Bryson Coldwater after being hit by a set of doors, decided that the smartest course of action was to stay underneath the rubble and wait. His reinforcement spell worked well, the door was fully intact. Good for him because it stopped the wall of death from crushing his bones. But it also meant that the heavy doors squashed him instead.

But his pain was not in vain, as he could hear the eruption of screams from the students, so the paralysis spell was gone now at least. He could also sense the explosion of mana now erupting from Orchid. Great I don't need to fight now. He thought relieved before sensing an equally large explosion of mana from that weird smoky-headed man.

Well… she can handle it right? Bryson thought as he cast a simple presence-concealing spell on himself. The same spell that was inspired by Lottie Frost and her stealthy talents. She must never know how it's helped save my life.

It was because of this spell that the monster didn't give Bryson a follow-through to his attack. It was also the reason why the funnel of running students didn't bother checking on him. Or at least he hoped that was the case and not because they valued themselves more than helping him. Maybe he didn't need to cast this spell.

As Bryson now had a bit of space between him and the rubble he hid under he thought about what he should do next. The fighting was still going on and it was pretty even right now, Orchid likely will need some help.

However with all the students running around, surely an adult's attention will be alerted. Though that would take some time and Orchid was trying to contain the chaos at the same time. Bryson peering through the rubble felt as though he needed to help.

Just before he could do anything, up came running along two students. One he recognized, another whom he saw. Reynard Alvidor and this very short brown-haired girl seemed to converse with one another, trying to formulate a plan as they neared the battle.

As they stared at the battle they discussed what that monster could be. Which made Bryson think, what indeed was that monster? He acted and thought like a human, or at least a psychopathic human. From all the taunting this thing seemed to know Orchid or at least of her.

When that girl mentioned something about a puppet, something clicked with Bryson. This thing was made of high-quality magic, and thinking of what it could be, Bryson thought of one word. Simulacrum. There were a few variations of the spell but at its base it's a spell that creates a form that allows one to use and control.

Bryson activated his eyes to get a better look at the smoky-headed man. With those eyes activated he could see everything in far greater detail. He could see that this man was made entirely of mana, there was no living organism inside.

So it was a simulacrum. But still, how did it get here? Bryson then saw it, an invisible magic string tied onto its back. Following the string he saw it lead straight through a bookshelf. Behind the bookshelf was a magic circle. If it weren't for Bryson's eyes, he would've never seen the thing being buried by all those books.

It was hidden on purpose, and he recognized the circle to be a summoning one. The string connecting it to the smoky-headed man definitely confirmed it. Though currently there was no way of severing the connection, the string looked too strong. Staring at the string, the circle, and the man some more he began to figure out what this thing was.

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That magic circle had a time limit, after enough time passed the simulacrum would naturally disappear. It seemed as though it was here to just cause havoc before disappearing. Whatever the culprit wanted, they weren't planning on this thing to completely destroy the school.

That's good. I can use that. Bryson thought. Simulacrums when destroyed damage the creator. It takes a part of the caster to create a simulacrum, which is one of the major risks of being able to control a powerful body without actually being there.

That time limit is also a weakness. It was a simple timer on it, likely the culprit wasn't planning on someone being able to analyze the thing in time. So all Bryson needed to do now was hack it and speed up the timer. He just needed a catalyst to help him do it. Anything magical or time-related would do.

Glancing over to the side he saw the broken wall clock lying next to him. That will work. He thought as he grabbed it, and then in a hushed whisper he chanted, "Return back, time is up."

A glowing white string invisible to the naked eye then attached itself onto the clock before snaking outwards and attaching onto the smoky-headed man. Bryson hoped that he wouldn't notice, and to his relief, as he was making the connection, the girl was busy attacking the thing with, a light spell? Okay she was definitely going onto Bryson's radar.

Bryson then took a deep breath as he hoped that he could do this properly. Chronomancy, the magical study of time, was not something that Bryson was used to. He only had a basic understanding of the more abstract schools of magic. But this should be a simple spell… theoretically.

Bryson cast his spell and concentrated. The hands on the clock began to spin, first clockwise, then counterclockwise. Then it picked up speed moving counterclockwise and Bryson unearthed himself from the rubble.

The smoky-headed man's arm began to disintegrate, then Bryson saw it, the magical equivalent of fear. Bryson was sure of it. Good. I can scare it at least. Bryson thought as his eyes returned back to normal. Upon doing so he felt an increased strain on trying to maintain the magic. Right. Magic is harder when I look normal. Bryson remembered.

But still the spell maintained, and the smoky-headed man began to back away. Bryson then moved forward and stood next to the other two students, "Puppet was a good hint." He grumbled out complimenting the girl.

The smoky-headed man backed off, looking to retreat, if he just ran out of time it would be fine, but this spell was destroying the body. If it gets fully destroyed there would be terrible blowback to the caster. Seeing that his form was about to be destroyed, the smoky-headed man's body began to unsolidify.

Bryson's eyes widened as he saw that the cloudy form began to drift back towards the circle. The string was now weakened in this form, "He's trying to escape!" Bryson shouted pointing at the bookshelf, "Smash the circle hidden behind it!"

In reaction Reynard quickly raised a hand and shot out an arcane magic missile. It smashed through the bookshelf and shattered the wall behind it leaving a large hole where the circle once was.

"Arrgh!" The smoky-headed man screeched out in pain as the gassy cloud that he was now in began to distort and vibrate on the spot dangerously. Then for a brief moment the cloud went still, as if frozen in time. Then it exploded.

The resulting blast wave would have destroyed everything in this room, desks and chairs were blown apart, paper burned into nothing. The three students along with the walls and floor, would have been just as badly damaged if not for Orchid creating a barrier protecting everyone.

She not only protected us, but was able to also seal the room? Bryson thought in amazement once the explosion cleared. He then proceeded to sit on the ground and sigh in relief along with Reynard and the girl, Anna.

"Students." Orchid said after taking a moment to catch her breath, "That was stupid but very brave of you." She complimented as through the window came bursting in two security staff members.

"We're here! Where's the monster?" One of them shouted as more people entered through the door.

"We'll continue this later." Orchid told them as people began to look after them.

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