly flinched, realizing her cross-shaped pupils were fixed directly on him.

"Why, what's wrong?"

"That... presence around you. It's intriguing."

"Huh? Oh, are you talking about the Dokkaebi Club?"

For an ability user sensitive to presence, it wasn't surprising to notice the Dokkaebi Club.

When Ban Yuwon summoned it onto his palm, she leaned forward, scrutinizing it without even blinking.

Then she chuckled, "Hmph."

Strangely, at that moment, he felt the intimidating aura emanating from her significantly lessen.

"My name is Dokgo Yeon, daughter of a Murim warrior. What's your name?"

"Uh, your name..."

"I only just learned your name. ...We're even roommates. We've lived together for days."

Listening to the other two, it seemed this was indeed her first time introducing herself.

But Ban Yuwon had something else on his mind.

"I'm Ban Yuwon. But Murim? Do you use martial arts or something? Like shooting energy blasts?"

"Pfft."

The woman who had introduced herself as Dokgo Yeon couldn't help but laugh at the mention of energy blasts.

Ban Yuwon turned pale, wondering if he had said something rude, but seeing Light and the dog-like girl next to him also burst into laughter, it seemed his words weren't impolite.

"Your perception isn't... *Pfft*, completely wrong."

"Really? Well, if fantasy exists, there's no reason Murim wouldn't."

"Among countless dimensions, the number of Murim worlds... that is, 'dimensions where mana training methods and martial arts, infused with religion, philosophy, and other ideologies, are systematically established' is known to exceed ten thousand, Ban," Light said from beside him, seizing the opportunity to foster camaraderie among the special admissions students.

"Ten thousand?!"

"...Hmph."

Ban Yuwon was genuinely astonished by his words, but Dokgo Yeon cast a slightly cold glance at Light.

Depending on how it was heard, it could be perceived as looking down on her dimension of origin.

Light, perhaps realizing his mistake, retreated with an awkward expression.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to disrespect your home dimension or anything. I just purely wanted to tell you that fact..."

"...!"

"Light, it might be better if you just stay silent."

"Ugh, yeah."

Fortunately, the enraged Dokgo Yeon did not proceed to demonstrate martial arts before their eyes.

Perhaps deciding to simply ignore him, she abruptly turned her head with a swish, extended a hand to Ban Yuwon, and said, "Ban Yuwon, I look forward to working with you. ...I feel a connection to you."

"Yeah, I look forward to it too. If you want something from me, don't forget to give me something in return."

"Heh heh."

She didn't seem as scary as he first thought.

As Ban Yuwon made this judgment and took her hand, the cross in her eye lightly rotated.

He wasn't sure if it was a positive sign, but it was terrifyingly scary right at the end!

"Excuse me!"

As the two of them conversed quite amiably, someone from the side interjected.

It was the pink-haired dog-like girl.

"I look forward to working with you too...! My name is Rucell, no surname, just Rucell."

"Ahem, ahem. I'm As Light. You can just call me Light. Nice to meet you, Rucell, Dokgo."

"Dokgo?"

Dokgo Yeon, who had seemed in good spirits until now, frowned and spoke.

"Please call me Dokgo Yeon instead."

"Ah, hahahaha... It looks like the ceremony is about to begin."

Light, having been rebuked, pointed forward with a wry smile that was slowly becoming familiar.

He saw nine professors ascending the platform set up in the center of the grand auditorium.

Ban Yuwon felt a strange sense of gladness when he spotted Professor Yumina, with her green skin and hair made of red flower petals. As if noticing it, Professor Yumina turned to him and gave a small smile.

"A private meeting, perhaps?"

"Yeah. With that professor."

Just as he was talking with Light.

Suddenly, the sound of fireworks exploding echoed in the air.

In the eyes of everyone who reflexively looked up.

The auditorium's ceiling had opened, and beyond it, a colossal eye was visible.

—Everyone has gathered.

A being that should have been beyond perception had manifested.

Its rank was so excessively high, and its size so immense, that merely looking directly at it would crush fragile life forms into involuntary death.

Ban Yuwon barely managed to register the eye, receiving a terrible shock, but it was not without reward.

[Your understanding of the concept of 'Eye' deepens. The depth of your Myriad-Reading Eye has reached 105. You can see more, and more clearly.]

[The depth of your Soul has reached 320. Your mind becomes stronger and firmer, and your resistance to wicked things increases.]

At that moment, Ban Yuwon, who had inadvertently developed his unique concepts, opened his eyes wide.

Was it just his imagination, or did the colossal eye seem to gaze at Ban Yuwon?

But it was probably a delusion.

—Then, I shall begin the 2,557th entrance ceremony of Union Academy.

It would have been impossible for such a magnificent being to individually perceive the existence of someone as tiny as Ban Yuwon.