Ren Isana wrote down his recipe and handed it to Rina-sensei, entrusting her to handle the matter. Rina-sensei didn't even peek at the recipe; she simply tucked it away with solemn care.
"Alright, I'll make a trip outside to run this errand for you. Wait for my good news!" As Ren's homeroom teacher, she was naturally overjoyed to see her student display such incredible capability.
She was more than happy to help him sort this out. Furthermore, she intended to make sure the process was handled flawlessly. After all, her student had placed his trust in her, and she absolutely refused to let him down.
The teachers who had appeared at the camp chatted with the students for a bit before vanishing. Through Ren's perception, he could tell they had relocated to another area to rest.
Rina-sensei, however, left the Dungeon entirely, leaving the remaining teachers to keep an eye on the students and ensure their safety.
Shortly after the teachers departed, Yukino Yukinoshita walked over to Ren. "Give me a few more Red and Blue Potions. I'll pay you once we're out of here!"
Her demand immediately confused Ren. He looked up and noticed that Yukino's expression was incredibly sour, which only deepened his bewilderment.
"What happened? Didn't I already exchange them for you?" Ren had already compensated her for what he owed, swapping her entire stock for the fruit-flavored ones. Why was she buying more now?
Yukino's face darkened further as she spoke with intense irritation. "Some jerk swiped my potions. If I wasn't absolutely certain I'd lose in a fight, I really would have punched her!"
Hearing this, Ren was instantly amused. Based on her complaint, he had a pretty good idea of what had happened. Extending his perception slightly, he spotted Shizuka Hiratsuka chugging a Red Potion like her life depended on it.
*She probably didn't have any drinks on hand, so she's just using the potions to quench her thirst, huh?* Ren mused. *Honestly, if she didn't have official duties right now, she'd probably be downing some 'wheat juice' instead...*
"Understood. I'll give you some more." Ren wanted to laugh but held his tongue. Shizuka and Yukino actually had a great relationship; Yukino was just annoyed, but she wouldn't actually do anything about it.
Without overthinking it, Ren handed over another batch of potions to Yukino. As for the rest of his stock, he asked Asuna to pack them all into her Spatial Backpack.
Most of the classmates had already traded for a substantial amount from Ren. They couldn't carry any more even if they wanted to, so no one else came over to buy.
However, today had been a real eye-opener for everyone. At the same time, they all shared the collective feeling of being massive suckers. Who could have guessed that these potions were literally watered down?
If they hadn't seen Ren concocting the potions with their own eyes, they never would have believed it. Simultaneously, everyone made a firm resolution: they were never buying potions from outside vendors again.
Wasn't buying directly from Ren the obvious choice? His custom potions were already in the process of being patented, so from now on, they would just purchase straight from the creator himself.
As for whether they felt scammed by Ren's ruthless profiteering? Not really. After all, they had traded for these potions using herbs they simply picked off the ground.
They didn't feel like they took a loss; in fact, it felt like a massive steal. As for how much profit Ren was raking in, that was his own business. Who could blame him for being capable? He earned it through his own skills, so what was there to complain about?
The students split up into their respective parties and began finding spots to meditate and rest. Although it was still daylight inside the Dungeon, it was already late at night in the outside world.
After packing up his things, Ren jogged over to the lake to wash his face and wipe himself down. Finally, he returned to the camp and began setting up an early-warning Array.
He decided to just encompass all of his classmates within the Array's radius. It was barely any extra effort for him anyway, only costing a bit more Magic Power.
Ren found a relatively central location where a few students were already gathered. They looked a bit confused when they saw him approach, but before they could ask anything, Ren spoke up.
"I'm setting up an Array. Everyone can just go to sleep once I'm done." As soon as his words fell, Ren pressed his hands against the ground. In an instant, an Array took shape.
As Ren continuously channeled his Magic Power into it, the Array rapidly expanded, instantly enveloping the entire area where the students were resting.
This sudden phenomenon startled quite a few people, but they quickly realized it was Ren's handiwork. He was casting a spell, and given the massive size of the Array, it clearly served an important purpose.
The students didn't panic; instead, they turned their attention toward Ren. Seeing him squatting on the ground and manually pumping in Magic Power, several classmates couldn't help but chuckle. *Isn't casting like that a huge waste of Magic Power?*
But it couldn't be helped. Ren didn't have a staff, so this was the only way he could set it up. While it consumed extra Magic Power, Ren's reserves were actually quite massive.
