Chapter 157

The Banana fell into the aid river.

The flailing figure vanished in an instant. He had been returned to the starting point.

It was while I was walking carefully, making sure not to slip on the water planks.

The trainees who had just crossed the bridge by hanging onto the ropes looked back at me.

They had only just stepped onto solid ground.

After exchanging glances, they suddenly shook the wafer bridge I was standing on.

Because it was so narrow, it swayed violently, and I had no choice but to fall.

I quickly grabbed the rope to stop my descent.

The trainees clicked their tongues and ran forward.

I was watching their backs as they entered the castle, just as I was about to move using the rope, when I noticed one trainee was still behind.

It was a trainee with small angel wings on the sides of his head.

His shaggy hair was long in the front, covering half his eyes, and because his shoulders were hunched, he looked timid relative to his height and build.

For some reason, he looked at me with a look of extreme nervousness.

Using the elasticity and recoil of the rope, I quickly crossed the bridge.

As I neared the ground, Angel Wings hurriedly reached out a hand to me

I grabbed Angel Wings’ hand and stepped onto the flat ground.

Then, while still holding the hand, I immediately spun my body and shoved Angel Wings downward.

"Ack! Trainee Han Goyo...!"

Hanging from the cookie cliff, Angel Wings called out to me desperately.

Trainee, huh? At the strange honorific, I looked down at Angel Wings and spoke.

"Who are you?"

Since all the other trainees were hostile toward me, it was only natural to be suspicious of someone suddenly pretending to help.

I planned to decide whether to pull him up from the cliff after hearing what he had to say.

Angel Wings stammered in a trembling voice.

"I, I...!"

However, he couldn’t finish his sentence.

This wasn’t a situation where I could believe he had reached out simply out of goodwill.

As I stared down at him and Angel Wings remained speechless, I turned around without hesitation.

Just as I was about to go on my way, Angel Wings shouted urgently.

"I was the one who pushed you!"

I didn’t expect to find the culprit this way. Nor did I expect it to be a guy like this.

I looked at Angel Wings with a slightly bewildered expression.

Under my gaze, Angel Wings shook his head from side to side.

"I-I didn’t want to either. But no matter how much I thought about it, it didn’t seem right..."

I demanded specific information from Angel Wings.

"What didn’t seem right? Tell me in more detail."

When I told him I would pull him up if he explained well, Angel Wings tearfully described the current situation.

Listening to his story, I could somewhat understand why the trainees were so hostile toward me.

Entering the Trial of the Suitable was an act of risking one’s life.

Since it was something no sane person would do, the Era Administration tended to emphasize a spirit of noble sacrifice.

They inflated a sense of pride by highlighting invisible devotion to the country, much like the black agents of the National Intelligence Service.

Then, a "jagged stone" appeared.

There was no way the trainees hadn’t looked up ’Han Goyo’.

Their thought was singular: while they had plunged into the world of the trial with a sense of mission, some guy who just clicked a mouse and tapped a keyboard had entered the Special Task Team position through sheer luck, without any resolve.

’So it’s a case of a jobless guy rolling in and kicking out the established stone.’

Having confessed everything to me, Angel Wings was now acting sorrowful, as if he were the one who had suffered an injustice.

I summarized his story simply for him.

"So, you’re saying that while you were the one who pushed me, the other trainees are the real villains?"

Angel Wings muttered despondently.

"I’m sorry..."

"And why the sudden confession of conscience now?"

"..That is."

Since the answer was taking too long, I reached out as if to drop him off the cliff.

At that, Angel Wings screamed.

’I-I was a fan!"

"I, I really liked you. I watched all your matches... though only through videos... So, I thought it would be better if I pushed you safely, rather than letting the others do it..."

"..."

His way of thinking seemed a bit warped.

As I remained silent, Angel Wings read my expression and called out.

"Trainee...?"

I silently reached out my hand. With a face that instantly brightened, Angel Wings grabbed my hand and climbed up.

