I Got Into School for Nothing - Chapter 80
I Got Into School for Nothing (80)
Lesson 18. Midterm Exam - 2
That night.
—I've been thinking.
"Hm?"
Ban Yuwon, busy coating his brush with paint made from various ground ingredients, replied without even lifting his head at Cellon's voice.
His work was in full swing, and he couldn't take his eyes off it.
Before him lay a rectangular piece of paper, the size of his palm.
He boldly swept his brush across the paper, inscribing characters – words of Language Magic.
"Why bring it up now? If it wasn't for this level, do you think I would've been chosen for the special admissions?"
—Ridiculous. I've accessed the records of all other special admissions students affiliated with this academy, and even if you combined all of them, they wouldn't come close to you.
"When did you check all that?"
—That's basic. If I had an authority like yours, I could even manipulate the academy's barrier.
"Super Hacker Cellon..."
—Ugh, what? That sounds offensive.
Though he felt like nothing more than an exceptionally skilled staff member, at times like this, it truly hit home that Cellon had once been a Constellation.
—Anyway, your authority holds too great a potential for an individual. Plus, its versatility is boundless. Look, even now, you're creating talismans that only ancient sorcerers would have been able to make.
"What are you talking about? This form came about after consulting with you."
—Honestly, I didn't think it would actually work.
"I pity the contractor who made a pact with such an irresponsible Constellation."
—You shouldn't say that, you rotten scoundrel!
Ban Yuwon, who had consulted with Cellon about what means the Class 11 members should use to safely pass the midterm exam, came up with the idea of creating a kind of buff to improve studying efficiency.
He had been considering buffs for some time now.
If he could directly interfere with others using his linguistic authority, the Babylonia Code, wouldn't that itself be a buff or a debuff?
'The problem is that I can't directly interfere with the conceptual framework within another's body using my authority.'
The one time he succeeded in the past, it led to the catastrophic result of Rucell going berserk.
So, he hadn't made any further attempts since then... until Cellon advised him.
Humans instinctively reject mana interference from others, so why not insert a medium between them to avoid going against that instinct?
That medium was an artifact.
If Ban Yuwon imbued an artifact with an ability, the target could then activate the ability by directly touching it.
In that process, the target's mana would naturally blend in, thus allowing his authority to be applied to the target without causing any rejection – that was Cellon's idea.
It was a very plausible idea, but were artifacts easy to create?
Ban Yuwon was certainly a wielder capable of collecting, imbuing, and even synthesizing the concepts of all things, but creating something from nothing was impossible even with Language Magic.
To be precise, it was possible to temporarily create concepts using Language Magic, but if the Hyungi contained within them disappeared, they would vanish entirely.
—That's amazing! If everyone could seal magic onto paper like you, magic scrolls wouldn't be so expensive!
"Oh, these sell for a lot?"
—Of course!
As a result, the created item became a consumable, not an artifact.
'A talisman.'
Until now, when activating Language Magic, he usually drew the magical words spontaneously with Hyungi without a medium. But this time, he prepared a special ink (concentrated with the concept of preservation, and expensive) and drew the magical words on parchment specifically designed for magic scrolls (which was incredibly expensive) to make the effect last as long as possible.
"Making money is easy. Just draw some magic words and imbue them with Hyungi."
—Students who don't want to get expelled from the academy would probably buy those talismans for an exorbitant price, wouldn't they?
"But I'm not selling them."
What would be the point if he went to all the trouble of raising his members' grades, only for the talismans to boost other students' grades too?
Modern society was a ruthless competition.
The incompetent could not survive.
Lost in such thoughts, he busily wielded his brush, and before he knew it, the first talisman was complete.
"It's funny how it looks quite plausible as a talisman after making it."
—Plausible or not, it's the simplest yet most effective magic scroll I've ever seen. Mages would call this talisman a work of art.
The buff, or rather, the concepts Ban Yuwon intended to imbue into the talisman, were three:
Concentration (集中), Comprehension (理解), and Memorization (暗記).
These were the three indispensable elements for studying written subjects.
