Ignoring the mutant in front of him, Major Gareth spun around and dashed toward Mr. Sawyer's position.
At that moment, Mr. Sawyer had already sensed that his barrier wouldn't hold against whatever was coming, but he didn't retreat.
As an instructor at one of the two great academies of Coliseum City, he had made a vow—to protect the students, the future of humanity, even at the cost of his life.
What kind of man would he be if he abandoned them now?
More importantly, what would happen to the reputation of Silverrock Academy?
Miss Anna had also made her move.
She abandoned the mutant she had been holding back and charged toward the children.
At this moment, the other mutant didn't matter.
What did—was what was coming.
She didn't have a barrier like Mr. Sawyer to protect the kids, but she had to do something.
Besides, standing this close, she wouldn't stand a chance against whatever was incoming anyway.
The two of them moved with incredible speed—Major Gareth propelled by his lightning talent, Miss Anna by her wind ability—arriving in an instant.
The moment he reached Mr. Sawyer's side, Major Gareth acted without hesitation.
Placing his hand on Mr. Sawyer's back, he began channeling his energy into him.
Mr. Sawyer didn't resist. He allowed the energy to flow freely.
Under normal circumstances, this would never be allowed.
Letting another Chosen inject their energy into your body was dangerous.
One wrong move could cause severe damage—crippling a Chosen's energy flow, or worse, leading to death.
"Channel the energy. Use it to reinforce the barrier," Major Gareth murmured.
Mr. Sawyer obeyed immediately.
Even with Major Gareth's energy, the barrier wouldn't match the strength of a Transcendent Chosen's shield. But right now, any reinforcement was better than nothing.
And then—
BOOM!
The temple walls exploded inward.
A massive, charred, fireball-like monstrosity crashed through, its jagged body glowing with molten cracks.
The sheer force sent shockwaves tearing through the temple.
Stone pillars crumbled. Debris rained down like meteors. The ground itself trembled beneath its presence.
Kyoji barely managed to stay hidden, pressing himself against the altar as dust and rubble filled the air.
He could hear the panicked screams of the others.
Could feel the crushing weight of the mutant's overwhelming aura.
The force of the impact sent a burning shockwave rippling through the temple.
"ARGH!"
Mr. Sawyer gritted his teeth as he struggled to hold the barrier.
Even with Major Gareth's energy reinforcing it, the force was too much. He knew the barrier wouldn't last much longer.
Cracks splintered across the golden shield, and heat seeped through.
"ARGH!"
The children caught in the heat screamed in agony as their skin burned the instant it touched them.
Miss Anna reacted instantly. With a wave of her hands, she conjured a powerful gust of wind, forming a secondary barrier to shield the children.
But at that moment—
"I can't hold it anymore!" Mr. Sawyer choked out through clenched teeth.
His once composed appearance was gone—his hair disheveled, his suit torn from the energy coursing through him, blood dripping from his mouth and nose.
But worse than his condition was the state of his barrier.
The once-majestic golden shield was now riddled with cracks, its strength failing.
The heat seeping through had turned the air into a furnace.
CRASH!
The barrier shattered.
The impact slammed into Mr. Sawyer, throwing him backward.
Fortunately, Major Gareth's hand was still on his back, keeping him from collapsing.
But that didn't protect him from the wave of blistering heat that followed.
Major Gareth shielded him with his body while Miss Anna did everything she could to protect the children with her wind barrier.
But unlike Mr. Sawyer's barrier, which had been a true defensive shield, hers was hastily formed with her wind talent.
It wasn't strong enough.
Some of the heat broke through.
Some of the children behind her were incinerated.
Their screams.
Their pain.
Their agony.
Each cry echoed in her mind, but she couldn't afford to falter.
She had to save as many as she could.
Kyoji, hidden behind the altar, could hear the screams of the other kids being incinerated by the heat.
Even from behind cover, the sheer heat radiating through the entire space was overwhelming.
Fortunately, it died down after a while—but not before causing immense damage.
