Chapter 65
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 65
Chapter Title: Lesson 14. Level Force - 3
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On the morning of the third day, as Ban Yu-won emerged to catch the morning breeze, Aneri was waiting there, riding the air in much the same way as the day before.
Her outfit was even more revealing than yesterday, subtly so.
"You don't need to do this anymore."
"Huh? No, I just came to pounce on you if I got the chance."
Ban Yu-won gave a slight smile at Aneri's innocent reply, then knocked on the door to the next room over and tossed her to Lucelle, who opened it.
"This means I need to sort out the pecking order, right? Got it, Master!"
"Master? Did you just say Master...? Kyaaah!"
After dealing with the baggage, he headed to the balcony in a leisurely mood.
Yumina was there.
"Oh, Professor... Sis."
"Did you sleep well?"
The conscienceless 500-year-old girl, who only wanted to hear him call her "sis" when they were alone, beamed at him with a bright morning greeting.
"You were amazing yesterday."
"You too, Sis. I heard you took on their fleet all by yourself."
"Fleet? What fleet?"
Yumina shook her head with a wry smile.
"Exodus's true power is far more than that. What they did yesterday was just a simple show of force. While carrying out the Ortima family's demands, they also wanted to show that Exodus fears nothing, not even the Academy."
"That was a show of force?"
Recalling the scale of the fleet that had torn through dimensions to appear, it sounded utterly absurd.
But Yumina's expression was quite serious.
"You could tell they were prepared to lose everything except the flagship—they deliberately deployed such feeble forces. It was a textbook stalling tactic... So I smashed them all."
This sis is scary.
Ban Yu-won shuddered as he recalled the thorns she'd conjured in the air—tens of kilometers long and hundreds of meters thick.
Maybe she was one of the top powerhouses among the Academy's professors...
"Even if they were prepared for losses, they still took heavy damage. Whatever Exodus intended, any faction friendly to the Academy will now hound them like rats from here on out."
Yumina's jeweled eyes glinted fiercely, as if she'd resolved to feed every last bit of humiliation meant for the Ortima family straight to Exodus.
Exodus. Ban Yu-won found himself thinking about them anew.
No matter the Ortima family's proposal, they must have accepted it out of their own hostility toward him.
It was probably that video he'd uploaded to the Rebellion channel—the one where he exterminated an intruder from Exodus.
Flip that around, and it means that video dealt Exodus a massive humiliation.
If it had only spread a bit in Union, the top dimension, they might not have cared.
But thanks to Aneri, every dimension's inhabitants had seen it.
Exodus had suffered a dimension-wide disgrace.
"And on top of that, their deal with the Ortima family fell apart."
Yumina explained that the deal had likely been forced through by Lucein Ortima throwing a tantrum to the family elders.
A transaction that would breed enemies even in success, and narrow their position even further in failure.
It was already high-risk, and they'd botched it in the worst way possible—when the Academy already had leverage over them, their ties to Exodus had gone straight to hell too.
"Well, with Lucein Ortima coming back in that state, they couldn't exactly stay cozy with Exodus."
"That's why I said it was well done. Dokgo Yeon too... Ng, her methods were a bit extreme, but I can't blame her. It was the perfect warning to send to Ortima."
Dokgo Yeon slicing off Ortima's arm had severed their ties to Exodus as well.
Of course, Dokgo Yeon did the actual cutting, but with the Academy blocking any further moves, Exodus was the only target left for the Ortima family's resentment.
"What the hell were they thinking, pulling such a reckless stunt?"
"They didn't account for your abilities. Did they really think freshmen who just entered the Academy could escape unharmed from a dungeon created and controlled by a constellation?"
The dungeon's maze would have been tough to breach without Ban Yu-won (apparently the other two groups had brute-forced it), and the giant monster would have been a nightmare without Lucelle's ferocity.
Not to mention the constellation controlling it was outright hostile to them—no one could have cleared it unscathed. It was a miracle.
"I was just a side character in the end."
"Next time, you'll be the lead. Your spotlight's growing by the day."
With that, Yumina pointed to her mirror.
More precisely, to the Rebellion channel banner, whose subscribers had hit 30 million as of this morning.
The undisputed top video was still their first Tower entry.
"You probably felt it meeting Aneri, but in other dimensions, you're practically representing Union Academy right now. You might not realize it yet... but Academy students visit countless dimensions before graduating."
"You mean the special activities?"
"Yeah. This one was just like pre-training. You didn't really do anything, right?"
Since they truly hadn't, Ban Yu-won could only nod.
Definitely feels like a school trip.
"But once you dive into real special activities, you'll see. There are so many dimensions that need the help of the strong. That's part of the curriculum—to make you realize it."
"To foster selflessness in the students?"
"Hardly. The stronger you get, the less you look down at your feet. But the masses at your feet will look up to you."
That was the key, Yumina stressed.
"That's how you etch your presence across countless dimensions. It's the path to becoming a god. It'll help you climb the Tower too."
By fifth year, seniors already had name recognition—especially those revered across many dimensions were treated like proper named heroes.
"Never even crossed my mind... Huh?"
It was fascinating, but something midway nagged at him.
Ban Yu-won narrowed his eyes.
"Didn't you just say we're getting famous in other dimensions?"
"Finally catching on?"
Yumina giggled and poked his cheeks.
"Other students build that recognition painstakingly through special activities. You... you all grabbed it in one shot. Think others won't be jealous?"
As her finger prodded his cheek, Ban Yu-won realized why the students fixated on him.
It wasn't just internal school drama—it tied straight to the Academy's goals.
