Chapter 328: Tired Trip

———Galed———

<2: 02 pm>

“Oh come on, the trip barely started!” I yelled out in frustration as the ground shakes beneath our feet.

“AAHHHGHHAAAA!!!” He screamed loudly into the sky as his body began to shift violently and the nearby monsters got blown away by the pressure he was exuding. He is completely losing it only after being harassed by a few monsters? He wasn’t like this the last few months! Was he suppressing it for too long?

Damn it, why isn’t the teacher here right now! I know he said he’ll only intervene if we can’t subdue him as a group, but he knows how much of a pain that is, right?

**Dash** *Clash*

Both of us ran at each other at the same time, unfortunately I didn’t manage to compose myself and attack him while he is still mindlessly rampaging about. He locked onto me as a target before I could get one cheap shot in.

“Ugh!” I can’t help but to groan as I push my shield against his massive bulking arms. This form of his is so damn strong! Even at the start of the battle his power has already risen this much!

*Leap* *Kick* *Zip*

I jumped up and let him tumble past me before I quickly changed my midair trajectory to kick him right in the back of the head before flying away to gain a bit of distance.

I know what needs to be done in a scenario like this. A few very strong attacks back-to-back. Essentially popping two or more finishing moves at once. It’s obviously not practical against a normal opponent who could be worn down with regular attacks, but those will simply piss him off and fuel his energy reserve with that rage.

*Dash* *Leap* *Flap* *Zip*

He quickly ran back at me after recovering from the surprise kick. I simply fly away and create more distance between us, not letting him grab me with that monstrous leap that would’ve caught most people. I don’t have time to play around with him.

The compartment in my shield unfolds and a giant gun barrel sticks out for me to aim right at this rampaging beast.

“[Burst Cannon]” I spelled out the attack as it quickly gathers up all the energy I can muster.

*Shine* *Spark* *Crackle*

He won’t dodge. That mindless state of his gives him very little sense of self-preservation. He might do so in the heat of the moment, but at the start of battle he does not build up that natural instinct to protect oneself.

*Blast* *Boom*

The energy blast shoots out from the barrel and hits him right on, the impact causing trees and rocks to be blown away like they were lightweight props.

*Sizzle*

“Grrrghhhh…” Of course that doesn’t end the fight in one hit. It wasn’t like this last time as well, no matter how much I hoped that was the case. He blocked it with just his right hand, not without signs of injury, but certainly not nearly enough to put him down. How obnoxious. “GRRAAHH!!!”

*Leap* *Swing* *Evade*

Good thing he can’t fly, otherwise that jump would’ve been impossible to dodge with the velocity shown… I think the next attack might work, as long as I don’t miss.

*Flap* *Zip*

Still locked on to his location using all the attention I could muster, I fly up high into the sky and through the multiple layers, the shift in temperature and other conditions make me start to suffocate badly.

*Drop* *Sizz* *Zip*

I quickly fell down and let the gravity take me as I accelerated the descent even faster with my wings pushing myself down faster and I began gathering power into my shield, letting it be set ablaze as I hone in on his location. All the speed I have built up will be halted by that hulking beast and take him down with it!

*ZIP* *BASH* *CRASH* *BOOM*

———Karra———

<2: 09 pm>

*Slice* *Slash* *Dice*

“Another one down.” I said, starting to feel bored after taking down another one of these things.

“We’re really outgrowing these areas, aren’t we?” Kenni remarked, descending down after observing me fighting these giant rocky gorillas for a while. “Kinda boring, actually. Can’t we go to one of those Forbidden Zones again? They’re way more fun.”

“And run into an actual demon? Are you even sure you can deal with that?” I pointed out. Those things could topple an entire nation if left unchecked. The shades can be dealt with, but the real stuff is another story entirely.

“It’ll be fine. Not the first time I have seen a real demon anyway.” She said that as if it’s the most natural thing in the world. Did she forget how one of them caused one of the more catastrophic incidents after the first few weeks were over?

“...I really have no idea how you can still be alive.” I said, feeling a bit frustrated. What kind of plot armor nonsense does she have for that?

“Eh, luck and determination, I guess. As long as there are still interesting things happening in this world, I ain’t gonna die.” She dismissively said. How ridiculous will the future be then? Do I even want to know?

“...Can’t you just stir things up if you get bored so you have an excuse to keep living?” I pointed out.

“I mean, yeah, but there’s a difference between reading and writing, you know?” She said, hopefully not picking up what I put down… As if that even mattered aside from the fact that she’ll probably be a lot more annoying if she does figure that out. “So what are you doing next? Just going back to the ship?”

“What else am I gonna do? I think everyone is kinda bored with doing this. None of us are any sort of artisan, so these exotic magical materials don’t matter much either.” Hopefully they change things up a bit. I know not having any classes is nice, but you know, could maybe be something else. Like a game show or something.

“I’ve seen Emmie collecting them, so I don’t know… Besides, don’t we have that crime org or whatever that we can trade with?” She reminds me about that particular can of worms. “When was the last time we went to that dungeon, by the way? That super brutal one?”

