I got into school for nothing - 83
I got into school for nothing (83)
Lesson 18. Midterm Exam - 5
Hyunsingong is a foundational martial art that simultaneously trains both the physical body and internal energy.
The black flames, continuously circulating within the body, surged fiercely as if to devour their master, eventually transforming a normal physique and mana into something beyond this dimension.
However, the results varied greatly from person to person, for Hyunsingong was a martial art that changed and grew according to the practitioner's will, mental imagery, and actions.
As a result, some people's bodies would transform into scabbards and their mana into swords, while others' bodies would become graves and their mana would transform into death.
Ban Yuwon, too, felt his body and mana changing more and more with each cultivation of Hyunsingong.
Yet, he was an ability user who wielded concepts themselves, the fundamental power of all things.
His body and mana, without leaning toward any single property, simply drew ceaselessly closer to the origin, becoming stained by an endlessly deep darkness.
[Due to your cultivation of Hyunsingong, some negative concepts within your body have vanished. A positive surplus of 'Life' is generated. This surplus potential will accelerate the growth of other concepts.]
[The depth of Hyunsingong has reached 100, the depth of Hyungi has reached 285. The depth of 'Life' has reached 445.]
[As the depth of Hyunsingong deepens, faster cultivation becomes possible.]
"...Hoo."
Ban Yuwon, who had finished his cultivation, opened his eyes and pondered Hyunsingong for a moment.
Perhaps these black flames were merely so unfathomably deep that their true essence couldn't be seen.
Dokgo Yeon, who had taught him Hyunsingong, would scoff at the idea, but perhaps other martial arts developed from Hyunsingong were merely branches splitting off from that deep, profound essence.
If so, the way to truly 'complete' Hyunsingong was...
'No, this is just a matter of interpretation after all. I should just follow the path I believe is right and show the results to Dokgo Yeon.'
Then, he would also be able to ask why she taught him such a peerless martial art as Hyunsingong...
His allotted time of solitude ended there.
"Sishit!"
"Huh?"
—Honk!
His student ID seemed to tremble slightly, then Eve popped out of thin air and coiled around his arm.
A moment later, Lilyth also appeared, honking her horn.
The guys who'd been patrolling external dungeons day and night had returned for their mid-term settlement.
"Good job. Was it tough?"
"Sishit, sishishit."
"Yeah, you're the best."
"Whirr, vroom."
"Lilyth was there too. Yes, yes."
Ban Yuwon placed the collected concepts into a Code Core.
Aside from the Code Cores Eve and Lilyth carried for concept collection, Ban Yuwon possessed several others, and currently, he was separately gathering a few concepts into one of them.
And with the concepts collected this time, added to the others...
Core 3,000 ['Life' 2,057, 'Magic' 502, 'Sword' 316, 'Swordsmanship' 54]
The numbers reached such a formidable count.
"Company commander... Your company commander is very proud of you."
"Shishishit."
—Honk!
Of course, this number was exaggerated.
It was merely the result of forcibly stacking low-purity concepts, using weak monsters like goblins as a baseline.
In other words, the numerical value of concepts gathered in this Code Core represented 'quantity,' not 'quality.'
Even if he were to strengthen himself with low-purity concepts, a 'Life' value of about 150 would probably be the limit.
But that was enough.
"Bear with it a little longer. I think a few more days of collecting should be enough."
"Shiiiiit."
"You worked hard, so rest. And now... Tikke?"
—Whirr
Ban Yuwon's dedicated camera operator, Tikke, appeared at his call.
He had asked it to roam around the academy and film all day today, and perhaps thanks to Rebellion and Tikke both becoming famous lately, students would even wave brightly when they spotted it.
They must have thought they might get exposed on the Rebellion channel if they were lucky.
To that extent, the Rebellion channel had become the academy's hottest trend.
However, the reason he had Tikke roam the academy today wasn't for a video to upload on the Rebellion channel, but...
"...There really does seem to be a problem."
He wanted to personally verify the reality of the Cursed Potion rumored to be circulating within the academy.
The vast Union Academy currently housed about a thousand enrolled students.
Among them, the number of students who clearly acted strangely or had 'peculiar concepts' mixed within their bodies was, based on Tikke's observations alone, over a dozen.
Assuming it couldn't enter dorms or library reading rooms, the scale of victims was undoubtedly larger.
His head already ached just thinking about what measures he'd have to take to detoxify all these people.
"Tsk, I'll think about that tomorrow when I meet with my senior. Tikke, you worked hard too. I'll upgrade you later."
After placating his familiars, he thought that Light must be returning from his training (it was also said he was unilaterally thrashed by Dokgo Yeon) and considered making hot chocolate for both of them. He stood up from his seat.
Vroom, his student ID vibrated again.
"What's this... No way?"
Upon checking, a spatial transfer coordinate had appeared on his student ID.
