CHAPTER 21: PLAN

I rolled my shoulders as I made my way towards the classroom.

When I opened the door the first thing I saw was the fight between Wallace and Leo.

Sigh...

"Alright, what the hell is going on?" I asked, stepping into the room.

Wallace had Leo in a headlock, while Leo flailed uselessly, trying to break free. The rest of the class either watched with mild amusement or outright ignored them.

Julien, lounging with his feet on his desk, smirked. "Wallace finally snapped."

Mira flicked a piece of chalk at him. "Hardly. They’ve been at it since before you got here."

I pinched the bridge of my nose. "Wallace. Leo. Break it up before I make you break it up."

Wallace grumbled something under his breath but let go, pushing Leo away. Leo stumbled forward, rubbing his neck and glaring.

"He started it," Leo muttered.

Wallace scoffed. "I started it? You’re the one who—"

I clapped my hands together. "I don’t care. Whatever this is, it’s over."

Leo looked like he wanted to argue, but one sharp look shut him up.

I crossed my arms. "Unless either of you want to spar properly in front of the whole class?"

That got the reaction I wanted. Leo immediately shook his head. Wallace clicked his tongue but backed down.

"Good." I turned toward the rest of the class. "Now that that’s handled, sit down. We have actual work to do."

They groaned but obeyed.

I sat on my chair, leaning against it. Then said. "How many of you know about the first year survival camp?"

Julien stretched his arms behind his head. "Enough to know it’s a pain in the ass."

Mira smirked. "A glorified camping trip where the academy ’tests our survival skills’ but really just wants to see who breaks first."

Felix slumped in his seat. "It’s going to be miserable, isn’t it?"

I raised an eyebrow. "That depends. Do you enjoy starving, freezing, and getting hunted by things stronger than you?"

Felix paled.

Garrick cracked his knuckles. "Sounds like a challenge."

I sighed. "You would think that. But this year they are going to toss you all first years into the Black Stone Mountain."

Silence filled the room.

Julien sat up properly for once. "Wait. Black Stone Mountain?"

Mira’s smirk disappeared. "You’re joking."

I gave her a flat look. "Do I look like I’m joking?"

Felix groaned and buried his face in his hands. "We’re dead. We’re so dead."

Wallace frowned. "That place is full of beasts. Even the low ranking hunters avoid it."

I leaned forward. "Well the academy is trying to nurture oy useful students and any of you guess what that means?"

Julien clicked his tongue. "They’re weeding out the weak."

Mira scoffed. "That’s nothing new, but throwing first-years into Black Stone Mountain? That’s a death sentence."

I nodded. "Exactly. The academy doesn’t care if a few students go missing. If you die, it just proves you weren’t worth the investment."

Felix groaned louder. "I hate this place."

Leo slumped in his seat. "So we’re just supposed to survive?"

I tapped my fingers against my desk. "And one more thing, it’s the most suitable situation to erase a certain class filled with problem Students."

Mira narrowed her eyes, "You mean us?"

Julien let out a low whistle. "Well, that’s not ominous at all."

"I almost forgot to tell you, that the supplies for each class is managed by professor Halloran and we got the bare minimum to survive."

A series of groans and curses filled the room.

Felix actually looked like he was about to cry. "Oh, come on! You mean the guy who hates us just happened to give us the worst supplies? What a shocker."

Leo sighed, slumping even lower. "So, we’re walking into a death trap with nothing but the clothes on our backs."

Felix raised his hands. "Did we get anything useful at all or can we bring anything from the dorm?"

I smiled brightly and said, "Don’t worry. You have the most important resource of all."

The class perked up slightly, waiting for the answer.

Mira narrowed her eyes. "And that is?"

I spread my arms. "Me, your sweet gentle professor."

Silence.

Then Julien snorted. "Sweet? Gentle? I think I just got chills."

Mira smirked. "Right? Should we start calling you ’Professor Kindhearted’ now?"

Felix groaned, dropping his head onto his desk. "We’re screwd."

I placed a hand over my chest, faking deep offense. "Such harsh words. And here I thought we had built trust."

Julien grinned. "Oh, we trust you, Professor. We just also know that trusting you usually leads to pain."

Mira lazily twirled a strand of hair around her finger. "So? What’s the actual plan? Or are we just supposed to let nature decide who survives?"

I leaned back, tapping my fingers against the desk. "Simple. We don’t play fair."

Wallace frowned. "Meaning?"

I smirked. "Every other class has better food, better equipment, and better odds." I spread my arms. "So we borrow some of their luck."

Julien whistled. "You mean steal."

"No we are not going to steal insted we are borrowing their supplies while they are sleeping." I corrected Julien.

Leo groaned. "That’s literally just stealing with extra steps."

Mira smirked. "I like it."