By inscribing these three concepts onto the talisman, infusing them with a large amount of Hyungi, and then sealing (封印) them, the concept of the seal would naturally dissipate when mana was injected into the talisman to use it, and its effects would begin to manifest.
Stabilizing this mechanism involved no less than an hour of agonizing thought and sweat-soaked tears.
"But I don't like using a large amount of Hyungi again when sealing. This system will need improvement later. ...Right, speaking of seals."
—Think about it later; for now, check the finished product.
He mentally organized the idea that had just flashed through his mind, and the moment he grasped the completed talisman as Cellon instructed, a series of messages derived from his authority appeared before his eyes.
[You have successfully crafted a Ban Yuwon Special Study Talisman (30). This talisman, created by gathering concepts that positively affect brain activity, is firmly sealed. From the moment the seal breaks and it activates, it will grant the user strong effects of Concentration, Comprehension, and Memorization for approximately 30 hours. Due to the influence of a mutated authority, some of the talisman creator's knowledge is naturally transferred to the user.]
[Through the harmony of authority and Language Magic, you have succeeded in creating a unique magical item. The depth of your All-seeing Eye, All-hearing Ear, and All-speaking Tongue each deepened by 10 points. The depth of your Soul has reached 650. The depth of your Mutated Authority has reached 15.]
"Oh."
Without a doubt, it was a result beyond his expectations.
Especially the additional effect granted by his mutated authority – it was utterly preposterous!
Since Ban Yuwon already understood all subjects, if even a portion of his knowledge was transferred to the members, wouldn't their chances of passing the exam instantly skyrocket?
—See? Something ridiculous popped out again! Just like the guy who arbitrarily steals concepts, he even slapped on an absurd option like knowledge transfer...
—Constellation [Clock of the Toy Legion] tilts its head at the achievement of its sponsored individual, who handles authority better than itself.
Cellon reacted as if he had somewhat expected it, while the Constellation who occasionally showed its presence through messages these days reacted with disbelief at the miraculous results Ban Yuwon, who had only just received its sponsorship, was displaying one after another.
Of course. The authority Ban Yuwon wielded had already acquired a fundamentally different nature from the ability the Constellation had sponsored him with.
—But what are you going to do? That mutated authority isn't under your complete control. What if other talismans end up with subtle effects attached?
"Cellon, you still don't understand me after all."
—What?
Ban Yuwon picked up a second piece of paper, inscribed a phrase with a single stroke, and then injected the exact same amount of Hyungi into it as he had with the previous talisman.
It was a Perfect Replication (完全複製).
—Huh?
"Like this."
And when he overlapped it with the first talisman, astonishingly, the phrase "Perfect Replication" disappeared, and it transformed to become identical to the first talisman!
After the transformation was complete, examining the talisman's information confirmed it was indeed identical to the first. Even the abilities added by his mutated authority were perfectly replicated.
"Done."
—You can come up with such an idea...
Before the divine technique of copy-pasting, something every modern Earthling was familiar with and fond of, the old-fashioned... outmoded Constellation was utterly aghast.
"Cellon, give me some Hyungi."
—Is it different because he's someone who handles primordial concepts? When he shows off his aptitude as a mage like this, it makes me genuinely want to teach him properly.
"Yes, we'll do that another time. For now, give me the Hyungi."
Even with Cellon's help, Ban Yuwon managed to create only 20 talismans, having to replenish his Hyungi several times midway through the process by circulating his Hyungi through the Hyunsingong technique.
"I should keep making these whenever I have leftover Hyungi. Or perhaps a rechargeable artifact that recharges its concepts when depleted would be good too."
—At this rate, it might even be of practical use in the Tower, don't you think?
"I could also make them with the concept of a protective barrier."
He had merely intended to improve his party members' academic performance, but unexpectedly, the potential applications of his authority had instantly expanded. RANObЕs
Without exaggeration, his overall combat power had nearly doubled.
—Wouldn't a professor from the Artifact Production Department forget to breathe and rush over if they saw this?
"Professor Talia Liliana Campanella, wasn't it? Come to think of it, I heard reporting artifact-related achievements to her counts as a performance bonus, so gifting her one wouldn't be a bad idea."
