Ch.158158. Oneself (6)

On the surface, it appeared as if the two of them were taking charge of everything and changing the tide.

However, the reality was clearly different from what the students perceived.

‘They’re all accommodating me.’

Juno was far more active than Aris.

The students might not have noticed, but the person directly involved couldn’t possibly miss it.

‘But… why?’

No matter how I look at it, this seems like a signal to conserve mana and save it.

Yet the Stump attacks have ceased. That’s because almost all the Stumps inside the dome have fallen.

The last one—what appeared to be a Decurion-grade main body—was also taken care of by Juno, completing the extermination.

I wonder if there’s really a need to conserve this much mana when there are barely any enemies left.

“Is it… over?”

“Seems like it.”

“Now we just need to break through the exit!”

“Finally escaping from here… phew.”

The opinion was that they could escape the dome if they just opened the exit. Naturally, no one showed any signs of objection.

Aris also agreed with the students.

No matter how she looked at it, it seemed like everything was over.

However, one person narrowed his eyes and caught this subtle change.

“Everyone stay alert and get back into combat formation!!”

The interior had become so desolate that the fallen Stumps had not risen again.

But the last one—one they had never seen before—revealed itself.

“What…! How are the Stumps again…!”

“Weren’t they dead?!”

Crack, crunch.

The pieces that Juno had shattered with his mana began gathering to form a shape, and the ones Aris had blown apart also came together to rebuild their structure.

‘That’s… the Decurion of this group…!’

The realization hit.

Decurion. Literally, a commander of ten.

The bizarrely deformed dome took on the form of a Stump and began piecing together the fallen Stumps like a puzzle, reviving them one by one.

He had been prepared for this.

He had been operating under the assumption that what they could see might not be everything.

While anticipating the possibility of this one creature’s existence.

‘Good. With my remaining mana, I’ll take that thing out in one shot…!’

Thinking that the instruction to conserve mana until now must have been for this moment, Aris began drawing a magic circle.

Swish.

“…?”

“Wait, Aris. Now is not the time.”

Strangely, he still waved his hand, telling her to wait.

“You two, shoot fireballs over there.”

The two students nodded and activated their formulas. They had recovered enough mana to use it sufficiently.

Following Juno’s instructions, the fireballs hit a Stump cleanly.

However, the Stump that should have burned to ashes began to revive again, thanks to the master of the jungle dome.

By now, even Aris understood.

The approach they had been using until now wouldn’t work.

It was insufficient to deal with monsters with such remarkable regenerative abilities.

“Aris. We’re changing formation right now.”

“How?”

“Kenick formation. The number doesn’t matter as long as the foundation is correct, so adjust accordingly. I don’t have time, so I’m going ahead!”

“W-wait!! Juno!!”

He dashed forward to confront the revived Stumps.

Aris couldn’t help but tilt her head in confusion.

‘Kenick formation? That formation here… is he serious?’

Seeing Aris just tilting her head in front of them, the students behind her also began to wonder.

“Teacher Aris?”

“What’s wrong, teacher? What did he say was wrong?”

“Huh? Oh… that’s… no, nothing! Let’s just reposition ourselves.”

Following Aris’s instructions, they began to take their positions one by one.

But she wasn’t the only one tilting her head in confusion.

“Teacher… this looks like we’re not escaping but…”

“It seems like we’re using up all the mana we saved to fight, doesn’t it?”

“Are you saying we’re supposed to face those things?”

“No way. That can’t be what he meant…”

She had moved positions first, hoping the students would understand, but it was as expected.

Kenick formation.

The most orthodox formation, designed for the purpose of repelling or annihilating the enemy.

In other words, adopting this formation meant the intention to confront the monsters head-on.

“How are we supposed to defeat Stumps that keep reviving? We were barely hanging on until you teachers arrived. It’s impossible!”

“I thought we were just going to break through the dome and escape…”

“Teacher! Something’s wrong. He’s giving us an unreasonable order, right? That’s it, right?”

“If that’s the case, I’d rather listen to Teacher Aris. I want to hear your instructions!”

“…”

Aris couldn’t answer immediately.

She too questioned whether this was really the right formation.

As he had mentioned, even if support was delayed, they could engage in a war of attrition, and since the enemy would also expend energy, they could persistently target that weakness and attempt a breakthrough.

Besides, his head must be full of tactics, yet he chose a head-on confrontation.

How could they possibly annihilate creatures that kept reviving?

No matter how you looked at it, nothing seemed more foolish.

“Teacher…!”

The children urged her.

To give them an answer quickly.

She sensed it was time to make a decision and fell into deep thought.

“…”

Squeeze.

Aris’s hand moved to her injured shoulder.

This was her answer.

“T-teacher?”

“Why is she suddenly touching her shoulder…”

“Blood! You’re bleeding, teacher!”

“I know.”

“What…?”

“If you know, why are you doing that?”

She heard them say she was bleeding.

She was aware that blood was flowing.

But it didn’t hurt.

Rather, her mind felt clearer, more alert.

‘This will do.’

Lowering her hand, Aris took a deep breath, preparing to shout to the students.

Blood was dripping down, soaking her clothes due to the reopened wound, but she didn’t care.

“Offense wizards, stay one step behind the vanguard.”

“Buffers who were maintaining visibility, Defense wizards will take over that role. Instead, buffers should reapply enhancement magic to the vanguard.”

“Mages, stand by at the rear with the sorcerers, ready to cast spells at any time.”

Who was she doubting? She was the foolish one.

She’s here now, despite not even being able to enter this dome initially.

Despite the time that has passed, not a single student’s life has been lost.

It’s not about trust; he always points to the right path. Juno won’t be wrong this time either.

“We’re going to defeat all of those things here and go back. Understood?”

