Why Did I Have to Enroll

Why Did I Have to Enroll - Chapter 126

Lesson 26. Pushing Away When Getting Closer - 1

“What’s that?”

Ban Yu-won, who had just finished his meditation, blurted out in a dialect he didn’t even know he had. The mountain was toppling over. It wasn’t just a boulder rolling down; a towering rocky mountain was falling backward!

“What the heck is that…?”

―You’ve done something similar before, haven’t you?

“Hey, I… that one died on its own.”

―I think that’s even more impressive…

What on earth was Dokgo Yeon doing to make the mountain fall like that? As he watched, he noticed limbs sprouting from the mountain. In other words, Dokgo Yeon was fighting an enormous golem made of a mountain!

“If it weren’t for Dokgo Yeon, the game would have been over the moment that thing appeared. This tower’s balance patch is ridiculous!”

―Think about it the other way. Maybe this is the tower’s balance patch working well?

“…Huh!”

Ban Yu-won pondered that for a moment. If the Rebellion party’s strength was overwhelmingly superior to other parties, could this absurd situation be happening even on the lower floors? Of course, it wouldn’t be like this for everyone, but what if Ban Yu-won being in Rebellion allowed the tower’s true nature to be revealed at the right time?

The hypothesis was so plausible that Ban Yu-won broke out in a cold sweat.

“If this keeps happening, it’s going to be tough.”

―If you keep causing Multi Shifts, it might get even worse, right?

“…No, I actually like it.”

Even though he was initially shocked by the sight of the mountain falling, Ban Yu-won checked his internal code, confirming that his Life had reached 588, and forced a bold smile.

“The harder it is, the greater the reward. While others are just licking the surface of the tower and boasting, we’re going to nibble away at it from the inside.”

―I wonder what awaits at the end…

Celon spoke in a wistful voice. Ban Yu-won subtly probed her.

“Do you know something?”

―If I knew, I’d be the master of the tower by now.

She had a point.

―But it’s true that you guys are treading a path that hasn’t been walked for thousands of years. Compared to those doing the same thing tens or hundreds of thousands of times, your chances of reaching the top of the tower are higher, aren’t they?

“The top, huh.”

―Yes, just like my contractor…

Celon’s voice suddenly darkened. Ban Yu-won realized he had stepped on a landmine he hadn’t anticipated. He tightly gripped the staff, watching the curse formula pulsing like blood vessels on its surface.

“Is your Magic Power fully recovered?”

When you’re feeling down, a change of pace is necessary. And conveniently, there was a stress-relief target rolling around right in front of him!

―Hey, don’t touch a lady’s body without permission!

“You didn’t say that before. Let’s fire off a big spell.”

―…Alright, here we go?

Magic becomes more proficient the more you use it. Unlike earlier, when Ban Yu-won had to concentrate for at least several tens of seconds, he quickly created a sphere of light, a Photon Sphere, by pouring all his and Celon’s mana into it. He aimed it at the center of the monster-infested hill and threw it.

―Kreee?!

―Kiiiiii!

The Carapace Beasts, not being fools, seemed unwilling to suffer the same fate as before. Several charged at the Photon Sphere with grim determination, but…

―Kiiik!

―Kuhak!

Twelve beams of light pierced their bodies in succession, halting their movements. Meanwhile, the Photon Sphere reached its target and exploded, engulfing the area in a massive blast!

―Saaaaa

The noise from the explosion of the sphere of light wasn’t just noise; it was like an auditory hallucination, devouring everything around it and turning the area into a void of silence. Watching the hill, teeming with monsters, get swallowed by the light, Ban Yu-won felt a sense of awe. Of course, the golden strings of text rising above it were even more awe-inspiring.

“It seems more efficient than before.”

―That’s proof you’ve gotten used to Photon Magic. You can gather and explode light more efficiently with the same mana.

It wasn’t just that. Ban Yu-won speculated that Celon’s emotions had been stirred, causing the curse formula to amplify the power of the light.

[The depth of Photon Magic has reached 60.]

The concept of growing without absorbing from others is precious. Ban Yu-won smiled contentedly at the growth of his magic as he surveyed the devastation he had wrought. Although there was a slight delay, the two consecutive explosions of light had left the Carapace Beasts reeling, unable to regain their senses. And then, even…

“This can’t be…?”

“They’re retreating! The monsters are pulling back!”

“I’ve never heard of monsters causing a wave retreating before…!”

“The Archmage has completely driven away the monsters at the southern gate!”

“Woooooo!”

Had the infection wave been completely lifted? The Carapace Beasts, which had been moving in groups, were rapidly scattering!

“Archmage! Archmage!”

“The Archmage will save this city!”

The soldiers, who had climbed the walls ready to face death, were now cheering at the unbelievable miracle. Ban Yu-won felt a bit embarrassed as the soldiers’ voices praising him grew louder.

“I didn’t plan for this… Is a monster wave usually this easy?”

―The wave here wasn’t that high-level, but it’s also because I’m supporting you!

She never misses a chance to boast. Still, seeing her mood improve after the explosion of the Photon Sphere, Ban Yu-won felt relieved.

“Hmm… It seems like this side is okay now.”

―I think so too.

He continued to recover his Magic Power while observing the battle, but it seemed that no more Carapace Beasts would swarm the southern gate. However, he couldn’t relax just yet. Battles were still ongoing at the other gates, and in the north, a mountain was rampaging as a golem.

