Chapter 270
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 270
Chapter Title: Lesson 53. Equivalent Exchange - 2
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The day of the regular special activity felt just like a small festival.
While Babel Tower explorations, conducted strictly by interest and ranking regardless of skill gaps or academy treatment, were the best for gauging those things, outdoor activities were undoubtedly more thrilling for the spirited students.
There were quite a few active academy students who made names for themselves across the universe through these special activities, independent of their tower exploits. And those who elevated the academy's prestige naturally received more support and attention during such outings.
The alliances formed by multiple teams for special activities were a clear display of the academy's power dynamics. High-profile teams drew countless gazes even before departure.
Ban Yu-won's team was exactly that today.
With three teams uniting, no less.
"Vice president, isn't tagging along so suddenly just bad manners...?"
Amid the gazes of countless students—and even professors—Mira shot a sharp look at the intruder who had wedged herself into their group in front of a massive spaceship.
The intruder, Aire, met her gaze calmly and replied.
"My dear friend seems to be heading into a dangerous mission. A harsh land that even fairies and demons might struggle with—I'll join you."
Aire casually dismissed the student council executives she herself belonged to.
Considering those two were first-years—the only ones targeting the impregnable 400th floor, a realm even graduates barely challenged, shattering all precedents—it was a statement no one else in her year, or even across all years including the special class, could utter except her.
"I knew you were arrogant, but... you."
Mira let out a hollow laugh, as if praying it wouldn't happen, and pressed her.
"Who exactly is this 'dear friend' you're talking about? You've been suspicious for a while—let's clear it up now."
"Me? With you? ...Really?"
Aire countered with genuine bewilderment.
At that moment, Shati grabbed Mira's hand.
To stop the violet surge concentrated in her grip from blasting the cheeky dragonkin underclassman in the blink of an eye.
The pure essence of curse magic, compressed and extracted, would leave horrific wounds on even a graze—a testament to how swiftly Mira was mastering the power of a constellation perfectly suited to her.
"Shati, move. We can't kill her!"
"There are already plenty who hate that Aire joined the student council—if you give them fresh gossip here—!"
Ban Yu-won, who had stayed by their side the whole time, didn't even twitch an eyebrow as Shati cast Evil Lariat to calm Mira.
After dealing with the Level Force mercenary group led by his older sister Ban Yu-mi, these squabbles seemed like mere playful teasing.
He was especially proud of his quick decision to board the other Rebellion members on the spaceship beforehand, anticipating the noise Aire's arrival would cause.
But drawing this much attention wasn't ideal, so he questioned Aire directly.
"It's reassuring to have you, Aire. But are you really just worried about us?"
"Half of it."
"And the other half?"
"I want to join Rebellion. This is a great chance to build a sense of belonging."
Her persistence was undeniable.
Mira seemed annoyed, thinking Aire was after Ban Yu-won, but A-4 dimension was no joke—more reliable allies were always better.
Moreover, with Aire now publicly entering an 'alliance' with Rebellion by joining this special activity, it was all gain, no loss for them.
"The schedule change was pretty sudden—how'd you get the chancellor's approval?"
"I caught his weakness from last time."
He'd thought the chancellor paid only for his own inaction, but this dragonkin girl had apparently squeezed what she wanted from him without mercy.
Shati finally burst out laughing at Aire's matter-of-fact tone.
"Even the ten great families' heirs wouldn't dare speak of grasping or not grasping that man's weaknesses."
"They wouldn't, huh."
Mira trampled the third-years' top prodigies without hesitation—there was no reason she couldn't do the same to the ten great families' heirs.
But the timing and place were terrible.
With three spotlighted teams drawing the student body's eyes, overlooking such words would diminish the ten great families' prestige.
"Having quite the lively discussion, aren't we?"
And it was a golden opportunity for Ulrike Prominence, the ten great families' heir who had stalked Ban Yu-won relentlessly since the Union founding festival.
Aire was Ban Yu-won's associate, but not a Rebellion member.
Plus, Aire had just insulted the ten great families herself, so Ulrike stepping in wouldn't violate their 'no moves during school' agreement.
"Not only uttering such rude claims about grasping the chancellor's—Union Academy's overseer—weaknesses in public, but also lightly tossing around the ten great families' name... This isn't something we can overlook."
"...?"
Aire tilted her head in genuine confusion at Ulrike, who had appeared out of nowhere and unleashed her spiel.
Her eyes screamed, 'What if you won't let it slide?' Ban Yu-won hurriedly intervened.
"Senior Ulrike."
"Oh my."
Her face melted at the sound of her name from Ban Yu-won.
"Thanks for calling me by name, Yu-won junior. Seeing your face even soothes my irritation."
"We misspoke just now. I'd explain in detail, but it's special activity business."
"Ah, no need. Thanks to that, I got to talk to you, Yu-won junior. I'll graciously forgive it."
Aire's expression beside them turned stormy.
Clearly thinking, 'Who are you to forgive me?'
Ban Yu-won desperately signaled Aire to stay quiet as he pondered.
Did this clueless Prominence truly believe she held the edge even against Aire, whom even Ortima treaded carefully around?