Starting something on a whim and watching it balloon left him more dazed than happy.
"Hard to believe it all stemmed from one camera."
"Still thinking that?"
He heard Yumina mutter, So cute.
...What? Was there more to it?
Ban Yu-won frowned and shot her a questioning look.
But Yumina said no more and pulled away.
Morning was approaching.
"Sorry, I can't join your group activity today. Yesterday's mess left me with issues to handle."
"It's just free time anyway. We can wander on our own. Aneri's there, unreliable as she is."
"Sis is bummed we can't hang out, but you're fine without me?"
A trap he'd half-expected!
To appease his 480-years-older sis, Ban Yu-won had to play cute for five whole minutes.
...It stirred faint nostalgia for playing with his real sister as a kid, making him miss home just a bit.
After breakfast, the group finally got full free time.
Group activity time: wandering Tolmon Empire's capital with their cohort (typically those who entered the Tower together).
"The capital's ridiculously huge."
"Yu-won, I wanna eat that."
"Lucelle, you're not calling him Master now— Nothing! There's a fried snack stall just one block over, so let's go there!"
Poor Aneri's rank was firmly below Lucelle's.
But she'd prepped properly for this mercenary gig, guiding the group through the capital with ease.
Dokgo Yeon seemed satisfied, at least.
"Oh my, this dimension's sweets aren't bad."
"How do you know so well when you're not even from here?"
"For dimension mercenaries like us who roam many worlds, grasping the dispatch site's info is crucial. It's basic to avoid blowing our cover to locals."
Ban Yu-won had initially suspected her as Ortima bait via honey trap, but the gap between image and skill was too vast.
Catching his skeptical glance, Aneri shot him a sly signal—only for Lucelle to bend her finger.
"Kghk, we're in the same boat anyway... Kyaaah!"
"She's fun."
The voice came from the far left, next to Light.
Turning, they saw Ire had seamlessly joined them.
Does she like Light that much? Ban Yu-won felt a pang but hid it.
"Why are you here?"
"I'm a solo group. Free to go anywhere."
Then came the unexpected bombshell.
Light reacted big, as expected.
"Solo group? You mean you climb the Tower alone?!"
"I'm the only freshman this year who got permission."
Everyone was stunned by Ire's matter-of-fact tone—not boastful, just calm.
Ban Yu-won recalled the Chancellor's promise of solo scouting for top performers.
Light's reaction was even stronger.
"They said it's only for exceptional cases..."
"...Not exceptional. It's just been the most efficient so far."
Efficiency... Ban Yu-won smiled wryly.
Even in the Special Class of top students, Ire chose isolation.
She saw no need to befriend them.
The Chancellor must have granted her solo rights because climbing alone was more efficient for her.
"Figured as much."
"Hm?"
Ban Yu-won thought Dokgo Yeon might envy Ire's solo rights, but she accepted it calmly—almost amused.
Noticing his confusion, she sent him a telepathic message.
—Think about her offer yesterday.
—Joining Class 11? Does that mean she wants to climb with us?
—Probably. Isn't it funny?
She nodded at Ire now.
Look, she gestured. Ire staring straight at him with her clear silver eyes, pleading!
"So I want to hang out together."
"Kh..."
Ban Yu-won's eyes nearly teared up.
Light, humiliated that Ire—solo-authorized since enrollment—had what he lacked.
But oblivious Ire just wanted to enjoy free time with him.
Their crossed wires were heartbreaking!
"Such cruelty! Oh Buddha, are you sleeping...!"
"Ban Yu-won, quit the nonsense and open your wallet. They got decent sweets over there."
"Ah, Yu-won. I want something salty next."
"..."
The two girls pressed on with their eat-walk, ignoring Ire's addition or Light's anguish.
Ban Yu-won trailed them, checked the camera—Tike—and sighed, nodding.
"Eating segments always do well, so no issue... Ire? You cool with being on video?"
"Doesn't matter. ...Do it."
Ire's silver eyes sparkled as she declared, like yesterday.
"I want to join Class 11 someday... Rebellion."
Dokgo Yeon's hunch nailed it.
But then Light finally snapped.
"With solo rights, just keep doing it alone like always."
"Light, you—"
Ban Yu-won panicked to intervene, but Ire shook her head first.
"This special activity showed me my limits. ...I think I need you guys."
She couldn't quite say "you, Light," settling for vague... But why look at Ban Yu-won?
Maybe she saw him as the leader, hoping he'd decide!
Ban Yu-won's mind was set since she appeared.
"Like Professor Yumina said, taking you into Class 11 is impossible, but filming together occasionally like this..."
Ire's skills and personality were top-tier; her ethereal beauty contrasted Dokgo Yeon's perfectly.
It'd draw crowds, and after Yumina's "named" talk, it'd help Ire too—no reason to refuse.
Plus, with Dokgo Yeon having severed Ortima's arm, more allies in the Academy were wise.
Especially a powerhouse like Ire.
"That's it for today. We'll talk scouting later."
Ire nodded.
Who'd pushed her to act so boldly?!
"Ban, why the wistful look? ...What? Spit it out if you have something to say."
"Nah, nothing."
With Special Guest Ire, Rebellion toured the capital—rebuilt after surviving the monster wave.
Tolmon's capital, which withstood the wave via Union Academy aid and rebuilt swiftly, buzzed with odd vitality.
The video capturing the city and Rebellion's tourism exploded on upload, pushing subscribers to 50 million.
Ban Yu-won finally felt he grasped what Rebellion viewers craved.
