Chapter 80
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 80
Chapter Title: Lesson 18. Midterms - 2
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That night.
—I’ve been thinking.
“Huh?”
Ban Yu-won didn’t even look up from dipping his brush into the paint he’d ground from various materials as he replied to Cellon’s voice.
He was in the middle of work and couldn’t afford to take his eyes off it.
In front of him lay a rectangular sheet of paper the size of his palm.
He was freely drawing letters and magical script across it with his brush.
—No matter how I look at it, your authority seems like a power that defies all logic.
“What’s new about that? If it wasn’t this broken, I wouldn’t have gotten into the special track.”
—Don’t make me laugh. I’ve checked the records of every single special track student in this academy, and even combined, they don’t come close to you.
“When did you find time for that?”
—That’s basic. If I had an authority like yours, I could probably control the academy’s barrier itself.
“Super hacker Cellon……”
—Hey, that’s not funny.
The guy usually just felt like an exceptionally talented staff member, but remarks like that really drove home that he’d once been a constellation.
—Anyway, your authority has far too much potential to be granted to a single individual. And its versatility is insane. Look at what you’re doing right now—making a talisman that ancient shamans might’ve crafted.
“Come on, this form came from consulting with you.”
—Honestly, I didn’t think it’d actually work.
“Any contractor who signed with such an irresponsible constellation has my pity.”
—That’s not something you should say, you punk!
After consulting with Cellon on what methods Class 11’s members should use to survive the midterms, Ban Yu-won had come up with the idea of creating a kind of buff that boosted study efficiency.
He’d already had some thoughts on buffs before.
With his Language authority, the Babylonia Code, wouldn’t successfully interfering directly in another person amount to a buff or debuff?
‘The problem is I can’t directly interfere in someone else’s bodily concepts with my authority.’
The one time he’d succeeded in the past had led to the horrific result of Lucelle going berserk.
So he hadn’t attempted anything like it since… until Cellon gave him advice.
Humans instinctively reject others’ mana interference, so what if they used an intermediary that didn’t go against that instinct?
That intermediary was an artifact.
If Ban Yu-won infused his power into an artifact, the target could activate it directly upon contact.
Their mana would naturally mix in the process, allowing his authority to apply without rejection—that was Cellon’s theory.
It was a highly plausible idea, but artifacts weren’t something you could just whip up.
Ban Yu-won could certainly collect, bestow, and synthesize the concepts of all things, but creating something from nothing was impossible even with language magic.
To be precise, language magic could temporarily manifest concepts, but they’d dissipate once the infused aura faded.
—That’s what makes it amazing! If anyone could seal magic into paper like you, magic scrolls wouldn’t sell for such high prices!
“Oh, these sell for a lot?”
—Of course!
In the end, the result wasn’t a permanent artifact but a consumable item.
‘A talisman.’
He’d usually activated language magic by drawing script with aura on the spot without a medium, but this time he prepared special ink (concentrated with the concept of preservation—expensive) and drew the magical script on mana-rich parchment dedicated to magic scrolls (extremely expensive) to maximize the duration.
“Making money is easy. Just draw some magical script and infuse some aura.”
—Students desperate not to get expelled from the academy would pay top dollar for these, right?
“Not selling.”
He’d gone through the trouble of boosting his members’ grades; letting other students’ scores rise because of the talismans would defeat the purpose.
Modern society was ruthless competition.
The half-baked wouldn’t survive.
Lost in such thoughts as he frantically wielded the brush, he soon completed the first talisman.
“It’s kinda funny how legit it looks now that it’s done.”
—Legit or not, it’s the simplest and most effective magic scroll I’ve ever seen. Mages would call it art.
The buffs—or concepts—Ban Yu-won had infused into the talisman were three: Concentration, Comprehension, and Memorization.
The three indispensable elements for studying written subjects.
By inscribing these three concepts onto the talisman, infusing a massive amount of aura, and sealing them, the user could inject mana to break the seal and activate the effects.
It had taken a full hour of agony and sweat to stabilize that mechanism.
“But I don’t like using so much extra aura for the seal. This system needs refining later… Wait, seals…”
—Save the ideas for later and check the finished product first.
He shelved the idea that had flashed in his mind and picked up the completed talisman as Cellon suggested. Messages from his authority scrolled before his eyes.
Succeeded in crafting Ban Yu-won’s Special Study Talisman (30). This talisman, made by gathering concepts with highly positive effects on brain activation, is firmly sealed. Once the seal breaks and it manifests, it grants the user strong effects of concentration, comprehension, and memorization for approximately 30 hours. Due to the influence of the mutation authority, some of the talisman creator’s knowledge is naturally transferred to the user.
Succeeded in crafting a unique magical item through the harmony of authority and language magic. The depths of All-Reading Eyes, All-Hearing Ears, and All-Speaking Lips each increase by 10. Soul’s depth becomes 650. Mutation’s depth becomes 15.
“Oh.”
It was beyond expectations, without a doubt.
Especially the added effect from the mutation authority—it was ridiculous!
Since Ban Yu-won already fully understood every subject, even a portion of his knowledge transferring to the members would skyrocket their chances of passing the exam.
—See? Another absurd result! Stealing concepts willy-nilly, and now it even adds knowledge transfer as an option…
Constellation Clock of the Toy Legion tilts its head at the sponsored individual’s achievement in handling the authority better than itself.
Cellon reacted as if he’d half-expected it, while the constellation that had recently started showing its presence via messages couldn’t believe the miraculous feats Ban Yu-won kept pulling off, despite only just starting to sponsor him.
