It’s an Academic Fact That Rankers Are Model Students – Chapter 146

Chapter 146: Fight Only the Battles You Can Win (2)

“Everyone, eat these pieces of bread before we start the mock battle.”

Kyung-joon gave Unique Bread to all the wolves participating in the mock battle.

“Awooo! I feel energized!”

“Awooo! My wounds from today don’t hurt anymore!”

“Awooo! With this, even the Black Leopard will be no problem!”

The wolves who ate the Unique Bread couldn’t come to their senses as their HP continued to recover every second.

With this, there was no need to worry about the wolves getting hurt or dying during the mock battle.

‘I could just give everyone Unique Bread and call it a day……’

He was sure that if he gave all the wolves Unique Bread, they would choose a leader and recover their lost territory on their own.

But that would be like giving them fish instead of teaching them how to fish.

Kyung-joon’s monster counseling always focused on teaching them how to solve their problems, except in special cases.

“Kyung-joon-nim.”

Just before the mock battle began, Ceram, who was in charge of refereeing, asked Kyung-joon with a worried look on his face.

“Do you really think those five slender wolves can win? You can only give them orders, right?”

It was a fight between five slender wolves and five strong wolves.

The only advantage the former had over the latter was that Kyung-joon would be giving them orders directly.

Kyung-joon couldn’t physically intervene and help them fight.

“It’s okay. Don’t you think the wolves need to see this to understand?”

Through this mock battle, the wolves had to realize for themselves.

The immense power of wisdom.

Only then, when they could reclaim the territory they had lost to the Black Leopard, could it be considered a proper conclusion to the counseling session.

“And it’s not as difficult as you might think to turn a losing battle into a win. It’s surprisingly easy if the wolves just follow my lead.”

“Hmm…… Is that so?”

Ceram had a dubious look on his face, believing yet doubting Kyung-joon’s words that it wouldn’t be difficult.

Still, seeing him speak so confidently, Ceram thought he must have something planned.

As the referee, he decided to proceed with the mock battle right away.

“I’ll count to three and shout ‘Start!’ Then we’ll begin. Ten, nine, eight…”

Ceram started counting down.

“Grrr…”

In response, both Kyung-joon’s wolves and the opposing wolves took their positions.

Indeed.

The stark difference in physique was evident at a glance……

“Whimper…”

Kyung-joon’s wolves were clearly at a disadvantage against the opposing team’s momentum.

But it was alright.

Kyung-joon already knew the strategy to win this fight.

‘The best strategy for battle is Sun Tzu’s Art of War.’

Sun Tzu’s Art of War.

It was a highly acclaimed Eastern military treatise, translated as 『The Art of War』 in the West.

Its theories, compiled thousands of years ago, were said to hold true even in modern warfare.

“Three, two, one… Start!”

“Grrr!”

And in its chapter on Planning Offensives, it stated:

“As we discussed, scatter in different directions!!”

『If you are not in a position of strength, avoid fighting.』

Dash! Dash! Dash!

Before Kyung-joon could even finish speaking, his wolves scattered in five different directions.

“……?!”

Ceram, the opposing wolves, and all the other wolves were so dumbfounded that all they could do was gape in astonishment.

🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷

Tada-da-dak!

As soon as the mock battle began, the wolves on Kyung-joon’s side immediately ran away!

The opposing wolves were caught off guard and stood there dumbfounded.

“C, Chase them! Growl!”

The opposing wolves quickly regained their composure and began to chase after Kyung-joon’s wolves.

“Growl! On the left!”

“I’ll go after that one! Growl!”

“Go that way! Growl!”

“Behind! They left the back uncovered! Growl!”

However, perhaps because it happened so suddenly, figuring out who should chase whom was the first hurdle.

Just then, the strongest-looking wolf on the opposing side stepped forward and quickly took charge.

“Growl! You here! You there! I’ll take this one! We’ll split up and chase them! Growl!”

They were a little delayed, but it was only a matter of seconds, still not too late to catch up.

