Chapter 87: Depending on Other People

( Daphne Spinster’s POV )

The first thing I found inside the temple was a mana crystal.

The second thing I found was another mana crystal.

The third was enough mana crystal to make several noble houses consider crimes against one another.

Naturally, everyone wanted it.

"We should take all of it."

"No."

Lucan Ferros stared at me.

He was the SS-potential student assigned to Class Four.

Metal attribute.

Strong.

Competent.

Proud.

I had known him for approximately one hour and already understood why Zenith had placed him in my class.

To annoy me.

"Do you understand what these are worth?" he asked.

"Yes."

"Then why leave them?"

I looked toward the chamber.

Large blue crystals covered almost half the stone floor, stacked around several refinement devices built directly into the walls.

The amount was absurd.

Enough concentrated mana to support thirty-seven awakened students through hours of sustained spellcasting if we used it properly.

Potentially longer.

Useful.

Extremely useful.

There was only one problem.

They were heavy.

Very heavy.

"We’re underground."

Lucan glanced around.

"I noticed."

"We need to reach the Citadel before dawn."

"I also noticed."

"Then carrying several tons of crystal through unknown tunnels is a poor idea."

He pointed toward me.

"Use Gravity."

There it was.

I looked at him.

"You want me to spend mana transporting resources so everyone else can preserve theirs."

"You’re the best person for it."

True.

I disliked that.

Unfortunately, truth remained true regardless of whether I approved of the person saying it.

I looked toward the crystals again.

We did not know what waited outside the temple.

We did not know how far the Citadel was.

We did not know what resources the other classes had been given.

Mana crystals were useful in nearly every possible situation.

Leaving them behind might become a mistake.

Depending on other people later could also become a mistake.

That settled it.

I raised one hand.

Gravity changed.

The crystals trembled.

Then hundreds of them rose from the floor.

Several students stepped backward as an enormous mass of blue crystal floated above us.

Lucan smiled.

"See?"

I looked at him.

His smile weakened.

Good.

"Move."

***

Thirty minutes later, I had revised my opinion.

Not about the crystals.

About Lucan.

He was more irritating than originally estimated.

My mana expenditure had been manageable at first.

Gravity was one of my title attributes, and reducing the weight of stationary objects was not particularly difficult.

Moving several tons through twisting underground tunnels was different.

The passages changed elevation constantly.

Some narrowed without warning.

Others contained formations that interfered with gravity itself.

One corridor tripled the apparent weight of everything inside it.

Another tilted gravity sideways.

I spent nearly two minutes preventing several hundred mana crystals from embedding themselves into a wall.

The temple had clearly been designed to make transporting heavy objects unpleasant.

The Mirage Hermit was undoubtedly pleased with himself.

I was not.

"You should drop some."

I continued walking.

"No."

The girl beside me stayed there.

Small.

Dark hair.

No obvious combat specialization.

B potential.

Her name was...

Nora?

No.

Nadia.

Nadia Pell.

"Your breathing changed," she said.

"It didn’t."

"It did."

I looked ahead.

The tunnel curved downward.

Wonderful.

"I’m fine."

"You said that ten minutes ago."

"It was true then."

"And now?"

"Still true."

Nadia looked upward at the crystals floating above us.

"I think we’re using different definitions of fine."

I ignored her.

That usually worked.

Apparently not with Nadia.

"Why don’t we distribute them?"

"Because most students cannot carry enough to matter."

"We have thirty-six students."

I glanced toward her.

"Several are already carrying supplies."

"Not all of them."

"They would move more slowly."

"So are we."

I stopped walking.

Nadia stopped beside me.

Several students behind us nearly collided.

I looked toward her.

She did not appear intimidated.

Interesting.

"Your suggestion?"

"Spread the crystals between everyone."

"That reduces combat readiness."

"Then don’t give them to the frontline fighters."

I said nothing.

She continued.

"Also, we could use the carts."

Silence.

"What carts?"

Nadia blinked.

"The carts."

"I understood the word."

"Then why did you ask?"