“That can’t be possible…”

“Why so little confidence? Don’t you trust your teacher?”

“N-no! That’s not it!”

“But it’s a bit much, isn’t it? A frontal assault in this situation…”

She once thought the same.

That it would be impossible to face and defeat monsters that don’t die.

But Juno is still at the forefront, throwing himself into battle until the formation is set. What does that mean?

It means there is a way.

A way to defeat those creatures.

“We can do it.”

“…What?”

What these children need right now is the assurance that the current tactic isn’t misguided.

“There’s a way to defeat them. That’s why we changed the formation.”

In truth, she doesn’t know.

She can’t even begin to follow Juno’s thoughts. How could she possibly know why he chose this formation?

But from her experience, she knows one thing.

Disobedience or division during an operation is the greatest crisis.

To avoid such a situation, sometimes even lies to allies are necessary.

“…Let’s move.”

Amidst the wavering students, someone spoke up.

It was the class president of Aris’s class, who had been diligently taking notes during lectures while others responded indifferently.

“R-really? We’re going to defeat those things by ourselves?”

“Wouldn’t it be better to hold out and wait for support…”

“We’ve already gone too deep on our own, and we’d be lucky not to be a hindrance. Are we really going to disobey the teacher now?”

The students fell silent.

“Whatever we try to do, we don’t know anything. We should listen to those who do!”

No one argued with that.

Deep down, they knew. If Aris and Juno hadn’t appeared, they wouldn’t have been alive by now.

Would they choose foolishness again in a situation brought about by their own foolishness?

Of course not.

One by one, they adjusted their formation.

Though it was a lie, it yielded a sufficiently meaningful result.

‘I’ve set it up as you intended. What’s next?’

As if answering Aris’s question, the man who had been at the forefront quickly assessed the situation and took a step back.

Just from his breathing, it was clear he was much more exhausted than before.

Kneeling on one knee and panting, he said:

“Phew. From here on, it’s not my domain. It’s yours.”

“What do you mean…?”

“Listen carefully.”

As he lowered his voice to convey the plan, Aris’s eyes widened in shock.

***

‘Here they come…!’

Breaths filled with tension.

They’re waiting for Aris’s instructions. But,

‘Why isn’t the teacher saying anything…?’

‘They’re getting closer…!’

Yet she doesn’t open her mouth.

She just watches as the vanguard slowly gets pushed back.

Aris, who had been silent, finally spoke when all the Stumps had revived.

“All wizards, blow those lotus flowers away with wind.”

“With wind…”

“The lotus flowers…?”

As the students hesitated, Juno stepped in and reprimanded them.

“Follow the instructions. In a battlefield, that would be insubordination.”

“Ah, alright! I’ll do it!”

“Why do you have to speak so harshly? Geez!”

They flinched at the mention of insubordination and grumbled, but they quickly followed the instructions.

The lotus flowers, carried by the wind, melted as soon as they attached to the Stumps.

It didn’t inflict direct damage, but it was a catalyst.

BOOM-!

Aris didn’t stop there and continued giving instructions.

Based on what they had been told beforehand, the students cast their spells in perfect sequence, using the mana they had conserved.

But they couldn’t help but wonder.

‘Even though the alchemical magic coated them with oil, it’s not a significant change. Wouldn’t it be better to use explosion magic from the start?’

‘The teacher could hit them accurately without having to blow the lotus flowers with wind magic…’

‘What’s the point of blowing up the Stumps and then pouring water on them?’

‘Won’t it just reduce the effectiveness by lowering the temperature of the flames? Why?’

She had instructed them to use magic in a sequence and manner that seemed neither efficient nor effective.

What’s the point of consuming mana in this way, step by step?

That was the question. It would indeed feel like a waste.

But only Aris knows. This plan can only be described as perfect.

“Finally, the mage unit!”

“Yes!”

The mage unit, the highlight of the operation.

Their role was to emit cold air to lower the temperature.

As the previous explosions cleared due to the cold air, all the students’ thoughts momentarily froze, as if they had been hit on the back of the head.

The Stumps were literally frozen solid.

‘Cold air…? So from the beginning, it was to freeze them?’

‘Most plants are weak to fire, but there are species resistant to it… Plants are generally more vulnerable to cold than heat…’

‘That’s right! I think I heard that something that has been heated once freezes much faster…’

‘If you freeze them solid… you can stop their movement…! That’s what it means!’

Moreover, the locations of the explosions and the water magic were the same: the arms.

And since the Stumps were gathered together, the damage to them was even greater.

There’s no way for the Stumps, soaked and frozen solid, to recover.

Why did they deploy a formation to annihilate the enemy?

As all the Stumps in front of them froze, the doubts and suspicions about this formation were resolved in an instant.

The goal was now within reach.

“L-look up there…!”

“It’s that one again!”

How did these Stumps come back to life?

That’s right.

Just one.

The master of the dome, who had revived the Stumps by attaching other trees and vines to them, remained.

Once again, the master of the dome emerged from within, distorting the dome, and swooped down on them from above.

But there was someone who had been waiting for this situation, drawing a formation.

Someone who had set up transparent mana shields like walls to protect the students from the explosion.

Everything was according to one person’s intention.

“You’re all going to be in trouble when you get back!”

With Aris’s clear voice ringing out.

As the formation was completed, the darkness of the dome was completely lifted with the explosion of the lotus flowers.

As the falling ashes and fragments hit the ground, warm sunlight greeted them.

In this moment, many things pass through their minds.

Escape.

Liberation.

Relief.

And.

“Teacher? Why are you crying?”

“Maybe she was scared too?”

“…You don’t seriously think that, do you? Please tell me you’re joking.”

“If that were true, she wouldn’t have come to save us.”

“Then, what is it?”

“Who knows…?”

For someone, it was a moment of discovering their past self.