Everything sparkled below him. From the top of the tree, Nolan gazed out at the vast mushroom field glowing in the dark.
The land looked like it was draped in a blanket of stars. Giant mushroom trees stood tall, each one glowing with its own soft light, casting a dreamy glow across the ground.
Some glowed red, others golden yellow, and some shimmered with shades of deep blue. Together, they painted a scene so vibrant and strange, it felt like he was watching a living light show—nothing like the quiet, eerie place it had seemed just an hour ago.
From time to time, the glow shifted and flickered gently, like the mycelium were breathing in rhythm with the night.
Despite witnessing it with his own two eyes, Nolan could hardly believe it was real. He slapped himself lightly, again and again, half-expecting to wake up.
But the colors stayed, the lights still danced. It was real. And it was beautiful—so beautiful it hurt to look away. It was the type of beauty that makes one want to fall into the trap.
"Who would've thought that hell could look this beautiful..." Shaking his head, he went back to patrolling and gathering as much information as he could about the field.
"Man, this shit is so boring… wait..." After some time, he began feeling bored out of his mind. He was about to give up when an idea struck him.
"Why don't I do this..." Whispering, he summoned the ember and traced his memory back to the time when he and his father liked to train with swords.
Following the steps, he began retracing them steps. At first, it was awkward... even after an hour of trying, his movement didn't improve much.
But at the moment, he wasn't doing it to train… no, he was doing it to pass the time, and soon he was lost, enjoying the process.
Even though he was just enjoying the process, he wasn't doing a good job, average even, but it was a start—a start that would lead him somewhere very great.
While Nolan was practicing his sword and having a moment, others weren't as lucky as him.
******
A day ago.
Gareth was keeping an eye on the outside when a voice called to him from the inside, "Sir, Avery and Jackson's situation is getting worse and worse... their bodies are shaking."
The voice sounded worried, and he knew the reason for it.
"Is this it..." Before even seeing them, he was sure of the fate that befell them.
They were the last of the ones to get attacked by the vines, and although they had survived till now, both of them had sustained grievous wounds and had lost a large amount of blood.
Even if they hadn't lost the blood, the open wound would've killed them sooner or later.
Gareth was hoping for a miracle and to see if any of the other students had awakened any healing abilities, but... to his disappointment, none of them had. Or, to be precise, none strong enough to heal these wounds.
He wasn't surprised, as he had transferred to an engineering institute; unlike doctors, none of them had a very high desire to save others' lives.
Shaking his head and trying to prepare himself for what was to come, he entered the cave and looked at both of them.
As he got closer to them, his heart couldn't help but melt in despair.
Soaked in blood and sweat, both Avery and Jackson were sobbing due to pain. Their bodies were heating up as their immune systems tried to fight the foreign invaders.
As he got closer to them, he heard a plea of cry that broke his heart even more.
"T-Teacher... this is too much... K-kill me. It hurts... m-uc—" Jackson sobbed, as he didn't even have enough energy to finish the words, and Avery wasn't any better.
Looking at him, Gareth wanted to say something, but the words stuck in his throat. He just looked at them with heavy eyes... he wanted to console them, give them hope, but even he knew it would be a lie and would only add salt to their wounds.
And it's not like he even had the ability to do so. There was no way a person like Gareth was ever good with words, could tell these types of lies straight to their faces.
"W-why am I just good at destroying things... why can't I protect anything... A-am I only good at fighting... God... please give me strength..."
Collecting all the courage in the world, he held their hands and moved closer to their ears. Controlling his tears, he whispered,
"Avery and Jackson, I'm sorry. I wanted to protect you both... but I didn't have enough strength... on the other hand, you both are great warriors, surviving until now."
Gulping the incoming wave of emotion, he caressed their faces and added, "Go to sleep... It's time for you to rest."
Gareth wanted to say too much. Encourage them. Tell them how they have done everything great until now. Tell them it was okay to be lying for a moment... but in the end, he couldn't say anything.
Looking at them, he moved his hand toward their faces and closed their eyes.
They were no more.
The world had claimed another of his students.
Closing his eyes, he took a mouthful of air and announced the unavoidable to their classmates.
"He was such a good one..." someone said, wiping the tears from his face.
"I'd seen he had almost made it... but that motherfucking vine... was too long..." another one added.
"I swore to kill that thing..." Someone made a promise.
"Me too..." he added.
"Me too..." the voices grew louder.
"Count me in..." more and more.
"Let's all get stronger and avenge all of our fallen classmates..." someone said this, and everybody nodded their heads.
Observing this, Gareth sighed and moved out of the cave. Looking at the pale, dark sky, he began thinking about what to do with the bodies. He wanted nothing more than to bury them and give them an honorable departure, but he knew that was wishful thinking.
There was too much risk in trying to dig a hole and bury them. Even though it wasn't in his nature, he calculated the risk and reward for this action.
In the end, he could only whisper in disappointment, "It isn't worth it..."
...Still, he couldn't leave the corpses inside the cave. So, he moved a bit out from the cave and looked for a good enough place to lay them. It took him some time, but he found a hollow in one of the mushroom trees.
"At least they will be one with nature..." Sighing, he moved back.
As night was approaching, he didn't want to take a risk and instead decided to place them there tomorrow. Announcing his thoughts, he soon got the approval of all the classmates.
Everyone was fatigued beyond their control, so soon, one by one, they began to go to sleep. Intending to guard the cave, Gareth moved to the gate... but in the end, even he succumbed to sleep.
And when they woke up in the morning, they found that the...
...corpses had vanished into thin air.