Yumina wouldn't call him out in such a cumbersome way, so it seemed the Chancellor was looking for him.
"Sishit?"
"Hmm... No. But I can't just ignore the summons either. I have to go. I'd been thinking I wanted to talk to them at some point anyway. I'll be back, so just rest."
After gently stroking Eve's head, who was looking at him with worried eyes, he prepared Light's hot chocolate on the table and activated his student ID.
In an instant, the surrounding scenery melted away, and space was replaced.
It was, as expected, the Chancellor's office, where he had been twice before.
—It's been a while, Ban Yuwon.
The third interview with the Chancellor, in the fifth week of the first semester of the first year, had begun.
Today's Chancellor was a doll in the form of a witch, as if sprung from a fairy tale.
Wearing a large conical hat and a dark cloak, the cute witch doll's eyes glowed a bright green.
Despite honestly finding its blatant appearance to be in bad taste, Ban Yuwon greeted it politely.
"Have you been well, Master?"
—Hmm, you remember well today too.
The witch doll nodded gravely and swung the broomstick it held.
It was a minor detail, but that broomstick looked exactly like the one it had carried when it was a maid doll.
"What did you call me for?"
—Have you spoken with the Student Council yet?
Why do high-ranking people always try to talk by cutting out all the context?
If not for his Authority, which allowed him to read even the hidden messages in language, he wouldn't have been able to communicate properly with this person.
"I'm scheduled to talk with Senior Ketra tomorrow. But no matter what the conclusion is, I don't intend to take the lead."
—Have you found out about the Cursed Potion?
"To some extent."
Ban Yuwon wasn't an expert on potions, nor could he understand everything by simply examining the potion's concepts.
But there were a few points that bothered him.
First, he couldn't find any concepts related to concentration, comprehension, or memory within the potion.
Second, it contained a faint trace of a 'Constellation's Stigma.'
...Third, he could confirm the same within the bodies of those who had consumed the potion.
"A Constellation is involved in this matter. Those who drank this potion are being unknowingly influenced by a Constellation. Perhaps even the increased learning effect..."
—Correct. It seems you've gained a deeper understanding of the Constellation's essence through this exploration. As the Tower exists alongside Constellations, analyzing and learning about them is the right thing to do.
The witch doll sat on its broomstick and, to Ban Yuwon's surprise, floated into the air and settled on top of his head.
But the moment the witch doll landed on his head.
"K-!"
Ban Yuwon felt a burning sensation, as if pierced by light throughout his body, and staggered on the spot.
"Mas...ter... what, now..."
—It's both an investigation and a preventative measure. But it seems it wasn't even necessary. If you continue as you are, you will never encounter trouble with Constellations in the future.
It was good to get a passing grade, but this person was still exasperating...!
As if knowing nothing of his inner thoughts, the Chancellor, having finished the 'investigation,' leaped from his head and landed on his shoulder this time.
Outwardly, it was a cute witch doll, but within it resided an unknown monster.
He wished it would get off his shoulder as soon as possible, but the Chancellor seemed quite content there.
—Let us discuss the core issue.
"Yes?"
—You will not be able to find evidence that everyone can agree upon.
The witch doll let go of its broomstick, and it began to float erratically in the air.
—She is a talented fairy, and fairies are inherently skilled at reality manipulation. This means she can create alibis that even full professors would find hard to detect. You've heard of Changeling, I presume.
Changeling.
The tale of fairies taking a human child (a beautiful one) without the parents' knowledge and leaving a fairy child (an ugly one) in its place.
Even on Earth, fairies represented illusion.
Hearing that such beings were skilled at reality manipulation, he could only accept it.
—Her plan is truly solid, and the time is ripe. If it weren't for you, the situation would have proceeded as planned... many students would have been in danger. And one student would have been expelled.
"You were going to expel them anyway, but you intended to let the situation unfold?"
—Of course. The students, by their own free will, purchased and consumed the potion. Foolishly, they themselves signed a cursed contract that aimed for their own necks. The contract was established at that moment, and no one can pay its price on their behalf.
Listening to the Chancellor's cruel explanation, Ban Yuwon recalled the mechanism of his own Talisman.
Though not a curse, his Talisman also only activated when the user injected mana, meaning there had to be a clear intent to use the Talisman.
The Cursed Potion created by Mira also took effect only through such a contract... Wait, a curse?
—It hasn't manifested yet, so it's not strange you didn't find out. Do not overestimate your abilities.
"That's true, but..."
—Now, for the conclusion.
The broomstick, which had been floating in the air, suddenly began to move in a regular pattern.
Ban Yuwon recognized it as a form of Language Magic.
—Preventing the situation before it occurs is impossible due to insufficient evidence, and after it occurs, it falls under my Authority. Ban Yuwon, what do you intend to do?