Dozens of children had been burned to death, their bodies charred black. Others suffered severe burns, their agonized cries still lingering in the air. The suffocating stench of burnt flesh, blood, and dust only made the situation feel even heavier.
After confirming that the danger had momentarily subsided, Kyoji cautiously peeked out from his hiding spot.
Through the dust and destruction, he caught sight of the creature responsible.
A towering, thirty-foot monstrosity, its body a grotesque fusion of molten rock and twisted tree bark, with glowing cracks where molten lava seeped through.
It had four massive arms, each tipped with razor-sharp claws long enough to slice a person in half with ease.
Its chest—if it could even be called that—was split open into a jagged maw lined with rows of dagger-like teeth, twitching as if tasting the very air.
And above it all—
A single, massive, unblinking eye burned with pure, unrelenting malice.
It wasn't just looking at them.
It was measuring them.
Sizing them up like prey.
Then—
ROAR!
The mutant let out a deafening roar, shaking the entire temple.
Kyoji covered his ears in an instant, and the other kids did the same.
The unlucky ones, too slow to react, felt their eardrums rupture from the sheer force of the sound. Blood trickled from their ears as they collapsed in agony.
Major Gareth furrowed his brows, his gaze sharp as he scanned the battlefield.
The smaller mutants that had surrounded them before were now mostly gone—incinerated by the Calamity Mutant's arrival.
But that wasn't good news.
Because the numbers weren't decreasing.
If anything—
They were growing.
More and more mutants poured down from the sky, replacing those that had been lost.
Major Gareth sighed.
"I'll go hold them back. You two organize the kids and get them ready for combat while we wait for reinforcements," he said.
Miss Anna and Mr. Sawyer both nodded without hesitation.
They were in terrible shape, their bodies battered and exhausted, but they weren't giving up.
Without another word, Major Gareth charged forward to intercept the incoming mutants.
Meanwhile, Miss Anna and Mr. Sawyer quickly began forming a defensive plan.
"I'll hold the second line. You prepare the kids to defend the last line of defense. Kill anything that gets past Major Gareth and me," Miss Anna said.
Mr. Sawyer's face turned grim.
"Are you sure about this? You're in no condition to fight right now."
"What choice do we have?" she shot back. "You and I both know Major Gareth can't hold them all off. Not while trying to contain that thing." She gestured toward the Calamity Mutant. "If we don't stop the others from slipping through, those kids won't stand a chance."
Mr. Sawyer took a deep breath.
She was right.
Major Gareth was barely holding the front line.
The sheer number of mutants, combined with the presence of the Calamity Mutant, made it impossible for him to contain everything.
And while Major Gareth was focused on keeping the strongest enemies at bay, more and more lesser mutants were sneaking past his defenses.
Of course, calling them "lesser" didn't mean they were weak.
Even a single one of them could cause devastation among the children.
Someone had to stop them.
"Besides," Miss Anna added, "we already called for backup. Reinforcements should be arriving soon."
Mr. Sawyer sighed.
There was no other choice.
"Alright then," he said. "I'll get the kids ready. You do what you need to do."
His scholarly demeanor returned slightly, his voice steady despite the chaos.
Miss Anna nodded before dashing into battle.
Right now, the rivalry between their two academies didn't matter.
Silverrock Academy. Celvaris Academy.
None of that mattered anymore.
Not here.
Not now.
Only survival.
Mr. Sawyer turned toward the trembling children.
"Alright," he said. "Gather around and get ready to fight."
Miss Anna had already left to hold her position, but the kids—
They weren't moving.
Fear kept them frozen.
They had just watched their friends burn alive.
The sheer presence of the mutants pressed down on them like an invisible weight, suffocating, crushing.
But there was no time for fear.
No time for hesitation.
It was do or die.
"Move your asses right now!" Mr. Sawyer barked.
His voice snapped them out of their daze.
They weren't going to be saved.
Not unless they fought for it themselves.
One by one, they steadied themselves.
Taking deep breaths.
Steeling their resolve.
Summoning whatever strength they had left.
Each of them prepared to fight, pushing past the fear.
Because in the end—
Survival was all that mattered.