Aurora Over a Dead World

Chapter 7: Dynamics Between Student and Teacher

Since Tanya passed out, I sent her to the infirmary before heading back to the room with the other five students. I need to make it clear how this "tutoring" is going to work. I’m not a good tutor, but it can’t be that different from giving orders to soldiers, right?

The most problematic thing will be their attitudes, but as for giving orders, I just need to teach them to obey, to think like real military personnel, and to control their powers.

And even though cores and chips are different, I can still help them improve. The foundation is exactly the same — manipulating vectors, with variations mostly in stability and limits.

"Since Tanya is in the infirmary, I figure we can keep things basic today and start the serious lessons later. For now, let’s just talk about how this will work," I say to the five of them seated in their respective places.

"Who exactly are you?" Rouge asks, curious, which answers my question of whether or not they know who I am.

"Considering your attitude of challenging a student to a duel, are you really a suitable tutor?" Eirwen speaks up, raising a hand. A very rational question, and she’s a bit more polite than I expected, since she raises her hand like a child — an attitude opposite to Rouge’s out-of-turn question.

"Are you single?" Edith, on the other hand, asks something completely off-topic. Charlotte just stays quiet, observing the exchange of words, and Ashlyn is in the furthest corner in total silence.

"I am... or rather, I was a military commander, second in command on the front lines under Commander Nadir. As for whether I’m suitable, well, I believe the fact that I’m here makes that clear, doesn’t it? I don’t think Astrid would put just anyone in charge of the academy’s misfits." When I say that, a few of them furrow their brows at me.

"..." Charlotte raises her hand toward me with a smile on her face. It’s almost gentle, but her eyes don’t carry the same smile her lips do.

"You’re incredibly strong... but if you’re our tutor, why did you go so easy on Tanya? I believe your power should be greater than that, right? It was a creative demonstration, but I have so many questions. After all, we have similar powers." Charlotte makes a play that catches me off guard.

When she speaks like that, it doesn’t sound like an accusation or an attack, but she’s just revealed to everyone present that my power is spatial-type, since she said we have similar powers, destroying a small advantage I had.

’City Rat...’

"It’s only natural that I go easy on the weaker ones. After all, what would be the point of ending that fight instantly without teaching you anything, my newest students?" I give the most appropriate response to the situation.

"Wow, that sounds amazing," she says with a tone so genuine she almost sounds truly impressed. What an efficient manipulator.

"Zenith-sensei, you’re not going to answer me?" Edith speaks in a sad tone mixed with light seduction when I ignore her question about me being single. Obviously I’m not going to answer that kind of thing for them.

"...That’s not a question I need to answer, Edith, so if you want to ask something, limit yourself to the scope of the situation and nothing more. As for more relevant matters, I’ll be giving both group lessons and individual lessons to all of you."

"So we’ll have group classes and one-on-one sessions between just me and one of you at a time. That will make it easier to manage the time we have. I’ll cover a range of real and practical topics the academy doesn’t teach you."

"I will teach you to be true weapons."

"Why do you treat us like weapons? Isn’t it wrong for a commander to see her students that way?" Rouge speaks, and unlike the others, she addresses me as a commander.

"I’m no longer a commander. I was demoted. As for treating you like weapons... isn’t that what you are? Just like I am too. There’s no other label, is there? Let’s be honest, you’re here to fight for civilians, to die for what the Nephilim Axis desires, and to eliminate threats."

"..." Eirwen looks at me with disgust, as if my way of seeing their lives is something revolting, but that’s how everyone in power views these girls. The only difference is they don’t use that label for them.

"Professor, I believe trusting someone incapable of protecting their own body is difficult... after all, a wounded animal in nature is only doomed to be a burden despite its experience," Rouge says to me in an accusatory tone.

"...Even a wounded bear can still tear a wolf apart with a single strike, and as far as I can see, I’m not bleeding to attract animals to kill me, am I?" My sarcastic and implicit insult makes Rouge growl a little at me, her eyes sharpening.

