Chapter 157

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Translator: Ryuma

Chapter: 157

Chapter Title: Lesson 32. The Pace Is Too Quick - 1

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Crackle, crackle-crackle!

Once resistance formed against the current surging toward the dome and its direction began to twist, the rest was straightforward.

Simply supplement the lacking magical power and fully redirect the flow.

The massive current now poured into Ban Yu-won's retainers!

"Oh, oooooh……."

"My eyes hurt from the glare. When the hell is this going to end, Ban Yu-won?"

"Probably not until this Chain Room is over!"

Ban Yu-won gritted his teeth and shouted as he poured all his effort into controlling the current.

Now that he'd succeeded in bending the flow, blindly unleashing concepts alone wasn't the best strategy.

So he activated elemental magic and photon magic simultaneously to seize complete control of the current…… and the attempt was quite successful.

—I was about to tell you, but you figured it out on your own. Good thing.

'The Origin Sword fundamentally uses everything available, no matter what it is.'

It was called a vessel only because it utilized all concepts, but in truth, the Origin Sword had no fixed form.

Not distinguishing between self and others, it gathered everything into one vessel, gripped it in hand, and swung—that was the Origin Sword.

There was no need to restrict the vessel's shape when you'd crafted it to hold everything.

He'd thought that way since conceiving the Origin Sword, but this might be the first time he'd truly realized it.

'——This feeling. It's just like when I first used the Origin Sword.'

There was no blockage even when activating multiple spells at once, and even manifesting divine authority alongside them didn't give him a headache.

He pictured the desired outcome in his mind, and in the next instant, he was forging the fastest path toward it without hesitation.

The moment his imagery solidified, a brilliant explosion of light erupted from within him.

The martial art he'd named long ago, the Origin Sword, was finally complete.

Both the concepts he'd expected to merge and those he hadn't formed a massive single concept.

'I thought maybe even Herculean Strength or magic might merge in…….'

Was it because their proficiency wasn't high enough to encompass them?

No, if that were the case, everything except the core concepts forming his body and mind should have been absorbed into the Origin Sword without issue.

More accurately, highly independent concepts remained unabsorbed.

Even excluding those, the Origin Sword's depth exceeded 1,000.

This wasn't just simple addition and subtraction—it meant the Origin Sword's power was that formidable.

'I still couldn't surpass the Manifestation Technique's wall…… But I'm almost there now. Life grew in one leap too.'

The torrent of blue lightning flowed into his retainers under Ban Yu-won's guidance, amplifying their already immense power ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠even further.

Meanwhile, the current was cut off from the other mechanical insects, weakening them and widening the power gap dramatically. His retainers seized the chance ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and crushed them in an instant.

"Open it up!"

Lucelle's sharp cry.

Ban Yu-won effortlessly controlled the infinitely regenerating current with his perfected Origin Sword and suddenly thought.

'But by now, they should know I've stolen their energy.'

That's why the mechanical insects were desperately charging at him.

Though they were all blocked by the icy fortress's impenetrable walls, freezing solid.

But if they'd exhausted their trump card ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠like this, wasn't there a better option than just killing him?

For example, increasing the current to escape his control.

Or simply cutting off the current altogether.

'Did I get something wrong?'

Ban Yu-won had assumed the enemy controlled the current flowing through this space.

But what if that wasn't the case?

What if the current was just flowing freely, uncontrollable.

What if this state wasn't normal to begin with……?

'Could this be…….'

The answer came into view.

'That core component Lucelle destroyed—isn't that what caused this mess?'

A Chain Room wouldn't start without some causal link.

And the key trick deciding victory or defeat in a Chain Room wouldn't appear without warning.

And now, the elite monster emerging from the slowly opening dome below.

Not using the current to empower it.

But merely gathering the indiscriminately leaking current.

'That's right. The thing I was competing with for control of the current wasn't some invisible enemy—it was that guy just revealing itself.'

Of course, Ban Yu-won had won that contest, seizing perfect control of the electricity as proof.

The monster probably realized it too.

—Boom!

The half-open dome ceiling shattered completely, revealing a massive centipede beyond.

At the same instant, a green beam shot straight toward Ban Yu-won!

"“Kyaaaaaaaah!”"

Lucelle and Light screamed in unison upon seeing it.

Ban Yu-won diverted part of the controlled current to block the beam and smirked.

Machine or not, a bug was still a bug. It wasn't pure magical power but highly compressed venom shot with immense pressure.

It contained acid strong enough to corrode steel instantly, but…….

Next time, he wouldn't even need to block it.

—Screeeee!

"Yeah, it'd piss you off…… Guys, smash it!"

With the infinite supply of current plus the Trick Room's buffs, his nearly tenfold-empowered mechanical retainers kicked off the ground and charged the centipede en masse!

The monster shrieked, swinging its tail and spewing venom at them, but once Ban Yu-won extracted the poison concept, it was just a water cannon.

Already, each retainer overwhelmed it individually, so soon it was shattering and tearing apart, plummeting beneath the dome.

"Alright, once we take that down, we'll mop up the mechanical insects, tie 'em up, rest a bit before heading to Room 95…… Huh?"

As he issued orders to his party, reveling in the centipede's pathetic thrashing.

Ban Yu-won sensed the electric flow intensifying and widened his eyes.

"Ban Yu-won?"

Dokgo Yeon, noticing the anomaly at almost the same time, turned to him with a hopeful expression that it wasn't what she thought.

But Ban Yu-won had reached the same conclusion.

"Shift……?!"

"Kyaaak!"

The ground trembled.