“They’re all weaker than us! This is nothing, Awooo!”

“Awooo!”

Tada-da-dak!

The opposing wolves began to vigorously chase after Kyung-joon’s wolves.

Ceram, who had been watching the whole thing with a blank expression, finally spoke.

“Ah……!”

Ceram suddenly realized his role as the referee and began to channel his mana.

“Eyes of the Earth.”

Swoosh.

Like a single drop of water creating ripples on a calm lake, his Earth attribute mana spread thinly across the surface, starting from his feet and flowing through the ground.

The range extended well beyond a 100-meter radius, covering almost a kilometer with Ceram’s mana.

With this, Ceram could sense the wolves’ fight without having to run around.

This was the very reason why Ceram was assigned the role of the referee.

“Well then, let me.”

Ceram wasn’t the only one who used a detection skill.

Although not as vast as Ceram’s due to still being level 1, Kyung-joon also possessed a very useful detection skill, his own 『Eyes of the Earth』.

<Master. Three of our wolves that fled forward are being pursued. Two are being chased by two, and one is being chased by one.>

Teemo, separated from Kyung-joon, was providing him with a live commentary.

The range that Teemo could detect at level 1 was 50m to 100m, depending on the terrain.

While it was possible to extend that range by lowering the resolution, it was still no match for Ceram, who could sense a vast area through the ground.

However.

‘Teemo can move with his own will.’

Teemo had been working with Kyung-joon for over half a year.

Therefore, he could select and deliver only the information that Kyung-joon wanted, the most appropriate results for the current situation.

And Kyung-joon would process that information and relay it to the wolves.

To be precise, only to ‘our wolves that weren’t being chased.’

“Awooo~! Aawoo-ool~!”

Kyung-joon cupped his hands around his mouth and howled loudly, like a wolf facing the moon.

But his howl was imbued with mana.

Wooong!

A Unique skill born from the combination of Fine Mana Manipulation and Multi-Casting, 『Multi Mana Control: Nano』.

On top of that, he used the Rare skill 『Transform Magic』 to mix two more skills into it.

The skills to be mixed were 『Voice Modulation』 and 『Sound Blocking』.

The former, 『Voice Modulation』, would amplify the sound tremendously, while the latter, 『Sound Blocking』, would muffle it.

Finally, he infused the mana information received from Teemo into the sound and let it flow out in all directions.

This contradictory use of skills made the onlookers’ eyes widen in astonishment.

“―! ―――!”

“Growl……?”

“Awooo……?”

No sound.

It was like watching a video on mute; to them, Kyung-joon was shouting his lungs out, but…….

“……Kyung-joon-nim?”

They couldn’t hear a single sound.

On the other hand.

Tadak! Tada-da-dak!

Far away, a completely opposite situation was unfolding for Kyung-joon’s wolves who were busy running……

“Awooo~!! Aawoo-ool~!!”

Kyung-joon’s wolf howl was ringing in their ears.

“……??”

Except for the opposing wolves, of course.

“……!”

Only Kyung-joon’s wolves could hear it.

‘Growl! The two of us aren’t being followed! Change direction and follow the scent, growl!’

‘Three of us, including me, are being chased! I smell them over there! Converge on that spot, growl!’

‘Grrr…… Once we gather, we’ll……!’

Tadak! Tada-da-dak!

All five of Kyung-joon’s wolves, hearing his howl, began to gather in one place.

And Ceram sensed it with his Eyes of the Earth.

“Kyung-joon-nim’s wolves are suddenly gathering in one place……?”

The three that were being chased by the opponents gathered in one place as if herding them.

The two without pursuers were flanking them, running as if to encircle them.

And before long.

At the very moment when all ten Whale Forest wolves, both the chasers and the chased, converged at one point……!

“They’re, clashing……! Uh……? They’re scattering again……?”

Kyung-joon’s wolves, after briefly intersecting, immediately began to flee again, and the opposing wolves followed suit.

The situation was almost identical to the start of the mock battle.

“Kyung-joon-nim, what in the world…… Was your strategy to just keep running away?”