Although he had never specifically compared himself to anyone else, the Magic Power within his body was vastly superior to most people's. Just how much stronger? That was the real question. Regardless, deploying a perimeter-warning Array dozens of meters in diameter only consumed about half of his total reserves.
If necessary, he could have expanded the Array even further, but this was already sufficient. With such a large radius, Ren had even managed to leave a decent buffer zone.
"All done. Everyone, get some rest and recover your energy for tomorrow's battles. If any monsters spawn, this Array will instantly wake you up," Ren explained to his classmates as he stood up and dusted off his hands.
Hearing this, everyone's eyes lit up. If that was the case, things would be incredibly comfortable! Now, they could actually get a proper night's sleep without constantly looking over their shoulders.
An invisible barrier now shrouded the camp, giving everyone an inexplicable sense of security. However, they didn't let their guard down completely; instead, they quickly entered a state of meditation to rest.
After all, no one knew when monsters might appear. Even with precautions in place, it was best to start resting and meditating as early as possible.
Ren returned to his own campsite. Asuna and the others were already meditating inside their tents. Seeing this, Ren sat by the campfire, closed his eyes, and entered a meditative state as well.
A profound silence fell over the area as the camp quickly quieted down. The teachers observing from the shadows also began taking turns meditating to recover their own stamina.
The entire fifth floor soon plunged into complete stillness, save for the occasional crackle of the burning campfires. As time ticked by, all the students focused on restoring their energy through meditation.
They had spent the entire day either traveling or fighting. In truth, everyone was utterly exhausted, which ironically made the quality of their meditation exceptionally high tonight.
Furthermore, the potions they had consumed upon entering the Dungeon were now working their magic, boosting everyone's recovery speed by more than just a single tier.
Just as everyone settled deep into meditation, the Dungeon's fifth floor slowly began to bare its fangs. Packs upon packs of monsters were spawning in the dark corners of the floor.
Naturally, the first to notice the disturbances on this floor were the teachers on night watch. Shizuka Hiratsuka was currently taking small sips from a pouch of Red Potion.
Watching the endless stream of Werewolves spawning, the corners of her mouth curled up into a slight smirk. "It's not that easy to get a peaceful night's sleep in the wild. Next up, you'll be facing a full-blown Werewolf ambush."
She didn't intervene, nor did she issue any warnings. This was their true first lesson. She already knew the mechanics of the Dungeon; the teachers would only step in if the situation spiraled completely out of control.
The other meditating teachers also woke up at this moment. Sensing the shifts within the Dungeon, they remained silent, opting to watch quietly.
The students inside the barrier were completely oblivious to the sudden anomaly. Everyone was deep in meditation, and the monster spawn points were located quite a distance away from their camp.
Thus, they remained unaware as pack after pack of Werewolves were rapidly generated. It was as if these Werewolves had received a specific command; upon spawning, they simply waited in eerie silence.
They waited for more and more of their kin to be born. It wasn't until their numbers reached a critical mass that the Werewolves finally received their marching orders, surging straight toward Ren's camp.
About ten minutes later, Ren, who was still meditating, suddenly furrowed his brows. He snapped his eyes open, instantly sensing the horde of magical beasts charging toward them.
"Holy crap!" Ren blurted out in shock. He scrambled to his feet and decisively channeled his Magic Power to trigger the early-warning Array, instantly jolting everyone awake.
The meditating students were all forcibly roused. Although they had no idea what was going on yet, their instincts kicked in, and they immediately drew their weapons and stood up.
Those inside the tents rushed out as well. Asuna sprinted out with her rapier in hand, scanning her surroundings. Noticing Ren's grave expression, she quickly hurried over to him.
"What's wrong?" Asuna asked as she reached his side. The alarm had clearly been triggered by Ren manually, as there were no monsters in their immediate vicinity yet.
"Everyone, prepare for battle! A whole damn horde of monsters is charging right at us!" Ren hurriedly shouted, making sure everyone understood the gravity of the situation.
Hearing this, the students' faces paled drastically. Soon enough, they could hear the thunderous sound of approaching footsteps, and a massive cloud of dust began billowing in the distance.