"Where?"

"The storage room behind the crystal chamber."

I stared at her.

"There were six carts."

More silence.

Six.

Carts.

I looked toward the floating crystals.

Then back toward Nadia.

"You didn’t mention this earlier."

"I did."

"No."

"I told Lucan."

My head turned slowly.

Lucan walked several meters ahead.

"Lucan."

He stopped.

Turned.

"What?"

"Nadia informed you there were carts?"

His eyes moved toward Nadia.

Then toward me.

A pause.

That pause answered before he did.

"Yes."

I stared.

He sighed.

"I thought Gravity would be faster."

I continued staring.

"Daphne."

"You made an assumption."

"You were already lifting everything."

"So you decided not to mention an easier method?"

His jaw tightened.

"I made a judgment."

"A poor one."

His expression changed.

"Your judgment was to carry everything yourself."

I stopped.

Annoying.

Because true.

Nadia looked between us.

Neither of us spoke.

She slowly raised one hand.

"Could we perhaps decide who was more wrong after getting the carts?"

I looked at her.

She shrugged.

"Just a suggestion."

Several students nearby were trying very hard not to smile.

I lowered my hand.

The crystals settled onto the stone floor with a series of heavy thuds.

"Return."

Lucan frowned.

"We’ve already come this far."

"And continuing a poor decision because we’ve already invested time into it would make it worse."

He stared at me.

I waited.

The people around us waited too.

Eventually, Lucan nodded once.

"Fine."

Good.

I turned toward Nadia.

"Show us the carts."

Her mouth curved slightly.

I narrowed my eyes.

"Do not."

"I didn’t say anything."

"You were going to."

"Probably."

I already regretted learning her name.

***

Forty minutes later, we were moving considerably faster.

Six carts.

Smaller loads.

Students rotated every few minutes.

The physically stronger members pulled the heavier carts while others protected the front and rear.

I used Gravity only during difficult sections or when the tunnels sloped sharply upward.

My mana expenditure dropped to less than a quarter of what it had been.

Efficient.

Annoyingly efficient.

Nadia walked beside one of the carts.

I glanced toward her.

She noticed immediately.

"You’re smiling."

"I’m not."

"You almost were."

"No."

"Alright."

She sounded far too pleased.

I looked away.

Apparently Class Four contained multiple people Zenith had deliberately selected to annoy me.

That seemed statistically unlikely.

Which meant it was probably intentional.

***

The Guardian Seal was beneath the temple’s central chamber.

Of course it was.

Nothing important was ever conveniently placed near an exit.

We descended another three levels before reaching a circular room supported by enormous stone pillars.

Mana formations covered the floor.

Most appeared inactive.

A golden disk floated above a pedestal in the center.

Lucan stepped toward it.

"Wait."

He stopped.

I examined the room.

Floor.

Walls.

Ceiling.

Pedestal.

No obvious traps.

Which meant either there were none or the trap was better than obvious.

Lucan looked toward me.

"Finished?"

"No."

Several seconds passed.

Nothing happened.

I exhaled.

"Take it."

Lucan reached toward the disk.

His fingers touched the seal.

Golden light filled the chamber.

The disk vanished.

A notification appeared before us.

---

CLASS FOUR GUARDIAN SEAL ACQUIRED

Guardian Seals: 4/5

---

Four.

Good.

Then the floor shook.

I closed my eyes briefly.

Of course.

Stone cracked somewhere above us.

People shouted.

Dust poured from the ceiling.

Then an entire section of the chamber shifted.

"Move!"

Everyone ran.

The first pillar collapsed behind us.

I changed gravity immediately.

The falling stone slowed.

Not stopped.

Too heavy.

"Go!"

Students passed beneath it.

Lucan remained beside me.

"What are you doing?"

"Making sure everyone gets through."

"You’re last."

"Yes."

"That’s stupid."

"Move."

He hesitated.

Then another crack echoed overhead.

Lucan swore and ran.

I released the pillar.

It crashed behind me hard enough to send broken stone across the corridor.

I followed.