What did the ten great families even mean to her?
Still, Aire had spoken carelessly, but Ban Yu-won decided he didn't need to call her out now.
"Ah, and... about that prior promise."
Ulrike, having approached to rebuke Aire and gained more than expected, turned back satisfied—then opened her mouth again.
Her hands fidgeting in front of her chest looked ominous.
"Vacation time, come visit anytime. Got it? I'll have those rude ones who disrespected you Yu-won junior apologize properly."
"This vacation might be tough."
"Ah— r-right. I got ahead of myself? It's not even been long since they messed up with you. Ah, ahaha. Then next year! We'll talk then! See you today!"
Perhaps Ban Yu-won's cool response snapped her back—Ulrike flushed and retreated.
Shati and Aire, and even Mira—who had passed out from Evil Lariat and just woken—stared at her back in disbelief.
"Those 'rude ones' wouldn't be... Crimson Spear?"
"I'd heard Prominence's heir was veering far from the family line, but I didn't think she'd treat even the family's limbs like that. That girl..."
Shati said, her usual sly smile gone.
"She's an idiot, right?"
"You just figuring that out?"
Mira added with even more exasperation.
"If Yu-won charms her properly, she might even help tank her family. ...Ah, no. Pretend you didn't hear that. Don't charm her!"
"Even an idiot wouldn't sell out her family for one guy."
Ban Yu-won was dumbfounded by Mira's words, but recalling how she'd tossed him a free pass to her mansion with one sentence... it wasn't entirely impossible.
"No, I won't. So don't look so worried."
"That girl."
Aire nailed it.
"I'll kill her."
"Shati senior, praise me quick. I put up a sound barrier knowing this would come."
"Well praised. Wish you'd done it earlier too."
"Let's depart before more annoyances pile up."
Before boarding with his group, Ban Yu-won scanned the surroundings one last time.
There had been a clash with a ten great families' heir midway, but even she had fawned over him and backed off. Envy filled the students' eyes.
Among them, two intense gazes stood out—Lucain Ortima, unable to find Dokgo Yeon since the Union founding festival, and Katro El Phasis, forced into solo special activity after his entire team died at the festival. Ban Yu-won met their eyes and smirked briefly.
Feeling anew how tumultuous his school life was, he boarded the spaceship.
For reference, Yumina hadn't come today, claiming she couldn't hold back tears while seeing him off—instead, she'd clung to him all last night.
D-13 dimension was absurdly vast among D-grade ones, but A-4 dimension dwarfed it—a colossal star.
"Seeing this makes you realize dimension grades aren't arbitrary."
Ban Yu-won let out an awed breath at the massive red star filling the monitor, still at a distance.
People lived inside, so it couldn't be a star proper—yet why the immense heat from so far?
The star wasn't all; piercing the dimensional barrier was no small feat.
As Shati's homeworld, she guided them through easily, but separately, the moment they crossed, A-4's major powers learned a Union Academy ship had entered.
"Stay on guard from now on."
Shati, leading due to her roots, bared her unusually elongated fangs.
"This planet has tons of factions. Union or not, plenty attack if you look threatening."
"What? They wanna pick a fight with Union?"
"Blindly charging at 'Union' is for C-grade or lower. At A-grade—near S, single digits—they recognize our size."
Size, huh. Ban Yu-won nodded at the swelling star. Definitely huge.
"They know the chancellor won't step in for trifles. So the absolute powerhouses—the dimension's rulers—won't move personally, but their armed groups might test us anytime."
"Rulers... Come to think of it, Shati senior."
Ban Yu-won caught the nuance in her words.
"You said you'd get a legion from your parents. What do they do?"
"...Demon King."
Shati hesitated before answering.
Ban Yu-won had suspected since she mentioned summoning an ancient demon and storming the Demon King's castle.
But if her father was truly the Demon King—the dimension's ruler—why would underlings test them? Shati's next words cleared it.
"Closest man to ruling Diavolo. From my birth to now, it's been nonstop war."
A name fitting the dimension perfectly, and even the Demon King wasn't absolute. Ban Yu-won made a subtle face.
"So how'll you get a legion from him?"
"Convince him."
Why show the back of her hand etched with the authority he'd modified while saying that?
"Convince... right?"
"If not, blow up the Demon King's castle."
There it was.
Realizing this special activity was riskier than imagined, Ban Yu-won turned for countermeasures—then spotted Dokgo Yeon's coldly set face.
"Yeon? You okay?"
"It's full of death."
As if hoping he'd ask, Dokgo Yeon answered instantly.
Ban Yu-won tilted his head at the profound words, but seeing her flushing cheeks, he guessed the meaning.
Her martial art infused death into her sword.
The star brimmed with such manifested death.
Talk about a dangerous world!
Yet Dokgo Yeon, eyes' crosses sharply dilating like she'd found a breakthrough for her art, said,
"Won, will you help me? ...Like you helped the beast."
"I'd help you anytime. But that sounds like..."
We'll be committing a massacre on that star.
Dokgo Yeon just smiled faintly at his addition.
Naturally, things soon went just as she envisioned.