Once we had decided on our course of action, we first pretended to check our current location on the map, using the opportunity to identify the spots where an infiltrator would most likely launch an ambush.
"The range of a laser gun is approximately one hundred meters. From that perspective, this location is already within range... although I doubt there's anyone who can actually pull off a snipe at maximum distance."
"True. It’s about fifty meters from the bushes where the infiltrator is hiding to this spot. There are some plants and trees that might act as obstacles, but the fact that they haven’t fired despite the environment and distance suggests the infiltrator isn’t confident in their long-range shooting."
"Right. Or perhaps they’ve set some kind of trap beforehand and intend to attack us while we’re busy dealing with it."
"Distract us with a trap and then hit us from behind... right?"
"Exactly."
Hiiragi-san was right; the success rate would be higher if they coordinated with a trap rather than launching a solo attack.
However...
"But the opposition has used that tactic on us countless times in our previous sessions. We won’t fall for it again. Even if they were to set one, those people wouldn't be this sloppy about it."
"You're right. The people who usually serve as the opposition for our training wouldn't make the mistake of staring so intensely that they'd give away their hiding spot. They know from experience that we’d sense them immediately."
"Exactly. Which means the person hiding over there is likely one of the reinforcements who joined the training today, right?"
"Most likely. If it’s their first time, they wouldn't know just how precise our detection abilities are."
We concluded that the infiltrator—who was still sending glaringly obvious looks our way—was one of the disciples who had joined starting today. I had been worried that our senses might have dulled over the exam break, but so far, we seemed to be sharp.
"So, should we go with a counterattack that turns their trap against them?"
"Yeah, that sounds good. Rather than trying something overly clever, it's better to let them think we've fallen for their plan."
Yuji voiced his agreement with my proposal. Keeping my face toward the map, I shot a quick glance at Hiiragi-san and Ririka-san; both of them gave small, firm nods.
"Next is the location of the trap. Assuming that bush is the hiding spot, the place where a trap would likely be set is... around here."
Yuji pointed to a specific spot on the map, showing it to the rest of us. Hiiragi-san and I confirmed the location on paper, then visually checked the actual area without turning our heads too much.
"I see. That spot is about thirty meters from the bush, and there’s a clear line of sight with no obstacles. It’s a perfect vantage point to target us."
As Hiiragi-san said, the spot Yuji pointed out had few trees or tall grasses to block a shot, making it look easy to walk through at first glance. Because it was such a natural path, any trap placed there would be easy to spot if one was looking.
"So the pattern is to purposely let us find the trap and then shoot us while we’re preoccupied?"
"Probably. Since there's no cover, there’s a high possibility that a bounding mine type trap is set there. In that case, disarming it in a hurry would carry a risk of accidental detonation, leaving us no choice but to bypass it. But..."
"The bypass routes are limited, aren't they?"
"Yeah."
Yuji gave a short reply to my observation.
To head toward the summit while avoiding the spot where Yuji predicted the trap, we would have to move closer to the bush where the infiltrator was hiding to avoid the steep slope on the opposite side. The distance would be narrowed to a mere ten meters. Even if they weren't a crack shot, they likely wouldn't miss at that range if they aimed properly.
"If we didn't realize an enemy was hiding in the bush, the ambush would definitely be a success."
"Yeah. If we didn't realize it..."
Hiiragi-san and I recalled the infiltrator's blunder and let the corners of our mouths curl up slightly.
"You two, that’s enough. It’s not good to get overconfident."
Ah, sorry.
Yuji lightly rebuked us for being a bit too giddy. Hiiragi-san and I muttered brief apologies and tightened our focus.
"Well, as long as we know they're there, we can handle it. We'll maintain the same formation as before, pretend not to notice, and approach the predicted spot. After confirming the trap, we'll detour around the trap zone."
"What if there isn't a trap at the predicted spot?"