Six carts.

That was now a problem.

The tunnel was wide enough for two at a time, but the collapsing ceiling did not care about orderly transportation.

"Leave the rear cart!" someone shouted.

"No."

Several heads turned toward me.

Those crystals might matter later.

We had already spent time transporting them.

Abandoning them immediately would be...

Another section of ceiling collapsed.

The last cart overturned.

Blue crystals scattered across the stone.

Dozens shattered.

Lucan stopped.

"Drop the crystals!"

I looked toward them.

Thousands of units of usable mana.

Potentially more.

Valuable.

Useful.

Possibly critical later.

Another cracking sound.

Someone shouted.

I turned.

One of our students had fallen behind the overturned cart.

A chunk of stone had pinned part of his coat.

He was trying to pull himself free.

The ceiling above him fractured.

For a fraction of a second, the calculation was obvious.

Crystals.

Student.

Time.

One could be replaced.

The other...

My hand moved.

Gravity reversed violently.

Every loose mana crystal launched sideways.

Blue stone smashed into the walls.

Several shattered instantly.

The overturned cart lifted from the ground.

"Run!"

The trapped student tore his coat free and sprinted toward us.

The ceiling collapsed where he had been standing.

Dust filled the tunnel.

I released the cart.

It vanished beneath rubble.

Silence lasted approximately half a second.

"Move!"

Everyone continued.

We abandoned the buried section.

By the time we reached the upper tunnels, nearly a third of our crystals were gone.

Possibly more.

I looked back once.

Nothing remained visible beyond dust and collapsed stone.

No practical way to recover them.

Interesting.

I should have been angry.

I wasn’t.

That bothered me more than losing them.

***

We reached the temple entrance several minutes later.

Two students were missing.

Eliminated during the collapse.

Thirty-four remained.

I counted twice.

Same result.

Thirty-four.

Lucan stood beside me, breathing heavily.

Dust covered his clothes, and a shallow cut crossed one shoulder.

He looked toward the surviving carts.

"We lost a lot."

"Yes."

"Those crystals may matter later."

"Yes."

He studied me.

"Would you make the same choice?"

I answered immediately.

"Yes."

He nodded once.

No argument.

That was new.

I looked toward him.

"You disagree?"

"No."

That was even newer.

He adjusted his grip on the spear he had found inside the temple.

"I would’ve done the same."

I stared at him.

"Then why ask?"

"Curiosity."

"Unnecessary."

He almost smiled.

I turned away before he could.

Nadia appeared beside me.

She had somehow acquired a piece of bread.

I did not ask where.

A notification remained above us.

---

THE CITADEL REQUIRES ALL FIVE GUARDIAN SEALS.

ONE SEAL HAS BEEN ASSIGNED TO EACH CLASS.

---

One class still had not acquired its seal.

Which one?

Unknown.

Nadia looked upward.

"So we wait?"

"No."

She looked toward me.

"We need the fifth seal."

"They’ll find it."

"You sound confident."

I looked toward the tunnel leading outside.

"Four classes have already found theirs. Whoever remains is capable enough to have reached Zenith."

Nadia considered that.

"That’s your reasoning?"

"Would you prefer panic?"

"No."

"Then yes."

She smiled slightly.

"That’s almost confidence in other people."

I looked at her.

"It is probability."

"Of course."

I started walking.

She followed.

Naturally.

***

The surface was less pleasant than I expected.

Which was impressive considering we had just escaped a collapsing underground temple.

The sky was dark.

The Citadel sat somewhere beyond several ridges to the west.

We had our seal.

Three other classes had theirs.

One did not.

We had no way of knowing which one.

And five carts of mana crystals remained.

I stopped.

Looked at the carts.

Then at the thirty-four students around me.

Something had changed.

Earlier, when I saw the crystals, my first thought had been simple.

Take everything.

More resources meant less reliance.

Less reliance meant fewer weaknesses.

If Class Four possessed enough mana, enough supplies, and enough combat ability, then we would never need to depend on someone else’s competence.

Reasonable.