Felix, still hunched over his desk, let out a miserable whimper. "You’re going to get us all caught, and then we’ll have nothing and a bunch of pissed-off students after us."

I gave him a reassuring pat on the shoulder. "That’s only if we get caught. Which, if you all listen to me, won’t happen."

Julien leaned forward, resting his chin on his hand. "Alright, I’ll bite. What’s the plan, Professor Kindhearted?"

I ignored the nickname and stood up. "When we enter the black stone mountain we can choose a specific area as our base, and I know where we can build our base."

Wallace looked at me and asked. "Are you really a professor or a conman?"

I placed a hand over my heart, feigning deep offense. "Wallace, I am deeply hurt. A conman? Me? I am merely an opportunistic educator who believes in teaching his students the real ways of the world."

Julien chuckled. "So, a conman."

Mira nodded. "Definitely a conman."

Felix groaned, rubbing his temples. "Why can’t we just survive like normal people?"

I grinned. "Because normal people die first."

Julien let out a low whistle. "Well, that’s comforting."

"We are only going to stea—borrow their lanterns and let’s say half of their food."

Leo blinked. "Half their food? Oh, sure, why not? Maybe we should just take their boots while we’re at it—"

I snapped my fingers. "Excellent idea, Leo!"

Leo paled. "Wait, that was sarcasm—"

Mira grinned. "No, no. I like it. If they don’t have boots, they’ll be slower. If they’re slower, they won’t chase us."

Felix buried his face in his hands. "This is how villains are made."

I clapped my hands together. "Come on, class, don’t be so dramatic. This is a simple redistribution of resources. Survival economics, if you will."

Julien smirked. "Oh, so we’re running a tax system now?"

I shrugged. "If it helps you sleep at night, sure. Think of it as a field lesson in resource management."

Wallace adjusted his glasses. "Right. And if we get caught?"

I smiled. "We won’t."

Felix groaned. "That’s what every criminal says before everything goes to hell."

I gave him a reassuring pat. "That’s why we’ll be good criminals."

Julien whistled. "We’re committing survival-based tax evasion. What a proud day for academia."

Mira crossed her arms, amused. "Alright, so when’s this grand heist happening?"

I leaned back in my chair. "The first night, obviously. Everyone will be exhausted from the journey, distracted by setting up their own camps. That’s when we move."

Garrick cracked his knuckles. "If someone wakes up?"

I waved a hand. "Then we have Leo talk to them. He’s good at whining."

Leo sputtered. "Excuse me?"

Julien nodded. "No, no, that’s a solid plan. Leo can start one of his long-winded complaints about life, and they’ll fall asleep out of sheer boredom."

Leo rubbed his temples. "I hate all of you."

Mira grinned. "You’ll hate us more when this actually works."

I laughed and tapped on Leo’s shoulder then said, "Don’t worry Leo, you’re not going to tell them about your life story. Instead we gently attack them and make them sleep peacefully."

Leo stared at me. "Gently attack?"

I nodded. "Yes. A little tap here, a little pressure there, and they’ll be sleeping like babies."

Leo groaned. "You mean knocking them out."

Mira smirked. "You really should stop questioning his word choices. It only makes things worse."

Julien leaned back in his chair, grinning. "I don’t know, I think it makes things funnier."

Felix, still looking miserable, raised a hand. "So just to be clear, we’re sneaking into other camps, knocking people out, and stealing—sorry, borrowing—their supplies. And if we get caught, we... what? Run?"

I shook my head. "If we get caught, we convince them that they’re imagining things. Or that it’s their fault for not guarding their supplies better."

Julien let out a low whistle. "Damn. You’re really committed to this whole ’opportunistic educator’ thing."

I smiled. "I’m just teaching you how the world works."

Mira stretched her arms. "Well, I’m in. Sounds fun."

Julien grinned. "Same. Always wanted to be part of a grand heist."

Garrick cracked his knuckles. "Stealth isn’t really my thing, but if we need muscle, I’ll handle it."

Felix groaned. "I hate this. I hate all of you. But fine, whatever."

Leo rubbed his temples. "I swear, if I end up getting punched because of this—"

I patted his shoulder. "Relax. We’ll be fine."

Leo didn’t look convinced. "That’s easy for you to say. You’re not the one who’s going to get punched when someone wakes up."

I tilted my head. "That’s a fair point. But think of it this way—you’ll be taking one for the team."

Leo groaned. "That doesn’t make me feel better."

Julien stretched. "So, let me get this straight. We’re going to steal—"

"Borrow," I corrected.

"—borrow supplies from the other classes on the first night, set up camp somewhere you’ve picked, and hope no one finds out?"

I nodded. "That’s the plan."

Everything was planned now we only need to get to the Black Stone Mountain, even if we get caught I had a back up plan that will 100% work.