"HAHAHA! This is top-notch material! Initially, I considered offering you as a sacrifice to the cult, but now, witnessing your strength, I can finally acquire some quality materials! HAHAHA!"
"What a lunatic," I muttered, just before he could harm my Scape Goat. With a swift blink, I materialized behind him and thrust my spear into his neck. The head cleanly severed and rolled onto the ground. Earl, his eyes slightly open, struggled to maintain consciousness before succumbing.
After a brief pause, I healed him. Two minutes passed before he regained consciousness, slowly opening his eyes.
"You're awake," I remarked.
"Where's the cultist?!" he screamed, scanning the area frantically.
"I've taken care of them. Keep your voice down. They're not the only cultists here; all the 3rd-year seniors are involved. If you don't want them to discover our location, be silent."
He clicked his tongue, glancing at the three figures lying on the ground.
"Oh, I just put them to sleep. They'd only be a hindrance to what we're about to do," I explained.
"We? I never agreed to this. What do you plan to do? Do you seriously think a weakling like you can handle them? Don't be absurd!" he retorted, his anger and annoyance evident.
"Merely catching that cultist off guard doesn't prove your strength. How can I allow someone weak to dictate my actions?" He said angrily.
I sighed deeply, releasing the pressure I'd been exerting. His eyes widened in shock, crumpling to the ground.
"What in the world are you doing?" he spat, face pressed into the dirt.
"Is your pride worth more than your classmate's life? Do you truly believe you're superior to everyone else? You nearly perished because you refused to rely on others. I don't know what went wrong initially, but it's clear you haven't led your team effectively. You see them as burdens, sucking and leaching from you. But being a leader isn't just about physical prowess; it's about guiding with Confidence and empathy. Never underestimate others; true competence lies in recognizing and fostering their potential." With those words, I released my pressure, meeting his gaze. "I don't know what led you to view others this way, but I know you're not inherently bad."
I realized that my words hit the spot.
After that, I extended my arm to help him stand, but he stood on his own in silence. After cleaning the dirt off his clothes, he broke the silence.
"So what are you planning to do? Just looking at you, it seems you already know what's happening... so what's the situation?" he asked.
I started to explain to him that only six seniors were left, with two per team, totaling ten. However, there were two extra healers, making twelve, suggesting that six of them were traitors affiliated with the devil cultists. It was possible that not only our dungeon was under the cultists' control, but also others. After that, I told him that there were 233 ogres left, and other students were in danger. His expression became serious.
"How can I know that I can trust you? Saving me doesn't mean you're not with them," he said warily.
"I know, just by killing them doesn't mean I'm not with them. You'll know it soon enough. We don't have enough time. Our classmates are in danger," I said to him, starting to move.
"I'll follow you. For now," he said while following me.
Arriving at the other students, we saw that the cultists didn't intend to kill them; they were taking them alive. Some had already passed out before we arrived. We killed the cultists and moved the unconscious students to safety. We left the early team behind and moved to the other team. Some of them were still fighting back against the senior cultists. We joined them and defeated the cultists. After that, I left Earl to explain.
"So that's what happened. Those dirty bastards tried to target our school. If it weren't for you, Earl, we would not have been able to get out of here alive. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you," the other students said, bowing to Earl.
'Ney... I didn't even receive a thank you. I said to myself.
Earl looked at me and began to speak to the other students again.
"So we still need to help the others, but just by looking at you guys, you're not in a condition to fight. You should inform the teacher outside the dungeon and go to the east side of the dungeon entrance; the other unconscious students are there," after Earl explained the necessary information, the other students nodded to him and started moving.
"Let's go!" I said while Earl followed me. I looked at Earl again and noticed something; it felt like something had changed in him. At first, I thought he only had an annoyed and irritated expression, but now I could see his face had softened. I could even see a slight smile on his face, interacting with me. Lost in my thoughts, I heard Earl say something.
"Why are you hiding your ability? I can feel that you're stronger than the upperclassmen. You can even detect where the other students are miles away, and I can tell that you already know what's happening to the other students. You already know where the team that's most in danger is, so we arrive at them in order. Who the hell are you?" he asked while we ran towards the other students.
I ignored him not because I wanted to hide it from him; I knew that he could keep a secret to himself, but I felt like i don't need to answer the question. So, we kept running. After that, we arrived at the last team. We saw other students lying on the ground unconscious, while the senior cultists panicked while fighting the ogres.
"Shit, shit, shit! Why aren't the others responding? They should already be here. The only last step is to make our way through these hundreds of ogres. But why haven't they arrived yet?" the cultist screamed while fighting the ogres.
"They're not coming. You're the only one left," Earl said with a hint of anger in his tone.
"Hmph, the brat from the spear clan. Do you think I'll believe that? Do you think you can take me on? They're all D-rank. What can an E+ do, huh?" the cultist replied mockingly while slashing at the ogre that came close to him.
"You're just wasting your words on that madman, Earl. Let's finish this," I said.
After that, I charged towards the cultist, thrusting my spear forward. Just before it reached him, he managed to block it with his sword, his eyes widening in surprise.
"How can a mere student wield such a heavy spear?" he exclaimed in shock as he stumbled back.
"Don't underestimate me," he retorted,
I calmly dodging his relentless slashes and stabs.
"Don't look down on me!" He shouted as he lunged at me again with renewed ferocity.
"You're so noisy. Just be quiet," I said dismissively, swinging my spear. His attempts to block were futile; his sword shattered,
and the slash found its mark, his head rolling to the ground in disbelief and fear.
"How disappointing," I said. After that, I looked at Earl; he had a disbelieving expression, with his mouth open.
"Hey, there are still ogres to take care of," I said.
After hearing me, he finally woke up to reality, about to say something, but I shook my head, indicating silence.
We charged towards the horde of ogres. Every time I swung my spear, many ogres died. I looked at Earl's unrefined spearmanship and bad stance and posture.
"You should put your feet forward and put your body weight into every slash. Fix your breathing; breathe out with every swing and stab. Just do that for now. I'll tell you the rest later," I said to him.
He immediately put my words into action. After swinging his spear, his eyes widened. One ogre that he struggled to kill not long ago died with just one slash.
After that, the two of us managed to kill all the ogres. Of course, I took care of 90% of them. After that, I looked at Earl, breathing heavily while sitting on the ground, holding his spear. He looked at me, waiting for me to say something.
"You already know that I don't want too much attention, right?" I asked, and he nodded.
"So, I want you to take the credit. Just tell them that I helped a little and supported you, and after that, we're done.your just going to become My Scape Goat. Earl is about to say something but I disappearing without hearing what Earl had to say.