517073

[SpacyRicochet]

@es_kan While it does kinda look like that (and I bet they won't elaborate), I would say the conversation went more as follows;

"We don't completely believe you. This is not worth suddenly summoning our most potent guards from their extremely urgent business."
"Well, how about this? You loiter around with most regular guards, and just be ready. Leave us near the macguffin and we can handle anyone that manages to get through."
"Why would we leave you near the Macguffin! That's lunacy!"
"It's a plot hole."
"And you, teacher person! You agree with this?!?"
"He's suspiciously knowledgable, and seems trustworthy. Also, it's the plot."
"Okay fine."

Point is; I don't think everyone else failed. They just got bogged down. Why they left Pram there though? No f-ing clue. ?‍♂️

 

[Cathrain]

Or they were positioned somewhere else. When the commotion started, Pram and Romantica stealthily moved to the Mcguffin.

 

[DANDAN_THE_DANDAN]

@ninjadork Fair point... but why are the masks so flashy? And the defending side are wearing uniform masks as well. And the shota isn't concealing his face in any way. My point still stands, it seems like a chuunibyo party.

(Ooh boy I'm starting another debate when I haven't finished quite a few)

 

[ninjadork]

@DANDAN_THE_DANDAN Essentially, your objections boil down to three questions: 1) why are the saboteurs wearing flashy masks, 2) why are the guards wearing masks, 3) and why isn't Pram wearing a mask.

1) When you see someone new for the very first time, what is the very first thing you will notice and remember about them? Whatever feature is the most unusual. Whether it be a particularly big nose, stupidly colored hair, a weird way of walking, or something else, whatever is the biggest/flashiest/strangest feature is the one you will most likely remember. So if you're a saboteur looking to evade attention, a really effective way of making sure you don't get noticed is to have one or two really weird features that can be disposed of in a hurry. So when the popo comes by asking questions and everyone is talking about a big fancy monster mask and a red cape, they're not going to find you because you've already ditched them and are four blocks away, "minding your own business".

2) There are many reasons why the guards would be wearing masks. The biggest one is that this is the Tower of Magic, so it's really easy to get enchanted items here. Having a piece of clothing with one or two useful enchantments that can be easily donned and removed without compromising the rest of the uniform is a very smart investment for a professional guard force, and making it a cloth mask instead of something like jewelry keeps production costs down.

3) All the stuff I said about avoiding notice only applies if the people who might hunt you down are still able to do so (think the old assassin's creed meme of "nobody will notice if there's nobody to notice"). Since all the saboteurs either haven't seen Pram and co. or will shortly be put in a position where they can't take any action against him, there's no need to spend additional resources on something unnecessary (remember, Desir and his party as poor as balls). In addition, there's a substantial reputation benefit to be gained if the guards charge onto the scene and see Pram kicking ass, so no need to use something which might obstruct that.

 

[Ibri]

And from the next two chapters it doesn't seem as if there is anything that makes this less stupid. But still time I guess.

@greatninja3: Their school isn't all that big and the smaller two of the party need to fight seriously with their classmates of the same age. (Which are first years and unless the school is just useless will grow stronger too. Unless these two are geniuses too.) In an usual school/university being in the to 9 of your grade puts you nowhere near genius level, I think there were less than 100 people in the test, being a genius is by definition rare so most groups of 100 won't have one so being the best 9 among them doesn't make you one. Now it is an elite school I think but if I had to choose between a Harvard freshman near the top of their class and a pro, given no other infos, I would choose the pro for most short term things. (Long term betting on talent might make sense but fights are fairly short term.) Maybe sword mage lady and MC with his super analysis are geniuses, we haven't seen them compared to any fully trained people, but I guess they probably are it being a manga and all. But point is being among the top 9 freshman does not prove you are a genius.

Spoiler

Though going by the next chapters normal mages just suck compared to the students and the attackers were already superior the the guards.

But the real issue is, if he didn't say how he got the info that makes it relatively likely he is part of the plot, it isn't about strength alone you know but also about being able to trust the people you use as guards.

 

[welcome2atlantis]

Don't waste food, vermin.

 

[aFFi]

@ninjadork
Well, I just read the two chapters.

Spoiler

The first part of my complaint was addressed, but not the second.
We still didn't get an explanation as to why the hell he had to wait for the bad guy to almost leave with the gem.
Was it to show off to a nobody villain? Because he could have clearly stopped the guy way before the last room...
It's like a bomb squad defusing almost completely a bomb with 30 minutes still on the timer, but stopping themselves just to wait for the 00:01 to appear on the bomb for "style points"...

So yeah, my comment wasn't really stupid. Desir kinda was though..

 

[ninjadork]

@aFFi You're complaining about chapter 41. Unless you've gone to read 43 on MerakiScans by the time of my current post and are willing to discuss it here (since we have six hours until 43 comes to MangaDex), then for all practical purposes you haven't read the next two chapters, 42 and 43.

As for the second part of your complaint, remember that Desir is not some demigod like spymaster; he's a teenage survivor of a massively bloody war that killed everything and almost everyone he knows. In this post return timeline, he has nothing except two party members, the support of two teachers, and a bit of a reputation as a rank 1 alpha class member. In the 10-ish hours between his first warning and the attack, there is no way anything he has is sufficient to conduct a pre-emptive attack. Hell, it's barely enough to convince the tower management to beef up defenses. Remember the random guard incredulously shouting, "They really did come"? That's an indication that "Desir's nonsense" is barely tolerated, not really accepted.

In short, the only plan possible for Desir and co. is a defense in depth consisting of three people and whatever killzone effect the guards manage to provide by accident, because that's the only worthwhile plan he can manage with the resources he has.

 

[aFFi]

Yeah, I read the chapters on Meraki's site. I was curious why you thought my comment was so stupid. Your comment was about what happens next, so I had to get myself informed.
That's why I used the spoiler tags.
I do remember where Desir comes from. That what makes everything dumber. He knows the risks, and he knows what ultimately happens if he fails (he did not love "almost" everyone, there was no survivors...)
Also,yeah, he doesn't have much... except seemingly an encyclopedic knowledge of everything that happened in his lifetime, down to the hour.

Spoiler

Now, he clearly stomped the bad guy in the sewers, even before using the gravity spell. I understand that he needed to wait for the attack to occur to help his credibility, but if they gave his team access to the chamber where the gem was stored, he had plenty of time and opportunity to stop the attack once the thieves were inside the building, but they did have to actually be in possession of the gem.
That was incredibly risky and stupid with no beneficial factor. Stop the villains just before the room, that way you've proven your point without taking unnecessary risks.

The fact that he knew the bad guy would escape through the sewers makes him a bit omniscient... and very convenient.
How the hell did he know what the thieves would do if their plans were thwarted? Remember that the first time around, they weren't. They actually stole the gem after incapacitating the whole complex, and then they probably left the same way they came.

Oh, another plot-hole that just came to my mind... If there's sewer just bellow the chamber of the gem, and the thieves knew of it (which they clearly did), why the hell make it a frontal assault. Just go into the sewer, get below the gem, blow up the floor and get out... if he magical barrier extends to this part too, well... that barrier didn't last long where the main entrance is, so it shouldn't be a problem.

You see, when you try to make clever moves in your clever plot with your clever MC, you actually need a clever author. If not, your story become PlotHoles-Land or Deus-Ex-Machina-Country way too quickly.

 

[DANDAN_THE_DANDAN]

@ninjadork Fair enough. You have convinced me.