"Now let’s drop this farce. You are students, I’m the teacher. You are weapons, and I’m an older weapon. Simple as that, isn’t it? Simple labels, logical and objective."

"Today I don’t have much to teach you, since I was caught relatively off guard by this whole situation, unless you all want duels? But since I believe that’s not what you want, you’re free to talk among yourselves or leave the room."

"Tomorrow we can truly begin what we need to do. And don’t think I’m here happy, being some nice tutor who wants to help you. If you step out of line, injuries will be the least of your problems."

"I highly doubt your capabilities, ’professor,’ being a person with that kind of attitude. How can I trust civilians’ lives to you? You seem like the type who would kill civilians if it yielded results," Eirwen says, judging my apparent character.

"Oh, how impressive? Hahaha, how amazing, you said it all! How did you guess?" When I say that with pure sarcasm, she flushes red with indignation and rage.

"If the death of one civilian, ten civilians, a hundred civilians, even a thousand civilians is the price of a successful mission, then let that be the price I pay. Do you know what kind of missions I carried out? Killing dangerous monsters, securing resources, energy sources, leading thousands at times. And then there are the classified ones I can’t mention."

"Things that stand far above a few lives. If my work failed because of some civilians, thousands of others would die. So don’t come here acting all self-righteous. Lives in war are numbers that commanders like me must choose — whether they remain or whether they vanish."

"And you, Eirwen, are also a number. A very significant number. If I had to kill 10,000 civilians just so you could live, I would do it, because a dangerous weapon like you can save 100,000 civilians. 90,000 civilians who would live because I killed 10,000. A trade we in the military consider good enough."

"..." She sits down on her chair with a look of disgust aimed at me, but that’s reality, and if she doesn’t like it, she can deal with it on her own. The lives of these girls matter greatly to humanity’s future.

If they didn’t, Astrid would have used any tutor to discipline them, not a military commander.

"Professor, please go easy on Eirwen!! She just wants to save people!!" Charlotte says, all sweet and concerned, her feline ears standing upright, as if trying to defuse the situation. Honestly, I have a distaste for fake people like her, but fake people like her make the best leaders.

’If she were less spoiled and selfish, she’d actually be perfect... well, that’s what they say, geniuses have eccentric tastes.’

"...You’re dismissed to do as you wish. I’ll be at my desk, occupied." I sit down at the desk assigned to teachers and look at the tablet connected to the board. I pick it up to learn how to use it today and see how it functions.

"Nexus, start," I say to the tablet, activating the AI system that’s practically everywhere. The Nephilim Axis created what we now call the best AI system in history. It does absolutely everything and holds all the data humanity has ever stored on the world’s network, almost equivalent to the "Tower of Babel" — a massive library of data.

But because it’s "perfect," it ended up being installed in everything. In private facilities, we use Nexus, but for civilians, they use a "nameless AI" that’s still Nexus but with content restrictions, functioning more as an assistant AI for the public.

"[System Initiated: User Zenith Detected]" Thanks to Nexus, I never had to try to learn how to use old technology. Vector technology encompasses more than just controlling powers.

But as powerful as it is, it’s not used in people’s daily lives, and as a soldier, I only had contact with it for most of my life, which unfortunately now makes me somewhat dependent on using Nexus for normal technology.

"..." I glance at the students who are picking up their own devices, except for Rouge, who keeps staring at me intently. I promptly return my attention to the tablet screen.

"Open the roster system for my students. I want to add some notes. I also want updates on Tanya and whether she’s woken up yet. Beyond that, I want constant updates on health, issues, complications, departures from the academy, and even family data on my six students." When I say this without even trying to hide that I’ll be keeping an eye on them, some murmur indignantly.

And others just stay quiet, accepting that this is their life from today on in my hands. I just hope the problems and complications don’t grow too much. I don’t want to have to deal with their fights and issues.