"In that case, we'll just keep heading toward the summit. We have a time limit, so we can't afford to waste time on an enemy that won't move. Though I doubt they'll let us pass without attacking, trap or no trap. Both of you, stay alert so we can respond the moment the enemy jumps out."
Understood.
We put away the map, reformed our escort formation, and began walking.
Still, would they really just jump out without any clever tricks... like a human bullet? No, no, surely they wouldn't go that far.
Or so I thought.
"Uwaaaaaaah!"
As expected, a trap had been set at the location Yuji pointed out. It was likely an area-of-effect trap, similar to a bounding mine. We followed our plan, staying clear of the trap's activation range and taking the bypass route that led us close to the bush where the enemy was hiding. But then, the unexpected happened. The moment we were closest to the bush, an enemy brandishing a pistol-type laser gun leaped out with a menacing war cry.
He really is just a human bullet...!
"...!"
For a moment, I was taken aback and my reaction lagged, but Hiiragi-san—who was positioned closest to the bush—saw that the disciple’s index finger was already squeezing the trigger. She instantly braced her shield and lunged toward the attacker.
The enemy's eyes widened in shock at Hiiragi-san's explosive speed. They hurriedly pulled the trigger, but by the time the laser gun fired, Hiiragi-san had already planted her shield a mere thirty centimeters in front of the muzzle. It was a feat of reaction possible only because of the physical abilities of a high-level explorer, worlds apart from those of an ordinary person. The laser gun emitted a faint electronic chirp, and the LED on Hiiragi-san's shield lit up.
The attacker’s ambush had failed... they were disqualified.
"Phew..."
I let out a heavy breath once I saw the threat was neutralized. I was surprised by the enemy's bold, reckless method, but we had managed to survive. In this ambush, they had struck at a mental gap—we had been complacent, assuming they would never use such a crude tactic.
To think they would target a psychological blind spot rather than a physical one...
"Good work, Hiiragi-san. You saved us."
"My body just moved on its own. I only barely made it in time."
"Even so, it doesn't change the fact that you saved us, Hiiragi-san. Thank you."
Yuji and I expressed our gratitude as she returned after a brief word with the defeated opposition member. Surviving this ambush was entirely her achievement. If she hadn't moved, Ririka-san—who was right in the line of fire—would have been taken out, which would have triggered an electric shock for all of us and failed the exercise.
"And... I'm sorry, Ririka-san. Even though we used you as a decoy, it ended up being such a close call..."
I bowed my head in apology.
"No, please don't worry about it. The result was different from the plan, but Yukino-san protected me perfectly, didn't she? Regardless of how it happened, the fact remains that you all successfully protected your escort target."
"Is that so... I’m glad to hear you say that."
Ririka-san forgave our blunder with a kind smile and reaffirmed that we had fulfilled our duty. I felt a wave of relief, but I knew I couldn't let it go at that; I had to take this failure as a serious lesson.
"Guys, I'm sorry. It's because I came up with that narrow prediction... that things turned out like this."
While I was processing Ririka-san's words, Yuji suddenly bowed to us in apology.
Wait... what was he so upset about?
"What are you apologizing for, Yuji? If the prediction was wrong, then it was a prediction we all agreed on. You don't need to shoulder the blame alone."
"He's right, Hirose-kun. A prediction is just a prediction. You don't have to apologize just because it missed the mark."
"But..."
Yuji looked pained despite our comfort.
"More than just getting it wrong, I can’t stand that I was so dismissive of the possibility of a 'sloppy' setup. That narrow-mindedness gave everyone a reason to let their guard down. If I hadn't taken it so lightly and had considered more possibilities, we might have handled this ambush much better..."
He looked down, his face twisted with regret.
Handle it better, huh...
"Yuji. I think you're right to reflect on it. But if you want to get better, instead of wallowing in regret, shouldn't we figure out how to avoid making the same mistake? Fortunately, we got the experience of failure this time without it costing us the mission."
