Chapter 213
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 213
Chapter Title: Lesson 42. Image Change - 3
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Ban Yu-won was still frozen in shock from the utterly ridiculous statement when Dokgo Yeon, who had been quietly listening to Aire's words flowing like water beside him, suddenly tilted her head and spoke up.
"We have to watch out for the Dragon Slayer Sword...? Are you a dragon? Is that mutt one too?"
Ah, so it starts from that part.
Come to think of it, Aire had only hinted to Ban Yu-won that she was a dragon, without ever officially revealing it.
Lucelle, who also carried the blood of a divine beast, seemed to have already guessed as much and nodded along, while Yumina didn't even twitch an eyebrow.
"Draconian. A human carrying the dragon's genetic factor. Light is a being who inherited the dragon's blood."
"One of the rarest races across the entire universe. Each individual boasts exceptional combat prowess and magical ability, they live long lives, and it's extremely hard for them to have offspring, so they're gradually..."
Yumina switched into teacher mode and began explaining kindly, but she trailed off upon noticing Aire and shut her mouth.
Indeed, perhaps Aire had been friendly with Light purely because draconians had few kin, making their bonds tight-knit by nature.
Dokgo Yeon, thinking something similar to Ban Yu-won, nodded in agreement.
"I see..."
"Draconians awaken on their own sooner or later, without anyone guiding them. But Light hadn't."
She had played it cool in front of Light, saying it was no big deal, but in truth, she had been puzzled how someone with such pure dragon blood could remain at a level where they didn't even understand Dragon Tongue at her age.
"The Dragon Slayer Sword made it possible. From a young age, it clung to Light and suppressed the dragon factors within her."
Ban Yu-won nodded automatically as he heard this.
So, the holy sword, known only for amplifying Light's power, was actually a seal that suppressed her strength and future potential entirely.
In truth, Ban Yu-won had suspected as much because the damn thing gave off such bad vibes, but he never imagined its true nature was a Dragon Slayer Sword.
"Then, if we leave it like this, will Light die or turn into an ordinary human?"
"A dragon's power bows to nothing. That thing could never kill a dragon."
According to what he'd heard from Cellon, true dragons were extinct.
But Ban Yu-won had no confidence to say that aloud in front of Aire, whose eyes sparkled fiercely, so he quietly listened to her continue.
"It was barely managing to suppress her, at best. In fact, ever since she started training with me, Light progressed rapidly as a draconian. She would have soon overcome the holy sword completely and even unlocked her full power. But..."
"Something happened during break."
Ban Yu-won clearly remembered the moment he parted from Light before break.
She hadn't joined the special activities because a distress signal came in, and instead returned to her home dimension.
What happened there was obvious without seeing it.
"She had to draw her sword. Her abilities from the first semester weren't enough to handle it."
Otherwise, there was no way she'd come back to school acting so standoffish.
Light had struggled but kept at it steadily, proving she could be strong without the holy sword.
She had come to value her comrades quite a bit... especially appealing to Ban Yu-won as a cute, slightly annoying friend.
There was no way she'd suddenly throw all that away and go solo exploring.
"Probably..."
Aire nodded with a clouded expression.
She must have contacted Light already and gotten a bad response.
Aire shared the fundamental nature of being draconian with Light and had grown close through training as friends.
Being rejected like that out of the blue couldn't feel good.
"Even if Light relies on the Dragon Slayer Sword herself, for her personality to change like this is unacceptable. That sword definitely... has its own ego."
"We should've just smashed the sword first."
"Yeah."
Ban Yu-won agreed with Dokgo Yeon's radical statement, but his mind was elsewhere.
The necklace Light never took off her body, no, couldn't take off.
The Dragon Slayer Sword, left by her ancestor who called it a holy sword.
The necklace passed down alongside it.
Light, born with dragon blood.
Two souls dwelling in the necklace.
Ban Yu-won realized it.
Neither soul was truly Light's ally.
"Damn it."
Light had once explained the holy sword's origins to him.
When aliens invaded their home dimension, her ancestor forged a sword from a star that fell to earth and drove them out, founding a holy kingdom.
Forged from a fallen star could easily be interpreted as "stolen from somewhere."
And if they could be repelled so easily with that sword, the invaders were likely dragons or those carrying dragon blood.
"Then the two souls in the necklace..."
One would be the ancestor's soul, and the other probably...
Ban Yu-won frowned and confirmed with Aire.
"Is there anything else noteworthy in the legends about the Dragon Slayer Sword?"
"That there are a few more identical swords scattered across the universe, and they hold the power to kill even true dragons that revive after their bodies are utterly destroyed."
"Meaning the sword doesn't destroy the body—it annihilates the soul."
"You're quick on the uptake."
Aire admired his insight and agreed.
Ban Yu-won didn't voice the full truth.
If his guess was right, the sword didn't annihilate souls.
It severed and extracted them.
"And stored them in something special—like the necklace. ...So the thing 'forged from a star' wasn't the sword, but the necklace?"
All the information he'd gathered clicked perfectly into place.
Now, the only thing left was solving the problem.
Should he deal with the sword first, or the necklace?
No matter how much his authority had grown, he doubted he could easily handle the necklace that had shown such fierce resistance before break.
In that case...
Dragon Slayer Sword. Let's handle this side first.
Ban Yu-won stood up.
"I'll go meet her and see what I can do. I think it'll be quick, but just in case, Professor, please stall so she doesn't get solo exploration permission."
It might sound self-praising, but none of the current Rebellion members, including Light, were weak.
If Aire was getting solo exploration rights, Light could get them anytime too. He had to resolve this before the team truly fell apart.
"Sure, I was planning to anyway. We wouldn't let a team member bail on their own. It requires not just the Chancellor's approval, but permission from existing team members too."