“Probably for way too long.” I have honestly forgotten about the dungeon. Wiina is the one who delivers the materials for payment so the amount of contact I personally have is limited. “Also, calling a war hero’s organization a crime organization sounds really wrong, ain’t it?”

“More like rebels without a cause at this point.” She scoffs at my replies. None of us even know what he is planning with a group of ex-soldiers and the like, but since Wiina doesn’t seem concerned then I shouldn’t be either.

“Probably a bunch of things he is doing in the background that we don’t know about. Anyway, why are you even sticking to me today?” I asked to shift the topic.

“Like you said, this has gotten kinda stale. The scenery here isn’t even that unique. No nice flower fields, volcanoes, snowstorms, anything like that.” She answered. This place is basically a general field with a bunch of trees, so I can’t argue there. There aren't even any crazy slopes or massive mountains to worry about. Not the kind of place I’ll take pictures of and post it online. “Socializing is a different story, especially in a place like this. New dialogue branch and all that, you know?”

“What the heck do you think this world is?” I said, sounding a bit bemused.

“I don’t know.” She said with a straight face. “Anyhow, you got any juicy details about the whole government attacking us thingy? Surely you know someone who knows.”

“I don’t.” I flatly answered. Wiina has been quiet on that front, so there’s nothing for me to gossip about in the first place. Which must’ve meant it’s something she is very certain will happen soon. Obviously if it doesn’t affect us she probably would be way less tight-lipped about it.

“Man. Does anyone have more tea than Useph right now? That guy isn’t even the type to stir up drama in the first place.” Kenni said as if it’s an important thing to figure out.

“Oh quit it. Let’s just get back to the ship.” I said before walking away, not wanting to argue with her in a hostile place like this.

———Galed———

<2: 14 pm>

“You look terrible, but nothing that can’t be fixed up by the devices on the ship.” Teacher Able said before turning around to look at the guy unconscious on the operating table. “Two attacks is a new record.”

“Yeah, thanks.” I said, feeling worn out from the ultimate attack I pulled off. It’s going to take a long while to fully recover from that. “…You know why he is suddenly acting up again?”

“No. The school does keep track of him and calculate the possibility of him going berserker. I can look that up later, if you want.” He calmly explained. If that’s the case then it would’ve been nice if he stops the guy if he does have that much insight.

“No need for that. I’m not that interested.” He has always been emotionally unstable after the Eclipse. His meek and quiet attitude before that no doubt actually holds a lot of repressed rage and other negative emotions. I was never an expert on that front, but maybe attempting to socialize with him more beforehand would’ve prevented a lot of grief… or maybe not. Who knows how that trait appeared in him in the first place. From my understanding of it, the Eclipse doesn’t add those Special Traits so much as it activates them. Perhaps it doesn’t matter much but it is still a distinction to be made. Even such a grand spell that covers the Earth can’t create those rule-breaking characteristics.

“Ah, right. Here’s the payment.” He said before giving me a hundred dollar bill. The good ol’ ‘personal money’ of his. This one is the same pay as last time. “Sorry, I have a set amount I’m willing to pay for that.”

“Almost like you have no control of your finances.” I snarked. Doesn’t take a genius to know that his whole idea of bribing me to take care of Kelim so he can slack off a bit was pure nonsense. It’s something the school board came up with to encourage me to fight more. There is simply no way they won’t notice this kind of transaction, I know the security on everything related to the school is top notch. The idea of a teacher bribing a student to do the dirty work for him won’t even work with mundane paperwork, let alone combat. This is a crossing the lines on multiple levels that is impossible to not notice.

Now why does the school board want him to take all the blame is not exactly rocket science. He can be the fall guy in case a third party does witness the scene. It’s better to concentrate all the blame onto him instead of the big decision makers.

He doesn’t say anything to my comment. As far as he’s concerned, as long as I keep my mouth shut about it then none of us have to worry about it.

Certainly a shady look from me, but most of it can be pinned on him if push comes to shove.

“...Alright, I need a tailor and a bath. Teacher, lead the way, will ya?” I said before standing up with him following suit.

———Wiina———

<2: 20 pm>

“Looks like everyone is here, aside from the obvious suspects.” Karra remarked as she sat down with a glass of fizzy drinks. Only three people are still outside killing monsters, everyone else has become tired of the routine, or at least today was sort of the breaking point. Compared to other classes we simply don’t feel that rush of adrenaline even with the Titayrants.

“We really need something a bit more entertaining.” Kenni voiced her complaint. Can’t she wait a few days before she starts yapping? “Hey, Jass, do you know anything?”

“No.” I quickly shut down what would’ve no doubt been an awkward conversation to go through.

I turn my head around to see Rico not caring about the crowded lobby, simply typing and reading on her phone and looking more attentive than she has been about this trip. We already have a few ideas we can put in a box and shake to see what we pull out, so this isn’t really something worth concerning over.

I suppose the fact that everyone returned early is a new thing anyway, a bit atypical of the usual. Perhaps they care more about what is to come than the present right now, which is why they are a bit out of it lately.