And why not? The authority Ban Yu-won wielded had already evolved into something fundamentally different from what the constellation had originally sponsored.
—So, what are you going to do? The mutation authority isn’t something you can control at will. What if it adds weird effects to the other talismans?
“Cellon, you still don’t get me.”
—What?
Ban Yu-won picked up a second sheet of paper, swiftly inscribed a single phrase, and infused it with exactly the same amount of aura as the first talisman.
Perfect Copy.
—Huh?
“Like this.”
When he overlapped it with the first talisman, the “Perfect Copy” phrase vanished, and it transformed into an exact replica of the first!
Checking the info afterward confirmed it was identical, down to the ability added by the mutation authority.
“Perfect.”
—You can do that…?
The old-school constellation was stunned before the divine art of copy-paste that any modern Earthling knew by heart.
“Cellon, top up my aura.”
—Is it because you handle primal concepts that you’re different? Flaunting mage talent like this makes me want to teach you properly.
“Save that for next time. Aura first.”
With Cellon’s help, and periodically replenishing his aura via Aura Convergence and Breath Control, Ban Yu-won barely managed to produce 20 talismans.
“From now on, I should make these whenever I have spare aura. Or maybe rechargeable artifacts that refill concepts as they’re used.”
—These could actually be useful in the tower.
“Barrier concepts would be good too.”
He’d only meant to boost his party members’ academics, but his authority’s potential had suddenly expanded massively.
His combat power had nearly doubled, no exaggeration.
—Artifact Fabrication Department professors would forget to breathe and charge at you.
“Professor Thalia Liliana Campanella, right? Come to think of it, I heard reporting artifact-related stuff to her counts as a achievement. Gifting her one might be nice.”
These talismans were all sealed with his authority, so no one could reverse-engineer them even if they studied them—and even if they did, they couldn’t replicate it.
Sure, someone out there might mimic it, but they could craft something even greater without these anyway, so it didn’t matter.
—With a bunch of these multi-functional talismans… you could solo the tower, huh?
“Usually, the ones who awaken new powers and get cocky are the first to crash.”
—Are you a sage or something?
Finishing his idle chat with Cellon, Ban Yu-won stood and stretched with a groan, glancing out the window.
A rain pattered down under a moonless night sky, moistening the spaceship landing pad and the forest beyond.
He’d chosen the doorless lecture hall to avoid bothering Light, but as night deepened, the atmosphere was perfect.
“Feels like a ghost could pop out and I’d buy it.”
—Ghosts aren’t that special. You’re scarier.
“……”
But Ban Yu-won couldn’t play along with Cellon’s joke anymore.
He’d spotted something pale and indistinct moving quickly behind one of the massive pillars at the spaceship landing pad, somewhat distant from the academy facilities.
“Holy…”
—You see a spirit? That monster personally set up the barrier, and spirits are moving fine inside it?
“What are you surprised about? You buddies with the chancellor or something?”
He sighed in reply but unconsciously tracked the pale thing’s movements with his eyes.
Was it his imagination? For a split second, it seemed to stop and look up at him.
Large, ominously glowing eyes, pointed ears…
But the next moment, as Ban Yu-won gasped and widened his eyes, it vanished without a trace.
“……But it’s never just my imagination in situations like this.”
—You do this dumb Q&A with yourself sometimes. You look fine, but is it a side effect of your authority?
“Harsh much?”
The next day, Tuesday.
At lunchtime, Ban Yu-won gathered the group in the doorless lecture hall and distributed five talismans to each.
“Inject mana, and it activates instantly. Once triggered, it sticks to your body, lasts 30 hours, then burns up. Anyone not get it?”
“I don’t get any of it.”
“Then that’s fine, right?”
“It’s like a miniature formation array. My… family had specialists researching these.”
Lucelle and Light, unable to even guess the principles, quietly accepted them, while Dokgo Yeon’s eyes sparkled with interest.
“Ban Yu-won, does that mean you can make ‘talismans’ with other effects too?”
“Bingo. Look forward to the next expedition.”
“……My worries feel silly now.”
She muttered something cryptic, chuckled softly, and tucked the talisman away.
“Probably won’t need it, but I’ll make good use of it. Thanks.”
“M-Me too!”
“Honestly no clue, but if it works well, I’ll thank you then.”
“Got it. Oh, don’t carry them on exam day—could get caught and you’re screwed.”
He’d already submitted one to Professor Campanella via Yumina that morning.
He hadn’t spoken to her directly, but her responses of ‘dangerous,’ ‘cheating,’ and ‘expulsion if caught in the exam hall’ meant it was a huge hit.
The bonus pay as an achievement was suspiciously large.
“Alright, off to afternoon lectures.”
“Using it during lectures would maximize the effect!”
“Yeah. Professor Xenon will probably stare again with those eyes of his, though…”
But as the group left the doorless lecture hall for Professor Xenon’s class,
“Oh, you’re Ban Yu-won junior, right? Was looking for you—perfect timing.”
A brown-haired young man evoking dark elves from fiction, with a heart-shaped earring on one ear, blocked their path.
“Student Council Vice President Kettra. Nice to meet you.”
“Student Council?!”
“So, Ban Yu-won junior.”
The young man who introduced himself as Kettra stared straight at Ban Yu-won.
“You free after class?”
Ban Yu-won eyed his pointed ears and thought,
See? Told you.
Not his imagination after all.