Chapter 255
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 255
Chapter Title: Lesson 50. Dragon's Tomb - 1
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It was truly a grand performance.
To be blunt, Aneri and the rest of the group had never expected the exploration of these ruins to end peacefully from the start.
Honestly speaking, they were anticipating conflict.
The Guardian Alliance, formed by the civilizations of the thirteen planets that make up the D-13 Dimension, was infamous as a hopeless alliance plagued by endless internal strife despite the clear external threat of dimensional pirates. Ban Yu-won was determined to turn the place upside down at least once, if only for Asha's sake.
And he wasn't the only one with such thoughts. From the moment Asha started acting strange, Yumina had been keeping a close eye on the D-13 Dimension.
Then, upon learning that ruins had been discovered on Galahad, she consulted with Aneri and deliberately spread rumors that the Level Force Mercenary Group had a member capable of opening the ruins.
'And they bit the bait beautifully, luring us here.'
As a full professor at Union Academy, Yumina naturally had extensive connections and intelligence networks, even without borrowing the chancellor's power.
But the fact that she learned about the ruins on Galahad meant that information control within Galahad wasn't perfect.
Most members of the alliance were probably already aware of the ruins' existence.
Would a group that stirred up infighting even without cause stay quiet with a major event like ruins dangling in front of them?
In fact, they'd even spotted an unscheduled reconnaissance ship, making it obvious that conflict was inevitable.
'They've been quiet until now because none of them had anyone capable of opening the ruins anyway.'
But now, Level Force had arrived.
That meant those eyeing the ruins could move without hesitation.
Ban Yu-won was confident he wouldn't be surprised even if there were traitors among the knights escorting them inside.
No, there were.
Even those too weak to form any real connection with him had emotions as clear as day.
"But how did you evade the reconnaissance ship? If you'd shot it down, there'd be chaos by now..."
"That's trade secret. Now guide us to the ruins. Let's wrap this up before interference arrives."
"Very well. I hope you don't breach the contract."
"That's our line."
Ban Yu-won watched Aneri and Crown Prince Rosius glaring at each other, sparks flying even before entering the ruins, and sent a telepathic warning to the entire group about those he judged as enemies among the present company.
―They don't seem strong militarily, but who knows what they're hiding. Prioritize subduing them if things go south.
―What about that uncle?
Ban Yu-mi's question wasn't telepathic, but it resonated and reached only the group sharing the same Hong Yeom will.
A highly secure mental transmission method, limited in recipients but overwhelmingly stable compared to telepathy.
Impressive abilities explain why the Ten Great Families thrive, Ban Yu-won thought admiringly, replying via telepathy.
―Rosius wasn't lying when he spoke with Aneri earlier. But he has no intention of honoring our contract properly.
―Damn, then what was the point of Sis negotiating so fiercely?
Selden's response wasn't telepathy either.
A more aggressive, brain-burrowing type of magic, close to telepathy.
It was surprising that a pirate-born brute like Selden, whose speech and manners lacked refinement, wielded magic—but then, he wouldn't have carved out a position in Crimson Spear without some skill.
―It's camouflage. Breaching the contract first puts the blame on the one who reveals their hand.
―They don't know we have the master key, so they think they can get away with it. Heh heh.
Aneri, locked in a tense standoff with Rosius at the front, deftly joined the team chat. Hers was a sorcery akin to telepathy in principle.
Master key. Ban Yu-won smirked and replied.
―Don't butt in unnecessarily. Just play your role.
―Of course, that's basic. Among the countless ninjutsu... skills I've mastered, one splits the mind in two.
Ignoring her increasingly obvious deceptions since the mission began—now blatantly revealing her true nature—he decided to tune her out.
"We'll take carriages from here."
"Fine, but you're not planning to drag all these knights to the site, are you?"
The spaceship landing was in a remote forest, but the spot Rosius led them to was even more secluded.
Aneri grimaced at the row of waiting carriages.
Rosius replied leisurely.
"I have no intention of broadcasting our ruins expedition either. But as you've experienced, perfect secrecy is impossible on this planet. So we'll split into groups midway to confuse any pursuers."
"Hmmm."
Meanwhile, Ban Yu-won felt the vibrations from the broken cross fragment in his inventory intensifying.
It seemed to react more violently the closer they got to the ruins. Pretending nonchalance, he checked with Lilith tucked against his chest.
'Can't we reverse-engineer the ruins' location from this?'
[I've already calculated it and sent Tike up for scouting. Oh, looks like we've found it.]
His subordinates were so competent he barely had anything to do.
Confirming the coordinates Tike sent via resonance, Ban Yu-won messaged Aneri.
―Got the coordinates. Let's teleport. Tell him you're about to use spatial magic all dramatically.
―Wait, Yu-won, how did you pinpoint the ruins...? Anyway, spatial transfer? You might not know since you're usually at Union, but that's not tech from a lower dimension.
―Lower dimension folk can't even open ruins.
―True. You're the best, Yu-won.
Aneri relayed it convincingly, and Rosius burst into laughter.
