Chapter 154
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 154
Chapter Title: Lesson 31. The Last Spoonful is Always the Hardest - 4
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“Eh, it's kinda meh.”
The treasure chest that appeared in this room was made entirely of silver, both the chest itself and its trim.
The material of the chest was secondary, but this was the first time the trim wasn't gold.
In truth, from Room 81 to 89, they hadn't accomplished anything particularly special—they'd just crushed every enemy in sight—so even the appearance of a treasure chest was something to be grateful for.
“Your standards have gotten weird, Ban. A silver chest? They say even regular students rarely see one.”
“You're no different, Light. Treasure chests don't even appear that often to begin with.”
“Come to think of it, you're right. …Well, it probably showed up because we cleverly exploited the trick room's rules.”
Everyone nodded at Ban Yu-won's words.
Using machine-made familiars because the room offered machine reinforcements, or transforming familiars into machines... neither was something just anyone could pull off.
The group had pulled off some unconventional breakthroughs, but this was the first treasure chest since Room 40.
'It'd be nice if it contained something helpful for clearing the remaining rooms... but things never line up that perfectly.'
Ban Yu-won took a short breath, exchanged glances with his companions, and approached the chest.
He reclaimed every Seal concept protecting the chest and flung it open without hesitation—and inside was a single ring.
It was a simple silver ring that matched the chest's style, but its wide center band seemed engraved with something.
“A dud?”
“We don't know yet. Maybe it has an ability like 'temporarily counts as a machine for judgments'...!”
“Give it up already, Ban Yu-won.”
Sealing Ring 500
[Seal 450, Amplification 50]
“Hm?”
Even his All-Reading Eyes couldn't fully analyze the item's abilities.
One thing was clear: it wasn't an anti-machine artifact.
Ban Yu-won picked it up for a closer look.
He soon realized it was a signet ring, designed for stamping seals.
In Western cultures, didn't they pour molten wax on letters, then press a family crest from a ring or necklace into it?
“““Ah.”””
“Huh? Why are you three making that noise in perfect sync?”
“Look at the ring, Yu-won.”
When Ban Yu-won looked down, he saw the engraved seal on the ring changing shape.
It was engraving his name—in Hanja.
“...No way.”
“It's a bound artifact. I wasn't planning to take it anyway.”
“I doubt I could use it well either. You can have it, Ban.”
“I... Ah! If you buy me a pretty ring later instead... Kyaa!”
Ignoring Lucelle being subdued by Dokgo Yeon after slyly showing her greed, he got the artifact's details from Light.
Aim the ring at a target you want to seal and infuse it with magic power, and the target gets sealed.
Yeah, he could've guessed that much.
“Don't make me laugh. Then this would be the world's strongest artifact. Seals are stronger than rings, obviously.”
“There are limits, but that's how it shows in my status window. What's 'absolute ring'?”
Her eyes didn't look like she was lying.
That explained the group's ambiguous reactions.
It sounded impressive in description, but everyone knew it wouldn't work that smoothly in practice.
“Let's test it.”
In truth, Ban Yu-won was deeply connected to the concept of sealing.
The treasure chest he'd just opened had been firmly imbued with Seal concepts.
The talismans they used often carried Seal concepts, and didn't they have to seal elixirs when making jam?
Because of that, he'd developed a habit of collecting Seal concepts from everywhere and storing them in his Code Core for emergencies.
“Make a talisman first.”
He created a magic power storage talisman and, instead of engraving a Seal concept onto it, lightly infused the ring with magic and stamped it.
Incredibly, a Seal concept was actually imprinted on the talisman.
It looked no different from when he applied concepts himself.
“Uh...”
Ban Yu-won was dumbfounded.
It barely consumed any magic power, and the depth of the Seal from the ring was undiminished as a new Seal concept was created.
Sure, its uses were niche, but it was incredibly useful for him!
Now he wouldn't need to painstakingly collect Seal concepts... wait a second.
“Can it receive imprints too?”
He poured all 200 Seal concepts he'd reclaimed from opening the chest into the ring.
The Seal depth jumped from 450 to 455!
“200 converted to 5, huh. Tough efficiency.”
But higher Seal depth would improve the artifact's performance, so he went ahead and imprinted every Seal concept he had, perfectly hitting 500.
And it didn't end there.
After a moment's thought, he used Soul Flame to split off 10 of his soul, then imprinted it into the ring along with 10 Resonance.
'Since it already has my name engraved, adding a piece of my soul might make it more effective.'
It was a shallow idea, but the result was outstanding.
A mutation triggered during the imprinting, fusing Soul and Resonance into a depth-50 Reinforcement concept.
Sealing Ring
[Seal 500, Amplification 50, Reinforcement 50]
Soul and Resonance fusing into Reinforcement might seem odd at first glance, but the two concepts meshed perfectly to enhance the ring's performance.
Both were solidly contained within the Reinforcement concept, so no issues there.