“Archmage?”

“You all stay here and guard this place. I’ll go assist my comrades at the other gates.”

As he tried to leave the southern gate, the soldiers showed signs of unease. But since there were no more threats at the southern gate, Ban Yu-won firmly dismissed the soldiers clinging to him and moved on. If only Lilith were here, she could quickly scout and move around… He opened his inventory and gently stroked the metallic egg that was Lilith before closing it again. It seemed unlikely she’d hatch since there wasn’t much danger this time.

‘Tike, which area looks the most dangerous?’

Ban Yu-won communicated with Tike using Resonance. Tike was currently hovering over the city, observing and filming in all directions. Thanks to the combination of Sevenfold Magic Cloth and Projection Magic, Tike could focus on and film up to seven places simultaneously! It could even zoom in on objects a kilometer away as if filming them from just a meter away, and naturally, it could also perform precision shooting on captured targets. Even more impressive, Tike’s role didn’t end there.

‘I’ve entrusted it with collecting concepts…’

Tike was observing and controlling all the deaths occurring in all directions, collecting the concepts generated from them. That’s why the concepts of the monsters Ban Yu-won killed with the Photon Sphere earlier didn’t immediately absorb into him but soared into the sky. Tike was currently absorbing and temporarily storing the concepts rising from all directions. It was also observing the battlefield in real-time, reporting any anomalies to Ban Yu-won, and providing support fire when it detected someone in danger.

‘The eastern gate is rapidly reducing monsters thanks to not only Light but also Eve rampaging there, and in the north, Dokgo Yeon is on the verge of toppling a mountain… So, it’s better to help Luciel. Got it.’

Receiving an accurate report from Tike, who was observing everything, Ban Yu-won headed straight for the western gate. As he approached the wall, the noise of the battlefield began to pound in his ears.

“Shouldn’t we do something about that girl? It’s too dangerous!”

“But thanks to that mercenary, no monsters have crossed the wall yet… Hey, keep shooting!”

“Throw anything, arrows or stones! Stop the monsters!”

Indeed, the intensity of the battle was on a different level compared to the southern gate, where Ban Yu-won had mostly cleaned up alone. As he climbed the wall without hesitation, the soldiers flinched and stepped aside.

“Are you with that mercenary?”

“Please try to stop her. She’s been struggling for a while but won’t retreat…”

“I’m telling you, she’s already infected! It’s too late; we can’t save her!”

The soldiers were chattering away about Luciel, who was fighting alone outside the gate. But to Ban Yu-won, Luciel seemed perfectly fine.

―Kruuuargh!

Luciel, who had transformed into a massive figure over three meters tall, was sweeping the battlefield with her broom-like tail, an overwhelming sight. She was panting as she single-handedly held the defensive line, but the infection wave didn’t seem to affect her.

‘What’s the condition for infection, anyway?’

―Infection occurs when the Soul is tainted. To prevent it, your Soul’s rank must be absurdly high like yours, or, like that beastkin, you must have already pledged your Soul to another being through a master-servant contract.

Celon seemed to be making smart remarks today. But… what? Ban Yu-won couldn’t just let that comment slide.

‘Pledged her Soul? Luciel to me?’

―That’s what a master-servant contract is. You didn’t think she just wanted to call you master for fun, did you?

‘Hmm…’

Honestly, he thought it was half due to the Heart Path and half just for fun. But since forming the master-servant contract with her, he had consistently felt a spiritual connection with her. He had also realized that it wasn’t just a simple contract once he gained control over the Heart Path…

‘The pressure is suddenly mounting.’

―You just need to take good care of her, right? So go help her. She’s struggling.

That was the cue he was waiting for. Ban Yu-won first sent twelve beams of light into the battlefield, then raised his staff and fired a white light beam. The speed was truly light-speed, and the result was overwhelming. Dozens, if not hundreds, of Carapace Beasts were caught in the beam and perished without even a death cry, leaving the soldiers on the wall and even Luciel, who had been fighting fiercely, stunned.

“Ugh…”

―Are you okay?

The effect was outstanding, but Ban Yu-won began to feel his head tingling. Casting magic doesn’t just consume mana. More importantly, it drains mental strength. The reason Celon could boast every time he cast magic was that she took on nearly half of the mental burden he would otherwise have to bear while chanting spells.

“It seems the two consecutive Photon Sphere blasts were tough…”

―You knew it would be hard to do back-to-back blasts at full power.

“Yeah, I’ll refrain from using magic until my mental strength recovers…”

If he couldn’t use magic, he’d fight with his sword. With thoughts reminiscent of Marie Antoinette, Ban Yu-won was about to jump off the wall when Tike sent him an image through Resonance. The scene from Tike’s perspective appeared before his eyes, causing Ban Yu-won to stop in his tracks.

“What the hell…?”

An enormous army of monsters was surging up from the mountain. The proportion of Carapace Beasts wasn’t high, suggesting they might be the ones Ban Yu-won had dispersed at the southern gate. But what about the rest of the monsters? They were monsters with bluish skin, wearing human clothes or armor—humans transformed into monsters by the infection wave!

“The city’s internal victims… should have been prevented.”

―I got it.

Celon smugly declared.

―They’re bringing in extras from the neighboring city who lost their chance to appear.

“I shouldn’t have exposed you to modern culture.”

Ban Yu-won sighed. Now he’d have to use the trump card he had prepared!