Chapter 116: Target On Sight

Just like during the academy’s opening ceremony, the scholars from all years and grades were gathered together.

Once Leonard lined up with the rest, he surveyed the area.

"Strange... I expected there to be fewer of us." He mused out loud.

Given the sudden declaration of war, Leonard had thought that most awakeners would drop out of the academy, unwilling to accept such an abrupt change in priorities.

However, to his puzzlement, the gathered crowd didn’t seem to have decreased by much. If he had to take a guess, apparently only 20% of the scholars had dropped out. Which was surprising, since that meant the rest were willing to go to war.

"It’s just basic logic." Harley proclaimed, tapping him on the shoulder to get his attention.

Leonard’s pupils narrowed momentarily, pleasantly surprised to see that she had decided to come along.

"Can you elaborate?" He said, meeting her gaze.

Harley obliged, raising her chin slightly, proud of herself.

"Think about it. Whether they attend the academy or not, that doesn’t change the fact that Eternia is at war. There is always the possibility that things could turn for the worse, leading to forced drafts. In that case, sticking with the academy is a smarter choice. At least they would give you the necessary abilities to survive what will follow." She explained.

"I see..." Leonard nodded. "So that means your mother agreed to let you come along?"

"Ah..." Harley chuckled awkwardly, her confident demeanor faltering. "Well... To be honest, she was hesitant about sending her only child to war. Still, after a lot of persuasion, I managed to change her mind."

Soon after, William, Samantha, and Cassie came along.

"Look at it from the bright side. At least you parted on good terms." William exclaimed with somber eyes.

"My parents don’t believe I can be independent and have ordered me to return to our family... Let’s just say that they wouldn’t take it kindly when they learned that I went behind their backs."

"So you are rebelling?" Leonard smirked and fist-bumped William on the shoulder. "See? You have it in you after all."

"What about you two?" Leonard turned to Samantha and Cassie.

"The reason I chose the Healer class is because I want to save lives." Samantha declared with an unwavering gaze. "Cowardice now would be a betrayal of myself."

"I—I too would like to help people." Cassie replied timidly. "But I hope that you will protect me from harm... T—Truth be told, I don’t have it in me to take a human life."

Her eyes subtly scanned the group, searching for the man she had come to rely on the most, only to realize that he still hadn’t shown up.

"Winston isn’t here... He will come, right?" Cassie whispered in a trembling voice, gazing at the ground.

Although she had tried to keep it a secret, she had come to rely on their tank. His bulky body made her feel safe whenever she stood behind him.

Just then, Winston showed up, his heavy steps thudding against the ground as he pushed his way through the nearby scholars.

"Guys, sorry I’m late!" Bending over, he rested his palms on his knees, puffing from exhaustion. "Mom and Dad didn’t want me to go. But I promised them I’d return with so much money that we could move our bakery to the Upper Sector!"

Having sprinted all the way here, he was on the verge of collapsing. Cassie immediately went over to him and cast Stimulated Recovery to help him regain his stamina.

"Feel better?" She asked with concern.

"Yeah, thanks a lot!" Winston grinned, giving her a thumbs-up.

"D—Don’t mention it..." Cassie turned around, trying to hide the blush creeping up on her face.

With the party whole once more, Leonard glanced to the side, where Elizabeth stood.

Considering her father’s personality, Leonard wasn’t a bit surprised that she, too, would be going to the southern border.

What surprised him, however, was that the elves were here alongside Arabella. Given her status as a princess, he had believed she would have been evacuated back to her nation.

"Attacking Eternia City while we are here is no different than declaring war against the Woodfrey Nation!" Arabella bellowed. "Withdrawing now would bring shame to our nation."

’This is the first time I am seeing her speak with so much devotion.’ Leonard thought. ’I suppose elves are truly proud to the core.’

Once everyone had gathered, Headmistress Jennifer began her speech.

The scholars were going to be divided into groups based on their grades and years. Because there were four years with three grades each, that meant twelve individual teams were going to be formed.

Depending on the scholars’ performance until now, the nature and difficulty of the tasks were going to vary.

Case in point, the Elite grade Leonard was in was considered the best among the first-years, so they were going to be tasked with the most vital missions.

After the distribution was made clear, the scholars split up into their designated groups and made their way toward the southern border.

In order to minimize casualties, each team was assigned a professor in charge, whose duty was to guide the scholars in completing their objectives and ensure their well-being.

For Leonard’s team, Professor Albert was put in command. Although the man tended to be overly strict, it felt weirdly reassuring to have him as their leader.

Thanks to his nature, the scholars were going to listen to his instructions even in the chaos of battle.

Fortunately, they were traveling through their own territory, giving them the advantage of knowing the terrain.

Eventually, their convoy came to a stop. They turned off the transportation trucks farther away to avoid drawing attention from the sounds of their engines.

"We continue on foot from here." Professor Albert declared, taking the lead.

Exchanging glances, the team followed after him.

They moved slowly amidst the wilderness, staying cautious of potential human or monster ambushes.

"Halt."

At some point, Albert froze, and the scholars behind him followed suit.

"We have reached our target."

His announcement caused their heartbeats to spike.

"Prepare to engage."