"I considered the possibility of not being able to accuse the culprit from the start. I'll just have to focus on resolving the Cursed Potion's side effects."
—Wrong.
The Chancellor said in a cold voice.
—It's not a side effect but a curse, so 'dispelment' is the correct term. Can you do it?
"Yes, I can, definitely."
—Good. With that, you should be able to achieve all that you desire.
"...?"
The Chancellor smiled contentedly.
Even with his Authority, Ban Yuwon failed to fully grasp the hidden meaning behind the Chancellor's words.
He only noticed that the Chancellor was openly expressing happiness.
—I've heard everything I wished to. Ban Yuwon, once you resolve this matter, I will grant you Solo Exploration Authority. It is the Authority to ascend the Tower of Babel separately from your party.
"Separately, meaning..."
—It will not affect party explorations.
"Indeed, thank you."
What, it was possible to multitask after all.
Ban Yuwon, who had felt a certain stability climbing the Tower of Babel with his current members and had intended to refuse the Solo Exploration Authority, now thought it wouldn't be a bad thing if he was given the chance to climb the Tower separately from his party's explorations.
...Though finding the time to climb would be the problem.
"Then, I'll be going now. Oh, by the way, if there's any particular video you'd like me to film for Rebellion activities in the future..."
—Go.
Ban Yuwon was unceremoniously ejected from the room again.
That's odd, that person is clearly a fan of the Rebellion channel.
@@@
"Oh?"
Late at night, Light, who had returned to his room after sparring with Dokgo Yeon, found a mug on the table.
"Hot chocolate? It's so warm..."
After having just rinsed his body with cold water, he was craving something warm.
Light instinctively brought the mug to his lips.
"Hoo, hoo... It's sweet. Delicious..."
The thought that Ban Yuwon might have prepared it for himself came to him belatedly, but seeing that Eve, who remained nearby, didn't react at all to his actions, it seemed it was indeed prepared for him.
He gripped the mug tightly.
'That guy, even if he's mischievous, he strangely pays attention to these kinds of details...'
He must have been charming women by the dozen in his original world.
But the terrifying thing was that even knowing that, he didn't find him hateful or repulsive.
Even while constantly reminding himself not to let his guard down, Light would be startled to find himself relying on Ban Yuwon more and more, acting spoiled around him.
'But where did Ban really go?'
Seeing his familiars here, it didn't seem like anything serious had happened.
It was a good thing, as he didn't want to show his face to him right now...
"Eve, when is your master coming back?"
"Shiiii?"
Chuckling unconsciously at Eve, who made a question mark with its body in response to his question, Light cleared his throat and went into the room, perching on his bed.
Still holding the mug, which was half full.
'He's busy.'
He had eaten dinner separately yesterday too.
He wondered how Rucell had found out, but she had cornered him that morning, asking what had happened with Yumina, looking half-teary-eyed... Perhaps what Rucell was worried about hadn't actually happened.
'He's taken on some kind of incident. His expression makes it obvious.'
Moreover, he was absent today as well, so he must truly be busy.
Something he didn't want to tell the other members, or something that wouldn't matter even if he did.
They had clearly entered the academy together, and at that time, his own abilities were superior to Ban Yuwon's... Why had things turned out this way?
It was inevitable that he would feel inferior to him.
But right now, he felt even more frustrated and anxious.
He didn't like the one-sided dynamic where he was always the one receiving help from Ban Yuwon.
'Even on this exploration, he ended up getting sponsorships from two Constellations...'
He might completely fall behind someday.
Perhaps Ban Yuwon wouldn't abandon him and would ask him to stay together... but Light himself probably wouldn't be able to bear such a situation.
...If only he, too, could receive a Constellation's sponsorship, he wouldn't be such a burden.
Just then, he felt the necklace around his neck vibrate and emit light.
"Ugh—!"
At the same time, a splitting headache assailed his mind.
Light gritted his teeth, suppressing the scream that threatened to escape.
"I know, I know...! I won't contact a Constellation, so stop it...!"
Light, groaning and muttering to himself with a tearful expression, swallowed the contents of the mug in one gulp.
It was a little hot, but miraculously, the headache vanished instantly.
The necklace's vibration also subsided.
It almost felt as if the necklace feared Ban Yuwon, and even though it wasn't the situation for it, he chuckled a little.
'Ban...'
To think he was even receiving help when Ban Yuwon wasn't around.
Gazing down at the empty mug, Light's eyes sparkled.
'...Alright. Time to study.'
The Talisman, upgraded through its side effects, now had a temporary pause function, allowing him to stop its effects intermittently.
He gathered his assignments, sat down at his desk, and infused mana into the Talisman.
When Ban Yuwon returned, Light was asleep, using a pile of assignments as a pillow, so he had to move him to his bed and cover him with a blanket.
Because even talismans couldn't overcome sheer exhaustion.
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