“Yes. That’s right.”

“But wouldn’t constantly running away result in a draw?”

When Kyung-joon initially made his wolves flee, Ceram thought he was up to something.

But even now, there seemed to be nothing to it other than running away and being chased.

“I don’t quite understand the meaning behind this……”

At Ceram’s words, Kyung-joon made a puzzled expression as if he was the one who didn’t understand.

“You don’t understand? Look closely again. Something must have changed.”

“Yes?”

Ceram focused on the ripples of mana being transmitted from the ground.

Then, he began to faintly see the scene of the Whale Forest wolves chasing each other in the distance.

It didn’t seem much different from before, but there was one distinct change.

The opposing wolves, who were initially divided into three groups of 『two, two, and one』, were now in groups of 『three, one, and one』.

“Ah…….”

Ceram’s face slightly changed as he noticed the difference.

As if to let Ceram in on his plan, Kyung-joon murmured,

“We’ll merge the one in the middle with the group of three…… and when four of them are grouped together, we’ll have one of our wolves lure them away…… Good.”

Kyung-joon cupped his hands around his mouth again and let out a loud howl.

“Awooo~! Aawoo-ool~!”

As before, he mixed his mana into the howl, making it audible only to his wolves.

Ceram could immediately see the result.

“A 1 versus 4 situation…….”

Two scenes unfolded before Ceram’s Eyes of the Earth.

One was of a single wolf from Kyung-joon’s side desperately running away from four opposing wolves.

The other was of four of Kyung-joon’s wolves surrounding a single wolf from the opposing side.

“Don’t tell me…… This was what you were aiming for all along……?”

To the astonished Ceram, Kyung-joon smirked and nodded.

“Yes. That’s right. If we can’t win, we avoid the fight, then create a situation where we can win.”

The single, most important principle of Sun Tzu’s Art of War.

It was to choose your battles.

If it seemed like you would lose, retreat without hesitation and do your best to create a winning situation.

This was Kyung-joon’s understanding of Sun Tzu’s Art of War.

For the record, he had read Sun Tzu’s Art of War for a Korean language assignment.

Kyung-joon added an explanation.

“Anyway, their stamina is almost identical thanks to the Unique bread, whether they’re skinny or muscular.”

Both Kyung-joon’s wolves and the opposing wolves had eaten the same Unique bread made by Kyung-joon.

He was certain that none of them would tire easily due to their stamina constantly regenerating, no matter how much they ran.

“But when it comes to running away, a light and agile wolf has the advantage over a bulky one. And if it seems like they’re about to be caught, we can just regroup and reset the situation.”

This was Kyung-joon’s plan.

As they kept running and regrouping, there would come a time when the opposing wolves would be drawn to one side.

This could be easily achieved by controlling the speed at which they ran.

It was only natural for anyone to instinctively chase after the closest target.

Anyway, by doing so, he would lure four out of the five opposing wolves far away, and the moment the remaining one realized it was chasing alone……

“We surround it and take it down. No matter how strong it is, it can’t stand against overwhelming numbers, right?”

As Kyung-joon spoke, Ceram saw through his Eyes of the Earth a wolf collapsing with a thud.

It was the opposing wolf that had been surrounded and attacked by Kyung-joon’s wolves.

“One of the opposing wolves is down…… And Kyung-joon-nim’s wolves are…….”

Gulp.

Ceram, the referee, cleared his throat and announced to everyone present,

“……All five are unharmed.”

Translator’s Blog

Blog

• Lacus Clyne: The Ultimate Waifu? A Gundam SEED Freedom Deep Dive
• Study Guide: Lofi or Punk Emo? The Soundtrack to Smashing Your Next Exam (Like a Boss)
• Feeling like a lazy Naruto? This is How You Stop Procrastinating and Conquer Your To-Do List Like a True Hokage
• The Unmentionable Truth About Anime Waifus: Why They’re All So Smooth
• Hidden Villages, Hidden Countries? Where’s the Rest of the World in Naruto?