Cail, who was just doing his sales speech, was stunned silent by what just happened.
Looking at the huge pit on the ground, Cail thought, "What's going on?"
His plan was that he'd show the compass like a beautiful artifact, then dupe Bram of his money. He had tried twisting this compass before, but aside from the bright blue light it released, it didn't do anything.
From what he saw, the moment Bram twisted the compass, the light did appear, but why did he get flung away?
Cail wanted to grab him out of reflex, but the speed that Bram was thrown out was fast.
"Bram!" the remaining students screamed in unison as they rushed towards the pit.
For the first time, Cail felt a bit guilty. That was too unexpected. He was shocked that he managed to feel a normal person's response.
He just stood there, looking at the group surrounding Bram.
Clea checked Bram's pulse and quickly diagnosed, "Aside from a broken bone, he didn't seem to have any internal injuries."
The moment they heard what Clea said, they all sighed in relief, including Cail.
Now, after knowing that Bram was just fine, they looked at the perpetrator.
"Instructor! Bram is injured!" Neris looked at Cail with both a fearful and respectful look.
Cail's mouth twitched. What do you want him to do?
He walked towards the pit and crouched down. He looked at the unconscious Bram, and his heart was almost beating out of his chest.
What the hell is he involved with? He had an idea as to what's going on, but he still found it absurd.
He felt his back dripping with cold sweat. Although he was panicking, Cail was very experienced in bluffing. Not a trace of nervousness could be seen from his demeanor.
Just like what he said, he already tried that compass, but nothing happened to him. That blast wasn't part of the deal at all.
Cail felt a sharp gaze beside him. Those remaining four students looked at him with fear and anger. But aside from those emotions, he could also sense the hidden awe.
I mean, he just blasted one of their team members. That's one way to acquire fear and anger, but as for awe? If Cail was the one who got blasted, he'd probably go crazy trying to kill the person who did that.
All four of them looked taut, as if with one single move move from Cail, they'd carry Bram up and run away.
Cail was speechless about the whole situation. He didn't prepare for this at all.
He cleared his throat and just spoke of anything that came into his mind. "Uhm, that was stronger than what I expected..."
The students still looked at him in disbelief. Clearly, they didn't believe him at all.
Cail sighed. He plopped into the grass and took out the compass.
The students backed away.
Cail ignored them. He twisted the compass. It wasn't a calculated move but an impulsive curiosity. He wanted to know: will he also get blasted the moment he twists it?
He's dying to know.
Click!
The compass glowed. Cail didn't feel anything, but looking at those students staring at him in horror and their faces turning pale—
He manually twisted the compass back. The glow vanished. Cail looked down on the compass in deep thought.
First, he needed to calm the situation. He looked at the huddling students. "This compass is an annihilator-type artifact. As you can see, it needs to be manually twisted in order to release an attack. But because it's damaged, it usually backfires on the user."
"While I did not expect it to be that lethal to you all, well, a lesson learned. Don't randomly touch artifacts, even if someone you trust says so."
He was calm on the outside, but no one really knows what's going on inside his mind.
"Instructor..."
Cail wanted to flinch when he heard that title.
Cail is the type of person that once his fun is becoming more of a burden than entertainment, he'll immediately discard the mess that he just made. To put it simply, he lacked a sense of responsibility.
One could say that this time, Cail met his nemesis—a situation that he needs to solve.
"I wanna escape. This is not fun at all!" he thought childishly. But thinking about the danger that's off the roof, Cail had to curb his willfulness.
"You did that deliberately!" Idris gritted his teeth and said in an accusing tone.
Cail raised his hand in a gesture of surrender. "You guys are overthinking things. I also did not expect that to happen."
No joke. He really didn't want any of that to happen.
"Liar! You're an instructor so you clearly are knowledgeable about artifacts! Still, you let Bram touch that broken compass!" Idris didn't back down at all.
Cail sighed helplessly. He really wanted to toss that instructor title now. But considering the gap of strength and the severity of the situation, he needed to bluff his way out of this mess.
Yes, he just realized that this artifact bullshit seemed to be the real deal. He didn't dwell much on that newly acquired knowledge of his—one problem at a time is his motto.
He looked at the group of teens carrying Bram out of the pit. Looking at Bram, aside from paleness, there didn't seem to be any open wounds.
"What a tough guy." Not realizing that he had spoken it out loud because of his absentmindedness.
When the teens heard what Cail said, they froze. They tried to inconspicuously cover Bram behind them as they looked at Cail with worry.
Clea looked at Cail warily. "Sir, what was that artifact? Will Bram be fine?" she asked as she let the injured Bram lie in her arms.
Cail was silent for a moment. He wanted to say, "I don't know, I have no idea." But he held it back and nodded, "He should be fine? You can send him to the academy's infirmary." Since the school dabbled in that field, there probably more reliable than the fraud Cail.
He still sounded unsure at the end.
The students heard the uncertainty; they paled. Clearly, this academy, despite being known for having a harsh reputation, shouldn't carelessly disregard a student's life, right?
The academy was wronged. They had to carry Cail's mischief when they didn't do anything.
Neris looked like he was about to cry. "Why do you sound so unsure, Sir? Huhuhuhu."
"Because I don't know!" Cail screamed inside.
Then he thought of something. Are all the things that came from that box 'artifacts'? If so, then what about his glasses? He's wearing them now.
Cail got a bold idea. If it doesn't work, lying will save the day.
He sighed pretentiously. "If you're really that unconvinced, then okay. I'll do a comprehensive check-up on him."
Cail isn't sure if it'll work though.