CHAPTER 130

Why Did I Have to Enroll

Why Did I Have to Enroll - Chapter 130

Lesson 26. Pushing Away When Getting Closer - 5

Dealing with a Constellation is an incredibly exhausting task. When there is a shared success, the credit goes to the Constellation. When there is a shared failure, the blame falls on the contractor. That’s why Cantone disliked his Constellation.

―Foolish contractor of mine.

“Lord Yergel, why do you blame me?” Cantone replied with a slightly sharp tone to the Constellation, who was clearly criticizing him. Yergel was one of the pseudonyms the Constellation used to refer to itself.

―You are foolish for not recognizing the qualities of your adversary.

“Adversary? If you mean that lowly being…”

―Lowly being?

The Constellation’s voice grew sharper.

―I warned you not to use such words in my presence.

“But, great Yergel, he is just a student from a lower dimension where mana isn’t even properly spread.”

―And that student is now shaking the Academy. I may despise the Tower, but I must admit their choice wasn’t wrong this time.

“No, it was wrong.”

Cantone responded immediately.

“That sandcastle he built with his bare hands may still be standing, but it will eventually collapse when a strong wind blows. It has always been that way.”

―So, you plan to become the storm yourself?

“Great Yergel.”

―I will not help.

The Constellation stated firmly.

―This is not for a greater cause; it’s merely for your selfish desires. I lent you a hand once because you are my contractor, but there won’t be a second time. Also, I will not allow you to use my power against him in the future.

“Yes, Lord Yergel!”

―This is your karma, so bear it yourself. And heed my warning, contractor. The debt you owe ‘us’ is piling up. If you get distracted, you won’t be able to handle the burden, and it will suffocate you.

“…I will keep it in mind.”

The presence of the Constellation soon disappeared. After waiting for a while to regain his own space, Cantone ground his teeth.

“Don’t think I’ll keep bowing down forever. …The Tower will be mine, not yours.”

However, Cantone knew well that now wasn’t the time to unleash his anger. He had to keep this fury contained, hidden under a lid for now. Directly meddling with the Tower was a clear misstep. Even the Constellation had withdrawn its support. It was a time when he was clearly at a disadvantage. Success would bring problems, and failure would be disastrous. That lowly being was infuriating, but for now, he had no choice but to leave him be. РＡℕ𝙤ꞖĚs

‘But…’

There were still cards he could play. Cantone forced a smile as he recalled Ryu Cheol-myeong’s face, who had proposed a dirty deal to him. There were many ways to manipulate that ignorant man. He had been walking a dangerous tightrope for quite some time, hadn’t he? It was a wonder he had managed to stay as a full professor at the Academy, with only a large sword and aura as his skills. If he succeeded, Cantone could get rid of the eyesores without lifting a finger. If he failed, it would just mean the disappearance of a full professor who was obsessed with power and women, someone unfit for the Academy.

‘I don’t like having to wait until the break is over, but… there’s no choice. Let’s look forward to the second semester. Mutual destruction wouldn’t be so bad.’

There were plenty of replacements, whether they were professors, students, or Constellations. The only constants were the Tower and the Headmaster. Cantone’s goal was to change those two, which seemed immutable. It wouldn’t be long now. It wouldn’t be long.

Having rested well in Room 39, Rebellion quickly moved past Room 40, collecting their rewards, and over the next two days, they made a remarkable advance up to Room 50. The fact that they weren’t stopped only meant that no Chain Rooms or Trick Rooms appeared. The traps that would have terrified any ordinary first-year student and the overwhelming number of monsters remained unchanged. Nevertheless, Rebellion, possessing power far above the average of not just first-years but all Academy students, continued their unstoppable march.

Ban Yu-won, who had achieved the title of Archmage in Room 39, focused on swordsmanship from Room 41 onward. However, there were no achievements worth noting, and he only managed to lay some groundwork for martial arts using the Storm Sword while practicing activating Acceleration with the concept of acceleration. Although there was no treasure chest in Room 50, the fruits of Eden were abundant, and Ban Yu-won succeeded in producing a year’s worth of Elixir Jam, at a more advanced level due to his growth, combining it with what he had collected up to Room 40.

“If Lilith were here, we could have reached Room 60.”

“If all four of us could ride.”

“I believe it. Lilith, having absorbed the Ten Thousand Changes, will transform into a combat tank.”