It sounded like an army of thousands was bearing down on them. The sheer scale of the approaching threat made many of their scalps tingle with dread. *Are you kidding me? Is this a joke?*
They had assumed the fifth floor was relatively devoid of monsters, but it turned out they had all just spawned at once! *Is the Dungeon a sore loser or something? Did it just cram every single monster we were supposed to encounter into one massive wave?!*
Everyone rapidly shifted into combat formations. It wasn't long before they caught sight of the Werewolves charging at them. The sheer, overwhelming numbers were enough to scare anyone half to death.
"Whittle them down with magic first! Someone lend me a staff!!" Ren didn't waste any time on pleasantries, immediately barking out orders and requesting a weapon.
Hearing his shout, Sora, who was standing nearby, quickly replied, "I have one here! You can use it!"
Saying that, Sora ran over to her luggage, grabbed a staff wrapped in white cloth, and tossed it to Ren. She had brought it along but hadn't used it once.
Ren swiftly caught the staff and stepped up to the front lines. A few other students who specialized in magic followed his lead, stepping forward with grim expressions as they stared down the approaching Werewolves.
As the Werewolves entered their firing range, no further instructions were needed. Everyone sprang into action. At the same time, Ren didn't forget to coordinate the melee fighters: "Everyone else, flank them from the sides! Leave the center to us!"
Hearing this, the vanguard quickly mobilized. Asuna and Yukino split up, each taking the lead to launch an offensive from the flanks.
As the strongest fighters in the class, it was only natural for them to spearhead the charge. Meanwhile, Megumi Kato moved out silently. She didn't join any specific party; instead, she planned to act as a battlefield flex-support, assisting wherever she was needed most.
With Ren and the top students leading the charge, the class found their backbone. Everyone moved swiftly, drawing their weapons and charging headlong into the Werewolf horde.
The boys in the class, in particular, felt their blood boiling with excitement. This was practically a full-scale war, and charging into battle was something that resonated deeply with their masculine instincts.
Adrenaline pumping, the vanguard clashed violently with the Werewolves. Back at the center, Ren initiated the magical bombardment.
Bolstered by the staff, he began continuously firing off [Magic Bullet]s. The other mage students followed suit, frantically casting their spells. Volley after volley of magic projectiles rained down upon the Werewolves.
Although there were only seven or eight of them casting, they successfully halted the advance of a portion of the horde. However, it was far from enough. They could stall the enemy temporarily, but their defensive line was bound to break eventually.
The problem was that Ren's classmates simply had too little Magic Power, and their casting speeds were far too slow. They couldn't achieve true suppressive fire. Realizing this, Ren furrowed his brows and began brainstorming a countermeasure.
The sheer volume of Werewolves in this wave was staggering. Ren didn't bother counting them, but his perception told him that countless more were still rushing toward their position.
While the individual strength of these Werewolves was nothing special—any of his classmates could handle one in a duel—Ren knew all too well that ants could bite an elephant to death. Thus, he frantically searched for a solution.
Watching his classmates fire off their [Magic Bullet]s, Ren's mind subconsciously drifted to a certain "Fern." Her basic attacks were practically a Gatling gun! With that thought in mind...
A new idea began to take shape in Ren's mind. It was a concept on how to modify the basic [Magic Bullet] spell—how to make it faster, stronger, and shoot further...
Drawing inspiration from the magic used by that particular mage, Ren quickly realized that his [Magic Bullet] could absolutely be transformed into the exact same thing.
Once he had the idea, he immediately put it into practice. Ren aimed the borrowed staff forward. In the next second, a far more complex Magic Circle materialized instantly.
The moment the Magic Circle formed, a [Magic Bullet]—faster and vastly more powerful than anyone else's—blasted forth. It was immediately followed by a second, then a third! Ren instantly transformed into a stationary turret, unleashing a torrential downpour of Magic Power.
Watching Ren's performance from the shadows, Jin-sensei slowly mentally typed out a question mark. *I definitely didn't teach him that spell, right? And what the hell is that anyway? A [Magic Gatling]?*
Witnessing the magic Ren was unleashing, Jin-sensei was utterly dumbfounded. The classmates standing near Ren looked as if they had just seen a ghost.
*Bro, seriously? We know you're stronger than us, but the gap shouldn't be THIS massive! And what the hell is that spell?! Why is it on full-auto?!*
*And the range is insane! Not to mention, the armor-piercing power of those magic bullets is way too ridiculous! It's not just punching through the Werewolf in the front; it's tearing right through and hitting the ones behind it!!*