In any case, all these talismans were sealed (封) by his authority, so even if someone researched them, they wouldn't discover the principle, and even if they knew the principle, they couldn't imitate it.
Of course, there might be beings somewhere in the world who could imitate it, but such people could create other amazing items even without this talisman, so it wouldn't matter.
—If you made several talismans with various functions, hmm... then you could truly climb the Tower alone, couldn't you?
"Usually, those who awaken new abilities and become so arrogant are the first to get wiped out, one after another."
—Are you a sage?
Finishing his trivial chat with Cellon, Ban Yuwon stood up, stretched with a grunt, and looked out the window.
Below the moonless night sky, rain was steadily falling, thoroughly drenching the spaceship dock and the forest.
He had been working alone in the doorless classroom because he didn't want to bother As Light, but as night deepened, the atmosphere was perfectly eerie.
"I wouldn't be surprised if a ghost popped out."
—Ghosts aren't even that special. You're scarier than a ghost.
"...Huh?"
But Ban Yuwon could no longer indulge Cellon's joke.
He had just witnessed something pale moving rapidly behind the massive pillars of the spaceship dock, located somewhat far from the academy facilities.
"Holy..."
—Did you find a spirit body? A spirit body moving perfectly fine within the barrier that monster personally set?
"What on earth are you surprised about? Are you friends with the Chancellor?"
While sighing and replying, his eyes unconsciously tracked the movement of the pale entity.
Was it a trick of the light? For a moment, it seemed to stop and look up at Ban Yuwon.
Large, ominously glowing eyes, pointed ears...
But the next moment, as Ban Yuwon gasped and widened his eyes, it had already vanished without a trace.
"...But it's precisely at times like these that it's never a delusion."
—You sometimes engage in foolish question-and-answer sessions with yourself. You look perfectly normal, but is it a side effect of your authority?
"Are you being harsh?"
* * *
The next day, Tuesday.
During lunchtime, Ban Yuwon gathered his companions in the doorless classroom and distributed five talismans to each of them.
"Inject mana into the talisman, and it activates instantly. Once activated, the talisman will stick to your body, exert its effects for 30 hours, and then burn away. Anyone who doesn't understand?"
"I don't understand anything at all."
"Then perhaps that's exactly how it should be?"
"It's like a miniature formation, isn't it? My... my family also had someone who specialized in researching such things."
Rucell and As Light quietly accepted the talismans, unable to even grasp their principles, while Dokgo Yeon's eyes gleamed with interest.
"Ban Yuwon, if so, can't you create 'talismans' that produce other effects besides this one?"
"Correct. Look forward to our next exploration."
"...As expected, my worries were foolish."
She muttered something inscrutable, chuckled softly, and tucked the talisman into her pocket.
"I probably won't need it, but since I've received it, I'll make good use of it. Thank you."
"Me, too!"
"Honestly, I don't quite understand, but if it works well, I'll thank you again then."
"Alright. Oh, don't carry them on exam day, you might get in trouble."
He had already submitted one talisman to Professor Campanella via Yumina that morning.
Although he hadn't spoken to her directly, the responses 'dangerous,' 'cheating,' and 'expulsion if caught in the exam hall' told him the effect was phenomenal.
The amount of bonus reward money he received for his achievement was quite astonishing.
"Then, let's go to the afternoon lecture now."
"It would be effective to use them during lectures too!"
"Yeah. Although Professor Zenon will probably gaze at us with that characteristic look again..."
However, as the group left the doorless classroom and headed for Zenon's lecture.
"Oh, you're Ban Yuwon, right? I was just looking for you, what a coincidence."
A brown-haired young man, reminiscent of a dark elf from fiction, wearing a heart-shaped earring on only one ear, blocked their path.
"I'm Ketra, Vice President of the Student Council. Please treat me well."
"The Student Council?!"
"So, Ban Yuwon."
The young man, who introduced himself as Ketra, stared intently at Ban Yuwon and asked,
"Do you have time after your lecture?"
Ban Yuwon looked at his pointed ears and thought, See, I told you.
It wasn't a delusion after all.
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