"Exactly, Hirose-kun. Like Kokonoe-kun said, if you have time to mope, let's use it to think about how we can stay sharper next time."
"...You're right. I have things to do besides regret."
Yuji seemed to recover a bit after hearing us out.
"Alright. Shall we get moving? If we linger too long, we'll run out of time."
"Right. Let's head for the summit."
"Yeah, let's go."
"Ririka-san, are you ready?"
"Yes. If you all are ready, I am too."
With everyone’s consent, we resumed our trek toward the checkpoint at the summit.
And then...
We eventually stood before Genya-san, doing our absolute best to keep our faces from twitching with rage.
"Oh? You all look quite the sight. Covered head to toe in mud? Whatever happened?"
"W-whatever happened, you say...!?"
The moment I opened my mouth, I felt a torrent of verbal abuse bubbling up, so I hurriedly clamped my hand over my lips. I knew this was training and it was wrong to lash out, but I didn't trust myself to speak calmly yet.
"Hmm. Ririka, how did they fare during the exercise?"
"Y-yes. Um, well..."
"Speak clearly."
"They were heavily affected by the electric shocks and were... overall lacking in their usual brilliance."
"I see. Well, that’s about the result I expected."
The moment I heard those words, I almost lost it. The result he expected? No matter how you looked at it, that was just cruel! I kept my mouth shut, closed my eyes, and took several deep breaths to settle my nerves.
Once I had regained my composure, I finally spoke.
"Genya-san... was that done under your instructions?"
"Yes, it was. What you experienced was indeed something I told the disciples to do beforehand. It was necessary, you see—the attack on the checkpoint."
"...I see."
So he did order it.
It was probably rude, but we all let out the frustration built up in our chests with a heavy, synchronized sigh right in front of him.
"Genya-san... honestly, that barrage of infrared transmitters at the checkpoint was over the line..."
"He's right. There was no way to avoid a rain of fire like that."
"Thanks to that, we were hit by continuous electric shocks for minutes. We were rolling around on the ground, you know?"
One after another, we voiced our grievances as the memory of the pain from that malicious trap came flooding back.
The trap worked like this: the checkpoint had a simple stand for the arrival marker, but it was equipped with a weight sensor. The moment we picked up the marker, the change in weight triggered the trap. Hidden launchers then fired a relentless salvo of infrared transmitters—the same ones used in bounding mines—at the checkpoint from every direction. Because of the sheer volume of signals, the area of effect was massive. We were caught in the crossfire and subjected to continuous shocks until the launchers ran out of "ammo" minutes later.
To make matters worse, the cumulative effect of the shocks meant we were physically unable to get up for another five minutes after the barrage ended. We just lay there in the mud.
"Well, I understand your complaints, but this was a request from Juzo. He specifically asked me to put you through it."
"...Eh? Juzo-san?"
The name of an unexpected person caught us off guard, completely deflating our anger.
"Yes. When I called Juzo during your exam break to report on your progress, he told me he wanted me to incorporate methods that would target your psychological gaps. My apologies."
Genya-san gave us a remorseful look.
So, the fact that we kept running into tactics targeting our mental blind spots today was all Juzo-san's doing... Based on our training experience, we had baselessly assumed that the opposition wouldn't do things like front-on suicide charges or trap the checkpoints themselves. I suppose Juzo-san wanted to teach us that those fixed ideas and "common sense" assumptions create the very gaps an enemy will exploit.
"Haaaah..."
Another heavy sigh escaped us simultaneously. We were dancing right in the palm of Juzo-san's hand. I felt like I could almost hear his boisterous laughter echoing through the trees.
"Well, that’s how it is. The training will likely only get tougher from here, but I expect you to keep at it."
"Yes, sir."
"Ririka, look after them."
"I will."
And so, we moved on to face an even more grueling training regimen, now complicated by Juzo-san's intervention.