“Don’t bother taking the egg out of your inventory while saying that. It won’t hear you anyway.”

On Sunday evening, Rebellion, having completed their exploration, disbanded without a reflection meeting, which was rare. Having taken a refreshing shower in Room 50, there was no need to return to the dormitory. The women left for their rooms first—specifically, Dokgo Yeon dragged Lucein away from clinging to Ban Yu-won—and the two remaining looked at each other.

“Go inside, Light. I’ll probably have dinner and then come back.”

Light frowned slightly.

“Ban, aren’t you coming to our room? Don’t tell me you have plans with Professor Yumina again?”

Light thought Yumina was making advances on Ban Yu-won, and he didn’t like it one bit.

“No, don’t worry.”

“Then? We just got out of the Tower…”

Ban Yu-won gave a sly smile as he explained to the puzzled Light.

“I told you the other day, I’m going to make armor into a Familiar. I’m going to Mira. I need some help.”

“Oh…”

Despite his explanation, Light’s frown deepened. Ban Yu-won then remembered that Light had a sense of rivalry and inferiority towards Mira.

“Yeah, that woman. She’d be helpful in artifact crafting…”

“Light?”

“Ba-Ban. You know…”

Seeing Light’s noticeably darkening expression, Ban Yu-won tried to say something, but Light suddenly spoke with a determined look.

“Actually, I’ve been getting close to Ayre lately.”

“Uh-huh.”

“…So?”

“What do you mean, so?”

What is he talking about? A contest of who’s got the better friend?

As Ban Yu-won tilted his head in confusion, Light spoke with urgency.

“What do you think?”

“About what?”

“That I’m close with Ayre?”

“So?”

As Ban Yu-won blinked in confusion, Light pounded his chest in frustration and added.

“We even went out together!”

“I know. You skipped training and went out to play together.”

“You knew?”

“Of course. And Light.”

Finally understanding what Light was trying to say, Ban Yu-won nodded and placed a hand on his shoulder. Light’s face brightened instantly.

“Ban…!”

“A person’s worth isn’t determined by who they associate with. Just because I’m close with Mira doesn’t make me any more special.”

“…Huh?”

Light clearly had a ‘that’s not it’ expression, but Ban Yu-won ignored it and continued.

“And the same goes for you, Light. Even if you don’t hang out with Ayre, you’re special enough. So, don’t worry.”

“Uh, uh-huh…”

Although it wasn’t what he expected, Light nodded slowly, not displeased. He retreated with an unsatisfied expression.

“Make sure you’re back before midnight.”

“Of course.”

“Yeah, and… I’m not really that close with Ayre. I just needed some help. So, don’t worry. It’s embarrassing, but, uh.”

Ban Yu-won braced himself for the incoming awkwardness. Light, hesitating, finally closed his eyes tightly and spoke.

“I consider you my best friend. That’s all, just so you know!”

What does he mean by that?

But before Ban Yu-won could ask, Light vanished from the spot. Left alone, Ban Yu-won let out a grand sigh and slumped his shoulders. He had a vague idea of what Light meant.

‘Is it possessiveness…?’

Possessiveness isn’t something that only occurs in romantic relationships. Many people dislike or feel uneasy when their close friends become friendly with others, so it could be understood as a form of friendship. Since sharing stories about the kingdom and the Holy Sword, Light seemed particularly fixated on friendship and camaraderie.

‘The problem is, Light isn’t actually a guy.’

If one were to assert that it’s love, then they’d have to delve into whether friendship can exist between men and women. This is a topic that becomes more awkward the more you think about it!

As Ban Yu-won scratched his arm, Celon chimed in mercilessly.

―It’s clear that what Light feels for you isn’t ordinary friendship. It’s something more irritating, clingy, and pathological.

Light can’t hear you, but you’re being harsh.

Ban Yu-won, while inwardly agreeing with her, defended his friend.

“Maybe not. Light might just be expressing his emotions this way because he’s been hiding himself for so long.”

It was a softened version of saying he probably didn’t have any friends.

―That’s even more of a problem.

True enough.

“If Light gets close to Ayre, this might resolve itself to some extent… I’ll think about it later.”

―That’s called escapism, you know?

“I don’t care; I’m going to make armor.”

Just then, a reply came from Mira, saying she would wait in the Artifact Crafting Department’s workshop. Ban Yu-won immediately activated his student ID and headed to the workshop.

