Episodes 93. Forced

In the waiting room, me and my students are getting ready for the siege battle evaluation that will begin in just a few minutes.

My eyes wander from face to face of my students. From what I can gather, they're not dwelling too much on yesterday's events.

I didn't expect them to forget so quickly. Is humanity regressing?

When Anitya wasn't found, seeing death became normal. It was supposed to be rare and terrifying after Anitya was found.

But everything seems different from what I thought. Their faces don't show that. They're more focused on the exam than remembering the past.

Wait...

Where's Sophia?

I just realized that since the beginning, I haven't seen her at all.

My gaze continues to sweep across the room, but there's no sign of her.

It would be disastrous if she's missing. 30% of the class's strength comes from her. If she's absent now, the class is left with only 70% or less strength.

"Who are you looking for, sir?" Gita, who was silent at first, suddenly asked me.

"You know, right?"

No need to pretend to ask. This kid must know who I'm actually looking for.

"If you're looking for Sophia, then you're just wasting your time."

"Why?"

I'm surprised by Gita's meaning. He rarely says negative things to me at times like this.

As I'm about to answer, Gita looks at the map board in the waiting room. "What else tho? The students in these classes immediately forget what happened back then. Sophia, who was the only survivor, feels she's being forgotten."

It turns out my fear has become a reality. The students who have forgotten the incident will only make Sophia feel pressured because she feels forgotten.

"No one wants to talk to her..." Gita adds. "Moka, Stevent, Hakam, and I have tried to get her to talk. But I don't think it's enough. Especially after hearing the news that you've been released from duty. She's immediately down because of that."

"Such a nuisance..." I say, trying to leave.

"Where are you going?" Gita stops me.

"Of course, to look for her!"

Isn't this obvious? Then why is he trying to stop me?

"Before you go off on your own and leave us unsupervised, I want to ask you one thing." Gita's tone becomes serious, and the look in his eyes pierces me.

Gita, who seemed easy-going, has now switched to serious mode. When he enters this mode, the conversation will become serious.

I need to listen to him and not make any wrong moves. I might end up ruining everything if I'm reckless.

"What do you want to ask?" I ask back, sweating.

"According to you... what is Sophia?"

A simple but difficult question. I can't just answer that she's my student.

My answer has to be specific. But as I keep thinking, I can't find a way out. All I encounter is dead ends.

Every time I remember her name, all I think of is my first student to acknowledge my existence as a teacher.

Since I saved her from Fajri back then, she seemed to change little by little. Many say, even Erika says, that Sophia is a quiet child. Her presence is like an elusive ice queen.

Many say that Sophia has changed and changed. Her quiet nature began to disappear, and she became active like any other student.

Is it because of me? No, or because of a helping hand?

Suddenly my mouth opens, and I look at my student's face. "I don't know what Sophia is to me, but what I know is, she's my student!"

I brush off Gita's words. I really don't know what Sophia is to me. But what I know now is that she's struggling. So as a teacher, I must solve it immediately.

"Stop it..." Gita utters in a cold tone. "I'm somewhat disappointed, sir. You who used to always use reason to act. Now you always act impulsively. Where's the old Mr. Rasyid who was cold and intimidating?! Why has he become so whimsical and weak now?!"

Gita's words cut deep. He speaks a fact. The fact that I've been moving more according to feelings than logic. If this were me before, I would have stayed silent and waited for her to return.

And if she still doesn't return, I would start thinking and finding a way. Only when I come up with an idea I would start to act.

Hearing what Gita said made me, who was holding the door handle, suddenly weak.

The handle I'm holding, I release and turn back to look at the students who are discussing this exam.

"Do you understand, right?" (Gita)

Maybe this is the time. I should plan what they should do in this exam rather than thinking about that student.

I start moving towards the table in the middle of the room. On it, there's a miniature of the Tyas Palace in the shape that will be used for the battle.

Seeing me taking action, Gita folds his mouth and smiles. He walks behind me and follows where I'm going.

"Everyone, can I have your attention for a moment?!" I say loudly.

The students look towards me at the side of the table.

When they understand my intention, they gather around the table. Strategy, that's what we need to focus on now.

.......

"Strategy, have you all thought about it?" I ask to make sure.

They look at each other questioningly. That answers that they haven't thought about it at all.

"In that case, let's start from here!" I point to a main gate surrounding the palace.

"Here, a gate made of steel stands."

"You can jump over it with your elemental magic, but doing so will only end up leaving your friends behind."

"So, I suggest you make a Ram with ice or earth magic to forcefully open the gate!"

"Any questions?"

I pause my explanation to see if there are any questions.

Soon, one of the students raises their hand. "Why don't we make a ladder using ice or earth magic instead?" (Student 1)

"That's a good question!"

"Why don't you do that? The answer is simple, because if you try to do that, you'll become easy targets for the students from the opposing class who use long-range weapons!"

Moreover, the one who will shoot them is not the only one who protects the first gate, but the entire guard that is positioned in the highest position in the palace.

"When on the wall, you won't just pass the wall. The guards will shoot you until you fall. Falling from a height will drain your consciousness and make you drop out of the fight!"

"I've answered the first question! Are there any more questions?!"

No one raises their hand now.

"In that case, let's continue!"

"After entering, you'll be in the palace courtyard. Use some facilities there to take cover from the shots from the watchtowers at the top of the palace."

"There, you'll also start a fierce battle! The opposing side will definitely send out some members to intercept you!"

"At that time, try to fight with 2 against 1 as much as possible. Don't gang up on them; you'll only end up attacking each other if you force something foolish like that!"

The students seem to understand my intentions. It simple, we start around 30 students and the enemy just around 5-9 guards due to the limit of the class members and how big is the palace is.

"At that time, after the guards are defeated, you just need to force open the palace. Use a ram or just burn it; either way is fine!"

"Those of you who can fly or walk on walls using wind, light, or ice elements can try to enter through the palace balcony and make a surprise attack."

"Making a surprise attack isn't easy; the guards have undoubtedly thought about it and can hear your steps entering through the balcony!"

"So, be prepared for the worst when choosing that route!"

"If you manage to get through the balcony, then those who are there should wait for your other companions to enter through the front door."

"When your companions enter and face the leader, those on the balcony should immediately descend and block the leader's escape route. Trap their leader and defeat them."

What I'm saying looks easy, but it's hard to do. There will be many things that make this difficult.

First, the number of students who fell there I didn't count.

Second, I don't know what strategy Ryan will use.

Third, I only know the outer shape of this palace from the miniature in front of me.

What's inside and how it looks, I have no idea at all.

I understand about my students but don't understand about my enemies. So the chances of winning are 50:50.

This is a troublesome bet.

Soon after I gave directions, Hakam raised his hand to ask, "Sir, I want to ask."

"What do you want to ask?"

"About our leader, who's chosen?"

It turns out they haven't thought about it yet? Even though I've told them before that things like this should be voluntary, not coercion.

Hearing Hakam's question earlier, I turned to the four people I considered suitable for the position.

"Hakam, Stevent, Moka, and Gita... Choose one of them! Or the others are voluntary to do it?" I said to the students circling around the table.

Who will be the leader?