Chapter 287
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 287
Chapter Title: Lesson 55. The Heart of the Tower - 7
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Every Sunday afternoon when the tower exploration took place, Union Academy buzzed with excitement over the latest updates to Rebellion's exploration records. It had become routine by now.
But this time, it had gone too far.
"Last... how far did the previous exploration go?"
"Room 200."
"That doesn't make any sense! It wasn't even a full vacation-long expedition—just a measly two nights and three days, and they cleared 50 rooms?!"
Not just the freshmen, but returning students and even professors.
Wherever two or more people gathered, everyone was foaming at the mouth discussing Rebellion's latest climb.
A team made up of only the most talented? Fine.
Having powers that gave them an edge in ascending the tower, allowing faster exploration? Great.
But clearing not just up to room 50, but smashing through 50 rooms in the 200+ zone—territory that second-years and above could only handle stably—over a mere three days? That speed defied physics.
Clearing a room required meeting minimum conditions.
Defeating monsters, searching for hidden structures or objectives, or rarely, completing special quests like rescuing NPCs.
The higher the room, the more complex those conditions became. Past room 200, it was even possible to fail to clear even one room per day.
In that context, Rebellion had posted absurd results. What kind of reaction did you expect?
It was undoubtedly the first blockbuster scoop since Union Academy opened its doors.
"The footage will be up soon."
"It's faked. Now I'm sure of it. I've always wondered why only Ban Yu-won can film inside the tower! If the Chancellor is secretly backing that kid and manipulating the tower's content, it all makes sense!"
"Don't talk nonsense. Do you think the Chancellor's seat is something you get by sucking up?"
And all that commotion focused on the footage uploaded to the Rebellion channel.
No one truly believed Rebellion had climbed so fast purely on skill, but that didn't mean everyone suspected foul play either.
The Babel Tower had stood unmoving for thousands of years, accepting challenges from countless climbers, overseen by Union Academy's Chancellor.
That was authority.
A firm belief that the tower wouldn't grant special favors to any one person for any reason—it was rooted deep in their psyches.
...If they learned about the secrets Ban Yu-won carried or what happened during his solo explorations, that faith would shatter in an instant.
In any case, that's why Ban Yu-won had been summoned to the Chancellor's office.
The other members were resting in their dorms after the grueling exploration—Dokgo Yeon herself, who never uttered a weak word unless sweets were involved, was quietly tucked away. Instead, Yumina, their supervising professor, had come with him.
'This three-way meeting setup is a first.'
Ban Yu-won sat side by side with Yumina on a sofa that seemed to have appeared out of nowhere, letting out a faint sigh as he thought that.
Of course, the Chancellor sat opposite them in his usual small doll form.
Perhaps because Yumina was there today, it was a middle-aged gentleman doll in a proper suit, looking somewhat more presentable.
'Cellon, got anything to say?'
He tried speaking to Cellon, wondering if the gathering of the Chancellor and Yumina might provoke a response, but there was only silence—no reply.
Maybe it thought speaking up here would get it caught by the Chancellor?
Gazing at the Chancellor—whose true nature he still couldn't fully grasp, even after growing tremendously since the semester's start—Ban Yu-won felt a twinge of unease.
He'd long concluded it was impossible, but still, what if the Chancellor could read his mind?
"Master, why did you call us?"
"Master...?"
Five minutes had passed with the three of them seated in a row.
As impatience set in amid the silence, Ban Yu-won spoke up first—only for Yumina, sitting beside the Chancellor, to react strangely.
"Principal, did you tell Yu-won to call you that...?"
—The reason I called you here today is something you know better than anyone.
Ah, he just blatantly dodged it.
The gentleman doll, whose expression shouldn't show, somehow felt a bit embarrassed.
—If it came out that they cleared 50 rooms in three days, and all of them were super-massive rooms where ten rooms had merged into one due to multiple shifts...
"You knew."
This guy really was patrolling the tower!
That's right.
Over the past two nights and three days, Ban Yu-won's party had cleared five rooms, each formed by ten rooms unified through multiple shifts.
They looked like entirely different worlds each time, but the themes were identical, and Ban Yu-won even suspected they might be some kind of chain rooms.
And if that was true, this phenomenon probably wouldn't end with just this instance...
—I must admit it. Your special talent and connections. Even edited footage can't hide them anymore—this era has arrived.
"Well... yeah, something like that."
He couldn't help but chuckle at the word "connections."
He'd long known the Chancellor suspected his secrets, but "connections"?
Was that a roundabout way of saying "bloodline"?
"Connections...? Principal, what do you mean? Our Yu-won is from Earth—a dimension that was completely sealed off until he was specially selected for admission."
—You know it too. That dimension's uniqueness. Earth was once connected to Union, and those ancient ties have bloomed in Ban Yu-won to this day.
"......"
Yumina fell silent.
As the person closest to Ban Yu-won in the academy outside of Rebellion members, she'd heard directly or indirectly that he had ties to the tower.
She'd never voiced it aloud because it was a burdensome topic for both speaker and listener.
That's why she'd supported him quietly through her own talents, connections, and even her Level Force fan club—not as a Full Professor, but personally.
'And she kept it unspoken largely hoping the Principal wouldn't notice.'