“Yawn… Hello, Yu-won.”

Mira greeted Ban Yu-won, wearing a silk slip dress with a thin cardigan draped over it. She let out a slightly lazy yawn. It was a bit amusing to see her fully equipped with a crowbar in that attire.

“Yu-won, sorry, but I can’t stay up all night today. We’ll make just one and call it a day, okay?”

“No, let’s call it off today.”

It was obvious that the slip dress she wore wasn’t just for fashion but something she actually wore to bed. Realizing that she had rushed out with just a cardigan after receiving his message, Ban Yu-won quickly apologized.

“Sorry for calling you out. I knew you were busy with the Tower. It’s my mistake. Let’s do it tomorrow.”

“Don’t worry about it.”

But Mira pouted in response to his words.

“I said I’d give you everything, but that doesn’t mean I’ll follow your every word. If it affects my body, it will harm you in the long run, so I’ll refuse such demands.”

“But you’re sleepy now.”

“Yeah, just pleasantly drowsy.”

Mira added with a languid smile.

“So I thought it would be nice to see your face before sleeping, and then you contacted me.”

“Now that you’ve seen me, let’s go to bed.”

“I should do something since you showed your face. It’s not bad to move a bit before sleeping.”

Mira gestured with the crowbar in her hand, urging him to bring out the materials.

“Still… you didn’t change clothes on purpose to show me you’re sleepy, did you?”

“I didn’t have time to change.”

“Really?”

“Actually, that’s a lie.”

Mira replied candidly.

“I came like this because I wanted to show you myself in light clothing.”

“Okay, you seem fine. Let’s get to work.”

“…”

Even though he gave the answer she wanted, Mira seemed somewhat dissatisfied.

“You said you’d accept everything, but you keep pushing me away?”

“We’ll discuss when our contract became so sweet later. Let’s work now.”

“…Fine, I’ll work hard enough to make you want to give me a ‘sweet’ reward.”

Regaining her enthusiasm, Mira looked at the armor before her and widened her eyes.

“You said you got this in Room 40?”

“Yeah.”

“But why is it… hmm, I’ll check the footage later.”

Recalling that Ban Yu-won’s group’s exploration wasn’t ordinary, Mira nodded with a wry smile. However, she couldn’t remain calm when she saw the changes Ban Yu-won made to the armor.

“What are you doing now…?”

“I gained a lot from this exploration. By extracting Carapace from the Carapace Beast and combining it with the abundant Magic I obtained.”

It becomes a Magic Armor, a Magi Armor. In fact, this was the core concept that the artifact originally possessed. So what Ban Yu-won was doing now wasn’t adding something new but greatly expanding an existing concept. Very greatly.

“Honestly, I got so much this time… in terms of the depth of the core concept, it might surpass the others.”

“I don’t know much about that.”

Mira watched as the magic power and surface strength of the Magi Armor increased in real-time and smiled wryly.

“I can understand why Professor Campanella wants to bring you into the Artifact Crafting Department.”

“…Hmm, this seems to be the limit.”

Even after extracting Carapace from the Carapace, the depth was nearly 1,000, yet the depth of the Magi Armor before him seemed to hit a limit at 600. Still, it was certainly higher than the core concepts of Eve and the other Familiars.

“Could you process it here? I’d like it to have these capabilities…”

“Hmm… yeah, hmm. Got it, it’s simple.”

Bang, bang, bang! Crash, bang!

Nodding repeatedly at Ban Yu-won’s explanation, Mira struck the armor several times with the crowbar. The magical power of the crowbar, which skipped all production processes to create the desired result, quickly transformed the armor. While its form didn’t change much, its functionality now met Ban Yu-won’s desired performance at a glance. If Mira hadn’t helped, it would have taken a lot of effort!

“So?”

Mira, looking somewhat proud of her work, turned to him.

“You’re going to make it move on its own, right?”

“Of course. I’m actually more excited about it than last time.”

Ban Yu-won prepared a bunch of low-depth Life, a fragment of his Soul created using the power of Mixed Flame, and 10 Evil extracted from 20 Malice.

“In our world, there’s a legend. When an intact armor moves as if it’s alive and attacks humans, it’s said that an evil spirit is controlling it…”

A living armor, Living Armor. Ban Yu-won aimed to create that by combining Evil and Soul in his hands.