"Thank you for saving me!"

Then, he shouted with great enthusiasm.

"I will help you, Trainee. Please order me to do anything."

In reality, I would be the one helping him, but I didn’t bother saying so.

Even if he had some ulterior motive, Hop-and-Pop wasn’t a dangerous trial, so letting him follow me seemed fine.

I shifted my gaze to the side.

While I was talking to Angel Wings, the revived trainees were crossing the bridge again.

At the front, I saw Yellow Banana advancing fiercely while gripping the rope.

When our eyes met, he seemed to be cursing at me, but it was too far to hear clearly.

It would be best to enter the castle before Banana arrived.

I took the lead, and Angel Wings quickly followed behind.

At that moment, the sheep-head slime on my shoulder spoke.

"Roasted Chestnut."

He squished his body and made a suggestion.

"How about taking this one in as a subordinate? He’s quite decent. He has a few flaws, but they can be sufficiently corrected."

Decent enough to please Dominic?

I glanced at Angel Wings.

Certainly, the fact that he hadn’t fallen from the wafer bridge suggested he wasn’t lacking in ability.

But he was a trainee.

Considering the list of people Dominic had liked so far, this was highly suspicious.

’But why isn’t the system window telling me to register him?’

It used to be so annoying, but lately, it felt like it was slacking off on its duties.

With questions about Angel Wings and the system window in mind, I first entered the Cookie Castle.

Once inside, the actual stage appeared.

The first stage required advancing across a slippery floor while avoiding rotating sweepers.

Several giant churro sticks were rotating in various places.

Every time a churro spun, dropping cinnamon sugar powder, waves rose from the pink syrup covering the floor.

I had to move forward while avoiding the rotating churro sticks, but because the syrup made the floor slippery, it was easy to fall.

Once you slipped, it was hard to get back up.

If you flailed on the floor, a churro stick would come along and blast you far away.

Not only that, but I had to carefully observe the patterns drawn in the square tiles on the floor.

The checkerboard floor had patterns that changed at regular intervals; stepping on an ’X’ mark would launch the body in a random direction.

I saw the trainees ahead of me struggling to walk across the syrup floor.

In the midst of it, one was hit by a churro and sent flying.

He barely managed to stop at the edge of the floor and avoided falling, but he flailed pathetically on the syrup surface.

The other two were advancing safely.

At this rate, they would enter the second stage before me.

’That won’t do.’

I stepped onto the syrup floor.

However, instead of advancing, I observed the movement of the churro sticks and positioned myself in the perfect spot.

One of the trainees ahead looked back, spotted me, and wore a look of disbelief.

It seemed he found it absurd that I was standing still when I should be rushing forward.

"Trainee..?"

Angel Wings also called out to me, sounding bewildered.

I just slightly turned my head and told him.

"Just watch what I do and follow suit."

When I spoke politely, Angel Wings replied in confusion.

’Huh? But, I can’t do things like you, Trainee Han Goyo..."

"If you could hold on to the wafer bridge, you can do this."

A churro stick approached from behind me.

I waited a bit longer. And when the perfect timing arrived I jumped, matching the angle.

Thump.

Along with the feeling of a heavy hit, my body shot forward like an arrow.

If you timed the power and angle of the stick correctly, it was possible to make a jump that leaped over the entire stage.

Since it was my first time trying it with my own body, I had considered a retry, but fortunately, I succeeded on the first attempt.

The trainees stared wide-eyed as I flew through the air in a parabola.

Having skipped the stage in one leap, I landed lightly on solid ground.

Simultaneously, curses erupted from everywhere.

"What the hell is that guy? What was that just now!"

I felt extremely satisfied.

I gave a smile to those flailing on the syrup floor.

Following my lead, Angel Wings also used a churro stick to leap over the entire stage.

Angel Wings gasped for breath, his eyes wide.

"Haa, haa... This actually works...!"

"Let’s go."

I moved immediately to the next stage with Angel Wings.