Various machines and wires danced up from the floor, the hidden world revealed its true form, expanding massively in an instant.

This was the first time a shift had occurred with monsters still in the room.

"So that's how it is."

Massive machines rampaged, debris from the wrecked mechanical structures clinging to the half-dead centipede's body, reconstructing it.

At the same time, its authority strengthened, suddenly drawing in electricity.

'Of course, no intention of giving it back.'

On the contrary, Ban Yu-won eyed the massive mechanical structure rising from beneath the dome amid the shift, his eyes gleaming.

He'd finally found the source of the electricity.

The core of this Chain Room—and likely the clear key.

"Drag that centipede out!"

At Ban Yu-won's sharp command, his retainers moved as one.

The transformed Eve slammed into it first, followed by the Frost Fortress charging and shoving it away.

—Screeeeeech!

The centipede, freshly empowered after reaching Room 95, was sent flying pathetically.

It might have been a bit stronger.

The kind of foe that shouldn't be tossed aside so easily.

But Ban Yu-won didn't care, and his retainers cared even less, following his orders.

—Chiiiii!

"Secure that spot!"

"Got it!"

"I'll clear the path!"

As the structure fully emerged, naturally spawned mechanical insects around it screeched horrifically and charged Ban Yu-won.

But Dokgo Yeon, swinging her death-shrouded shortsword, and the rampaging Lucelle tore through them, opening a path beyond.

"We can end it here, right?! Please, let's finish quick and move to a bug-free room……!"

The half-crying Light swung his aura-clad spear, smashing the high barrier protecting the structure.

Ban Yu-won leaped inside like he'd been waiting for it.

It was a temple of machinery.

Complex wires blocked the way, but strangely, they parted smoothly as he advanced, yielding a path.

"How'd you do that, Ban?"

"Well, if I had to say…… hacking?"

"Sorry for making you explain, but I don't get it, Ban."

The mechanical temple held plenty of traps and spatial distortion magic.

But against Ban Yu-won with the Origin Sword, they disintegrated without buying even a second.

He moved in a straight line, but to Light, it looked like he was creating nonexistent paths.

—Thud!

A heavy vibration echoed from outside.

The centipede was probably the guardian of this temple.

Its resistance had intensified the moment he and Light entered, so it was certain.

"It's got fire under its feet now, huh."

"Should I go help?"

"Stay by me just in case."

"……Okay."

The exploration was brief.

When Ban Yu-won placed his hand on an unmarked wall, it slid open as if a door had always been there, revealing a space.

"How would you have found this without me?"

"Dokgo Yeon probably would've traced the magic residue and smashed the wall…… Light, back off!"

Light leaped back without a word.

Immediately after, Ban Yu-won deftly controlled the torrent of lightning surging from the empty space, blocking it.

A blue plasma orb sparking wildly in midair.

And it was growing, lightning still pouring from within.

"What is this? Shouldn't we have brought everyone?! There's gotta be something crazy strong inside!"

"No, this is all that's in there, so relax. And…… it probably won't last long."

"……What?"

What happens when a circuit carrying electricity suddenly breaks, or faulty wiring fails to insulate properly?

Electricity leaks. A short circuit.

"This has been leaking the whole time. Probably because of that thing Lucelle smashed back on Floor 84."

"The chaos was from an electrical leak?!"

"Yeah. That's why they couldn't control the electricity from their side."

Ban Yu-won gathered the flow tightly in one hand and advanced into the passage.

Sure enough, the interior was a total wreck.

Charred and stuck in places, melted, on fire…….

Ban Yu-won used Origin Sword to grasp all external concepts, then layered elemental and linguistic magic to purify the air, extinguish fires, and such.

Finally, creating a light orb with photon magic and floating it revealed the vast temple's interior at a glance.

"What is this?"

A wide open space.

Nothing special except for the bizarre mechanical mass forming an objet in the center.

Just…… very spacious.

"The centipede was probably here originally. Electricity didn't leak out until Room 93 because it was desperately controlling it from inside."

"Then the sudden flow starting in Room 94……."

"Was because the centipede left this space. The sequence was backwards in every way."

Ban Yu-won approached the central objet, floating the plasma orb packed with horrific energy in one hand.

The objet sparked threateningly, but it couldn't overcome Ban Yu-won's control over the massive flow—he touched it easily.

Finding the missing component's spot was simple too.

Mastering Origin Sword made detecting 'conceptual gaps' effortless.

And seeing the gap, he knew filling it would be easy.

'I'd need the original component as a base…… But with that, temporarily recreating and plugging the rest would be child's play. Long live Origin Sword.'

If Manifestation Technique had evolved, he ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠might've fixed it with fluid concepts alone, no part needed.

But no point dwelling; the part was intact despite the breakdown, so no issue.

"Just killing the centipede outside would clear the Chain Room…… but clearing the hidden element here would yield way better rewards."

"Ban, does that mean there was no point in me coming along?"

"Honestly, I brought you expecting a constellation or two to interfere. And that risk hasn't vanished, so stay alert."

"R…… Right! That's what it was!"

Light perked up instantly at Ban Yu-won's reliant words, his earlier gloom forgotten.

Ban Yu-won chuckled at the sight and opened his inventory.

Then sighed.

"Lilith, please……."

No component.

Instead, the mechanical egg gleamed more lustrously, clearly having swallowed the part.

With no choice but to complete the key solo, success or failure be damned—that very moment.

"……?!"

The mechanical egg popped out of inventory, devouring the plasma orb in his hand in one gulp.

Then charged the objet…….

And buried itself in the empty spot where the component had been.

What followed…… well, it was obvious.

Light exploded.