"Thank you, Professor. I'll take my leave then."
"Ah, Master..."
No matter how hard Light tried, she couldn't change dorm rooms, so Ban Yu-won used his Student ID to teleport straight to his room.
And there she was.
"――!!"
Ban Yu-won doubted his own eyes.
It felt like he'd gone back half a year.
Feminine allure she couldn't hide, yet facial features that forced you to acknowledge she was a man.
Even outside combat, she gripped the holy sword tightly in one hand, pointing its sharp tip at him warily.
"Light, what are you doing?"
"My apologies. I was on the battlefield until just yesterday."
This attitude and speech were utterly incomprehensible compared to right before they parted.
Ban Yu-won narrowed his eyes and glared at Light.
This wasn't just an image change.
It was a change that required swapping souls.
According to his All-Reading Eyes, it hadn't gone that far yet... but at this rate, it'd be beyond saving.
"Light, handshake."
Ban Yu-won extended his hand.
Light flinched at the sudden request and took half a step back.
"Handshake?"
"It's been a while, so I'm happy to see you."
"Sorry, but... I don't want to shake hands so casually with you."
As expected, rejection.
She was pretending to be calm, but she knew exactly how threatening Ban Yu-won was.
She was on guard against him.
He wanted to wrap this up simply and quickly... but it looked like things were getting complicated.
"Why the sudden awkwardness?"
"I told you I came from the battlefield. And you even sent me a message. Because of you, my dimension might get attacked."
Oh, really.
"I have things I need to protect. I can't play your childish games anymore. You probably heard from Professor Yumina."
Light pointed her sword at him again.
Honestly――he felt a bit dejected.
"I'm not trying to silence you. If I can't get solo exploration rights, I'll drop out of the Academy."
"And go back to your home to defend your dimension?"
"Yes."
"I remember you wanting to climb the tower more than anyone."
"That hasn't changed. But there's something more important."
Ban Yu-won smiled bitterly at Light's unwavering words.
At the very least, he couldn't believe that was the real Light he knew.
"Can't function without the holy sword, huh?"
"No need to deny I'm the rightful owner of the holy sword. I was just a bit late realizing it."
The holy sword—no, Dragon Slayer Sword—pointed straight at Ban Yu-won radiated destructive energy, pressing down on him.
"You pretended to help me but only hindered my growth. Don't you get it? You've gotten stronger over break too, but you still can't match me."
"Yeah, I'm honestly surprised. In that sense, Light..."
Ban Yu-won tried to grab the Dragon Slayer Sword in a surprise move, but it failed miserably.
Even without wielding Origin Sword, her reflexes surpassing those of the All-Reading Eyes owner were impressive.
"What was that?"
"Just messing around, don't overreact. We're friends, right?"
"Friends? ...I might have said something like that once, but not anymore. Right now, I..."
"Don't interrupt. Listen, Light."
Have you heard of a masquerade ball?
Light's eyes widened at the out-of-left-field remark.
It resembled her pre-break self, making him chuckle a bit.
"Masquerade ball?"
After Ban Yu-won left, only the four women remained.
The moment Yumina mentioned the masquerade ball while resuming discussion on the Prominence family—pushed aside by Light's issue—Dokgo Yeon echoed back with a bizarre expression.
"What's that?"
"Oh, some dimensions might not have that culture. It's a party where you wear masks to hide your identity and pair up to dance on stage."
"At Union Academy, where we aim to climb the tower? They hold something that stupid?"
"Hehe, actually, it's not quite..."
As Yumina's explanation continued, Dokgo Yeon's face became a sight to behold.
Upon learning the full truth of the masquerade ball—where masks and dancing were irrelevant—Dokgo Yeon narrowed her eyes and said,
"Who came up with that event?"
"The Principal, of course."
"That Chancellor must've lost his mind in exchange for immense power."
"Don't be so blunt, Dokgo Yeon."
"You two haven't gotten way too harsh with your speech over break?"
Yumina grumbled in disbelief at Dokgo Yeon, who didn't hide her disgust, and Lucelle, who pretended to restrain her but was fully on the same side. Only then did she remember Aire hadn't left yet.
"Oh my, Student Aire! Sorry, this must be boring for you."
"It's fine, Professor. I'm part of Rebellion too."
"Don't act like you naturally joined Rebellion."
Dokgo Yeon jumped in with a retort on behalf of the absent Ban Yu-won at Aire's calm response.
Aire ignored it and dropped another bombshell instead.
"I want to be Ban Yu-won's partner."
"What?!"
Lucelle shot up in horror at Aire's even more direct approach than Dokgo Yeon.
"Guarding Master's side is a slave's role!"
"What nonsense... Silencing the Prominences is crucial. Naturally, the strongest one—me—should go."
As Dokgo Yeon showed enthusiasm and clashed wills with Lucelle, Aire quietly said,
"He'll probably have more than one special match to fight."
"What?"
"If special matches are about competing for what each wants."
Light, wanting solo exploration rights, would definitely challenge Ban Yu-won to a special match.
Dokgo Yeon and Lucelle unwittingly nodded in agreement with Aire's explanation.
"Grabbing the team's ankle was that mutt's specialty...!"
"Right, Light could totally do that...!"
"So shouldn't you two watch what you say?!"
Yumina's mind reeled at the women who showed no mercy even to teammates.
Ignoring the respected professor's flustered look, Aire continued.
"Then, I definitely want to face her there. So I want to be Ban Yu-won's partner."
"Phew... Aire, don't worry. Partners in special matches can be swapped."
"What about matches where swaps aren't allowed?"
"It's a tournament."
"Masquerade Ball Tournament..."
The Union Founding Festival, including the masquerade ball, was in mid-October.
That left a month and a half.