Normally.

Except the Guardian Seal rules had destroyed that logic.

We needed all five classes.

Whether I liked it or not.

Worse, I did not even know which class currently lacked its seal.

That meant there was nothing useful I could do about it.

Unpleasant.

Inside the temple, Nadia’s carts had been better than my Gravity.

Lucan had covered students while I held falling stone.

Three Earth mages had reinforced sections of tunnel without being told.

Someone I barely knew had noticed my mana expenditure becoming a problem before I admitted it myself.

I disliked the pattern.

Unfortunately, disliking evidence did not invalidate it.

Nadia appeared beside me again.

"You’ve been staring at the carts for a while."

"I’m thinking."

"Dangerous."

I looked at her.

She smiled innocently.

I understood why Lucien occasionally looked tempted to strangle me.

That realization was deeply unpleasant.

"What?" Nadia asked.

"Nothing."

"That sounded personal."

"It wasn’t."

Probably.

Lucan approached.

"What now?"

I looked toward the remaining crystals.

Then toward the class.

"We redistribute them."

His eyebrows rose.

"All of them?"

"Most."

I pointed toward the carts.

"Two remain primarily for mana crystals. The others carry food, water, medical supplies, and anything else useful we find."

Nadia smiled.

I ignored her.

"Nobody carries more than they can abandon instantly."

Lucan nodded.

"And if we find more resources?"

"We take what we need."

"Not everything?"

I stared at him.

He was enjoying this.

I could tell.

"Do you have a problem?"

"None."

"Good."

I looked toward the students.

Several were already adjusting the carts without being told.

That should not have bothered me.

It did slightly.

Not because they were acting independently.

Because I had spent most of my life assuming independence meant doing things yourself.

Apparently there was another version.

Give someone a task.

Trust them to complete it.

Then pay attention to something else.

Disturbing.

Useful.

But disturbing.

"We move west."

Everyone prepared.

No argument.

No hesitation.

Nadia took position beside the second cart.

Lucan moved toward the front.

I stopped him.

He looked back.

"What?"

"You stay near the rear."

His eyebrows rose.

"Why?"

"You’re one of our strongest fighters."

"Wouldn’t that put me at the front?"

"Our frontline already has three competent fighters."

I pointed toward the final cart.

"If something attacks from behind, I’d prefer not to discover nobody was watching."

He considered it.

Then nodded.

"Fine."

Simple.

No debate.

Perhaps he was becoming less irritating.

Unlikely.

We started moving.

I stayed near the center.

Not because I needed protection.

Because from there, I could see everyone.

Front.

Rear.

Carts.

Injured.

Nadia noticed.

Naturally.

"You aren’t carrying anything."

"I am supervising."

She looked upward dramatically.

"Growth."

I stared at her.

She immediately looked forward.

Smart girl.

We continued.

A few minutes later, the notification remained unchanged.

---

Guardian Seals: 4/5

---

Still waiting on someone.

Nadia glanced upward.

"Still confident?"

"Yes."

"What if they fail?"

I considered that.

We did not know which class remained.

We did not know what environment they were in.

We did not know what obstacle had delayed them.

Which meant worrying about it achieved nothing.

"Then we adapt."

Nadia looked toward me.

That answer surprised me slightly too.

Normally, uncertainty irritated me.

It still did.

I simply no longer felt the need to solve every possible future before it happened.

Especially futures I possessed no information about.

One problem at a time.

Preferably with people capable of helping solve them.

Annoying.

But efficient.

Behind us, one cart wheel struck a stone.

Three students immediately stopped and fixed it.

I started turning.

Then stopped.

No need.

They had it.

That felt strange.

Very strange.

I decided not to examine the feeling too closely.

There were limits to personal growth.

Nadia continued walking beside me.

"You almost smiled again."

"No."

"You definitely did."

"I can reduce your weight until the wind carries you away."

She became quiet.

Finally.

Two minutes passed.

Then...

"Would that actually work?"

I closed my eyes.

Perhaps relying on other people had disadvantages after all.