"Hahaha! If you could teleport straight to the ruins, why would I refuse? Funny joke, but no mercenary group, no matter how elite, can do what only the Ten Great Families manage..."
He'd extracted the crucial concession.
The key condition for applying spatial magic to others was cleared—no more hesitation.
In truth, the other knights' mana was so weak he could've dragged them in without the theatrics, excluding Rosius.
―Shuuu...
The next instant, Ban Yu-won's party of six plus four knights including Rosius—ten in total—arrived in a debris-strewn ruin of scattered building materials.
It looked like no ruins existed here, but Rosius's face stiffened upon arrival, confirming they'd hit the mark.
The other knights were frozen, too stunned to speak—it was almost comical.
"What... how?"
Rosius muttered incoherently, hurriedly checking the three knights with him.
They were ones he didn't trust much anyway, and Ban Yu-won had deliberately picked these traitors.
"Damn... How did you know this was the ruins?"
"Exactly. Ahem. We said we could open them. We're superior in ruins tech."
Aneri nearly nodded in agreement to Rosius's relatable gripe but quickly corrected herself.
"No more worries about our movements leaking now, right? Let's enter the ruins."
"Wait. Damn... those left behind include a strong knight."
"Strong knight? Please."
Aneri scoffed, back to her poised self.
"They all look the same to us. And as long as you don't breach first, I guarantee you won't come to harm inside."
"..."
Rosius felt himself being cornered.
But for someone staking his nation's fate on the exploration, this was an ideal setup.
He finally nodded, eyes squeezed shut.
"Enter."
His knights cleared debris, revealing stone stairs leading underground.
Stairs clearly from a different era, evoking ancient times.
Rosius led, flanked by one knight; the other two circled behind Ban Yu-won's group.
Descending, Aneri sighed at the hostile stares on their backs and messaged him.
―Yu-won, you only brought the suspicious ones to prevent leaks?
―Of course. No need to advertise spatial travel. They'll all die inside.
―Eek. Son, say "kill" so casually and Mom gets scared.
―Isn't it your DNA?
―Yu-mi, what did you just say?
Ignoring the mother-daughter spat, Ban Yu-won shared his brief intel with the rest.
―As you know, forces are already on-planet. Some knights have trackers that ping locations on death. Once they die, it's chaos. That's the gist.
―Hiding anything in front of you is pointless, young master.
―And... I want us to take everything in the ruins. Move with that in mind.
―Just kill them all.
Thwack! Aneri suddenly smacked Selden's head.
She coolly dismissed the knights' alarm as swatting a bug.
Selden grumbled but showed faint delight—the pervert.
Ban Yu-won began worrying if this mercenary group could truly topple Prominence.
"This is the entrance."
After over ten minutes descending the stairs, a massive door appeared.
An ancient relic of unknown metal, absorbing all mana and physical impacts, enduring unchanging for centuries or millennia.
"Hm."
Aneri nodded at Ban Yu-won.
Stepping forward from the group for the first time, all eyes—Rosius and knights—turned to him.
"He's the one who did the spatial magic..."
"Out of the way."
Ban Yu-won shoved Rosius aside and touched the metal door. Strings of complex concepts swirled, conveying information.
The dominant concept was Seal, with rare metals formed from fused concepts, but more crucially, the cross vibrating in response.
He discreetly pulled it from his inventory and pressed it to the door.
Authentication failed. Master Key damage confirmed. Undergo alternative authentication procedure and repair.
The mechanical ancient tongue echoed through the space.
Of course, none but Ban Yu-won understood the ancient language.
"It really... reacted."
"Someone with such power in an obscure mercenary group?"
Rosius and the knights, taking it as proof of smooth unsealing, gawked—but his masked face hid any personal info.
'Master key? It really was the key.'
Like in comics, where a protagonist's starter gear unlocks high-tech facilities.
Asha was practically this dimension's protagonist, and her necklace was both shackle and key item.
This plot twist was only natural!
Moreover, some metals in the door seemed to match the master key's composition.
'Open it first.'
Opening was simple.
The door's seal concept was firm—even he couldn't yank it free—but he had the world's artifact, Seal Ring.
Pressing it to the door, the seal unraveled naturally, drawn into the ring by his authority!
All concepts in the ring surged in power during the process!
A triumphant smile crossed Ban Yu-won's face as the sturdy metal door, bereft of its sealing concept, crumbled.
Its concepts flew to him, sucked into the cross in his possession, restoring it...
To its original form—no, to its primordial state from before Asha wore it, when it was first forged!
Master Key restored. Repair consumed materials promptly.
Ban Yu-won hadn't done much.
Opening the door triggered the facility's top protocol: 'Master Key Restoration.' The ancient metal blocking the entrance was consumed for it!
'Jackpot.'
With the upgraded Seal Ring and the overwhelmingly superior Soul Liberation—outshining even the ring—he could head back to school satisfied...
But if the entrance yielded this, what treasures lay inside?
Ban Yu-won swallowed discreetly and glanced back.
The other nine stared blankly.
"Let's go."
He declared curtly, striding into the wide-open ruins.
The rest could only follow in a daze.