She knew it couldn't stay hidden forever.
Ban Yu-won had caught the Chancellor's interest from day one of enrollment.
But hearing the Chancellor's words—spoken as if he knew more about him than even Yumina, or perhaps Ban Yu-won himself—her resolve crumbled.
"Why bring it up now? And drag me here too."
So it wasn't surprising that she grumbled like she was talking to the uncle who'd sponsored and raised her in place of her parents since childhood—not as a trusted Full Professor of the academy.
—Because the clash with forces targeting the tower has surged to the surface, too strong to suppress any longer. Exodus is the main culprit, but the Ten Great Families are starting to bare their teeth one by one.
"The Ten Great Families... You mean Prominence?"
—They're not the only ones. Among them, the Dragon is especially dangerous.
Ban Yu-won nodded unconsciously, thinking of the Melodia house head.
But that person felt more like an ally, if anything... Did the Chancellor see him as an enemy?
He'd have to visit Melodia at least once to clarify that discrepancy.
—And all this stems from you, Ban Yu-won.
"Me?"
—Yes.
The gentleman tapped the table sharply with an umbrella that appeared from who-knows-where.
A hologram flickered to life above the table, playing footage—the first episode of their latest exploration video, freshly edited by Tike and just uploaded to the Rebellion channel.
So he was a Rebellion channel subscriber after all. Ban Yu-won committed the mana flow the Chancellor had just used to memory, confirming it even as he thought that.
He knew Union Net—and YouTube itself—was the Chancellor's doing, but he hadn't expected device-free access to be that simple.
It looked trivial, but that might be a key secret to connecting multiple dimensions via Union Net.
—Look, it's been one minute since upload, and...
Why did hearing the Chancellor say "upload" feel so weird and funny?
No, focus on his words now.
There had to be a special reason he'd gathered not just Ban Yu-won, but Yumina too!
—Views have already hit 500 million. Refresh: 1.2 billion. 1.4 billion...
"Heh heh, the channel's grown even more in the meantime. All thanks to Yu-won's amazing skills."
Super proud Yumina clapped her hands, seemingly forgetting the serious mood in her joy over the channel's growth.
The gentleman doll continued in a voice that seemed slightly exasperated by her reaction.
—A few days ago, Rebellion uploaded too, but the views didn't climb this fast. Do you know what this means?
What was this, some kind of meeting?
Me, the supervising professor, and the Chancellor, all together discussing the Rebellion channel's growth trajectory and future goals?
Ban Yu-won desperately reined in his wandering thoughts and gave a cool reply.
"It means word of our team's insane exploration results this week spread across countless dimensions even before the video went up, right?"
—Exactly. This goes beyond mere attention—many now view you with caution and suspicion.
"Suspicion?! Our Yu-won hasn't done anything shady! He's just been exploring so brilliantly that the tower threw some more intense and efficient trials his way!"
Yumina jumped to his defense, sounding like a student council president big sister shielding her accused little brother from exam cheating charges.
But the Chancellor tapped the table twice more with his umbrella at Yumina, who still hadn't grasped the point, looking pitiful.
Her heated momentum was forcibly quelled; she slumped back over the table from where she'd half-risen.
—Mina, suspicion isn't that kind of thing.
Ban Yu-won wondered for the umpteenth time today if his ears were malfunctioning.
Did the Chancellor just call Yumina by her name?
Her retort was a masterpiece too.
"But Principal—!"
—Everyone ascending the tower for the first time has delusions. That they'll become its master, wielding all its hidden powers. That they'll become the one true god, erasing the messy boundaries between dimensions to rule a unified world.
No—probably not many actually think that.
Ban Yu-won read the desires inherent in the Chancellor's brief words, and chills ran down his spine.
Should I run from here right now?
As if reading his mind, the Chancellor's umbrella pointed straight at him.
—But as they climb, everyone realizes the truth. They have no connection to becoming the tower's master. The tower doesn't test climbers—it merely handles them as samples.
"Samples...! Principal, Yu-won won't be sacrificed. I'll protect him!"
The word "samples" must have triggered her.
She finally overcame the pressure of the Chancellor's presence and shot to her feet, stepping forward to shield Ban Yu-won—but right after, the table they'd been sitting at vanished, replaced by a massive eye on the floor.
The ceiling too.
Eyes appeared on every surrounding wall as well.
—But soon, everyone will realize there's an exception to that.
And the next instant, it all disappeared, reverting to the original room.
The Chancellor continued calmly.
—Mina, you were placed there from the start to protect him. Your resolve is true—proceed as you are.
"Ah, uh... Just now... Principal...?"
Yumina's face went pale.
Ban Yu-won caught her as her legs buckled and she started to collapse.
The Chancellor, as if he hadn't meant to threaten them at all, spoke nonchalantly.
—Successor. Enemies are everywhere. Outside the tower, and of course inside. Think again about who targeted you this exploration. Prepare accordingly.
He thumped the table with his umbrella once more, and the two found themselves ejected from the Chancellor's room, standing in the hallway before they knew it.
—The war has already begun.
Ban Yu-won thought as he hugged Yumina back—she was still trembling but clutching him protectively.
Damn, this guy's got some shitty style.
Even though I already knew all that.