As proof, when he slipped the ring onto his left index finger, it emitted a faint light and began pulsing rhythmically.
“Ban, that ring looks like it's beating like a heartbeat.”
“Proof it's resonating properly with me. What a great find... even if it has nothing to do with machines.”
—Hey, Ban Yu-won.
'Yeah?'
Ceron suddenly chimed in with a question.
—If it seals things, could you use it to break someone else's seal?
'The world doesn't work that conveniently.'
—You're the one who doesn't get the principles of magic yet. Powerful forces of the same type repel each other. What happens if you clash your new sealing power against someone else's seal? They fight for dominance and cancel each other out in mutual destruction.
Ban Yu-won imagined two massive forces bickering over a target, both insisting 'I'll seal it!'
'Solomon will judge it, right?'
—Enough nonsense. Stamp that thing on me quick. ...Not me, the staff!
He hadn't expected Ceron to suggest that.
But it was persuasive, and while the staff itself lacked Seal concepts, considering Ceron was the sealed entity within it... it was worth a shot.
'If I mess up and seal you deeper, don't blame me.'
—You're my partner—put in some effort!
Fair enough.
He'd been meaning to apologize for not maintaining it properly, so without arguing, Ban Yu-won infused the ring with magic power.
—Better if the staff has no magic left to resist. Take my magic too.
'Got it.'
Neither expected to fully break her seal.
That's why they could burn through all their magic without hesitation.
For good measure, Ban Yu-won tore several magic power talismans.
Vast magic absorbed into his body, converting along the Hyunshin Gong's flow into pure magic power, then pouring into the Sealing Ring in a brilliant glow.
'Not just sealing—stripping Ceron's seal.'
The moment he brought the ring close to the staff.
Something he hadn't even sensed fiercely resisted it.
This is the enemy I must resist!
Locking onto the target, Ban Yu-won pushed the ring harder.
Magic power carrying the Seal form amplified and reinforced, surging forth.
It clashed with the immense force—and oxidized.
Constellation [Breath of Life] opens its eyes wide in shock. It furiously questions why you encountered that witch.
Constellation [Clock of the Toy Legion] is dumbfounded and tells you to stop immediately.
Eh, these guys are still alive?
Were these two involved in Ceron's seal?
But that wasn't important right now.
Focus on burning away Ceron's seal!
—Ah... AAAAAAAAAH!
Ceron let out a groan—or perhaps a scream.
The Sealing Ring shuddered violently, resisting the oncoming pressure.
Thank goodness he'd reinforced it beforehand.
Otherwise, he'd have turned this precious artifact into a one-use item!
“Ngh...!”
The limit came soon enough.
Incredibly, not from the staff—but from outside. A massive shadow unfurled from the room's ceiling, lunging at them.
“What the—!”
As the shadow tried to swallow both Ceron and Ban Yu-won, he sensed the sealing power had run its course, grabbed the staff, and urgently leaped back.
“Hah!”
Dokgo Yeon, watching from behind, swiftly stepped forward and slashed the shadow apart. And with that, it was over.
“Do that kind of thing outside the tower from now on, Ban Yu-won.”
Dokgo Yeon sheathed her shortsword, her cross-shaped eyes flashing as she advised him.
“The tower started shaking wildly the moment you began messing with that staff.”
“Yeah, I'll definitely do that...”
—...It wouldn't work outside the tower.
Unlike Ban Yu-won, who meekly apologized thinking it a mistake, Ceron spoke in a far more mature voice.
—It was the tower that sealed me. So the tower is what's needed to unseal me. It's dangerous, but that's how it has to be.
'Any progress, then?'
—Somewhat. ...Sorry, but I can't tell you about it.
'You asked me to get revenge for you.'
—That's fine. We share the same enemies.
She sure knew how to drop awkward lines like that.
As if to soothe his anger, Ceron continued.
—Thanks to you, a lot of my ability seals have loosened. Check the staff.
'Alright...'
As instructed, Ban Yu-won scanned the artifact with his All-Reading Eyes and narrowed his gaze.
'Two questions.'
—The name breaking is because my rank rose. Stellar Magic is my unique magic. It's an advanced light magic, distinct from photon magic in its system.
Unique magic—like his language magic or Yumina's plant magic.
'Guess I can't learn it then.'
—With your cheat abilities, you could mimic it, but not perfectly. No need anyway. I'll use magic for you.
'...Has your personality changed a bit?'
—I'm just matching your efforts for me.
She said that, but Ceron's personality had definitely matured.
No need to press further.
The key point was her combat power had more than doubled.
She'd be a huge help for exploring from Room 91 and the upcoming special activity full of uncertainties.
Whether due to her personality shift or not, the staff's appearance seemed more subdued too. Ban Yu-won stored it away and finally began the task he'd planned earlier.
Using the machine parts and concepts gathered from battles with the mechanical bugs since Room 84 to create machine familiars!