The second stage was a large candy disc.

We had to cross it by foot, and anything outside the disc was judged as a fall.

Miscellaneous items were scattered across the disc.

I strode across the bridge, picked up a marshmallow glove from the disc, and equipped it.

"Find the same one and put it on."

"Yes!"

Angel Wings also found and equipped a glove, then asked me.

"But what are we supposed to do here?"

I bumped my fists together with a pop-pop sound.

While I was checking if the gloves were in good condition, a trainee happened to enter.

It was the guy who had been leading the pack in the first stage.

He immediately crossed the bridge and ran toward the disc.

Seeing him reach straight for the good items, I was certain.

’He knows the strategy.’

It seemed someone had told them the walkthrough for Hop-and-Pop.

The leading trio definitely seemed to know, and the other trainees were suspicious as well.

They might have known the strategy but lacked the reflexes to react to the timing of the bridge collapsing.

I trotted lightly toward the trainee.

And before he could pick up the item, I smacked him with the glove.

Wham!

And with a cheerful striking sound, the trainee was sent flying.

"Aaaaaagh!"

As the trainee fell below the disc, I gave a slight nod and gave Angel Wings a simple explanation.

"Just beat up everyone who comes in."

Angel Wings’ mouth hung open. I calmly added.

"We’ll beat them all once here and then move to the next stage."

’Lieutenant Colonel, Captains, Samra. I’m sorry.’

I had intended to be a moderately "jagged stone" so as not to bring shame to the Special Task Team’s name, but it seemed I would have to become a massive jagged stone.

Looking at how things were going, I couldn’t afford to finish with a mediocre rank.

If I didn’t win by an overwhelming margin, the atmosphere would be such that the Special Task Team would be criticized for giving preferential treatment to a "parachute" trainee.

Having changed my goal, I taught Angel Wings how to use the items and the gimmicks of the stage.

Before long, new trainees arrived.

"Huh? What’s this?"

It was the other two who had been swimming through the syrup floor.

Sensing something strange, they approached me with high alertness.

I picked up a jelly ball I had piled up in a corner.

The baseball-sized jelly ball was soft, but the impact upon hitting was considerable.

Mimicking a pitcher’s form, I threw it, and the jelly ball flew powerfully.

Thwack.

A clean hit.

"Urgh!"

One trainee, hit by the jelly ball, staggered and fell.

As he looked at me with bewildered eyes, I quickly fired a barrage of jelly balls.

Thwack thwack thwack thwack thwack.

After about five consecutive hits, he was pushed back and fell off the candy disc without even being able to counterattack.

"Aaaagh! You cheating bastard...!"

The loser fell, leaving behind a pathetic complaint.

The remaining one was handled by Angel Wings.

He launched a rope made of string jelly, swiftly wrapping it around the opponent’s body and throwing them down.

Of course, I had taught him how to use the items, but his skill in handling the rope was proficient.

Having dealt with one person, Angel Wings seemed to surge with confidence; he approached me and declared solemnly.

"I will protect you."

I thought it would be the other way around, but again, I didn’t say it.

After waiting a bit, the other trainees arrived in a crowd.

It was Banana and his friends.

They swarmed onto the disc, spitting curses.

Since the disc wasn’t very wide, having a large number of people was a disadvantage for my side.

I tied a string jelly to a ring on the floor and held it in one hand.

With the other hand, I picked up a jelly ball and threw it toward the ceiling.

The jelly ball hit exactly where I wanted, and a cheerful broadcast voice rang out.

"Three, two, one, start!"

Vroooom!

A giant ventilation fan began to spin from the ceiling.

Everything on the candy disc began to float in the air.

Suddenly floating, everyone started flailing.

This was a hidden gimmick, so they wouldn’t have known.

Only Angel Wings and I were holding onto the string jelly ropes fixed to the floor, enduring the wind.

When the fan abruptly stopped, the trainees rained down onto the floor.

Upon landing on the candy disc, they were paralyzed for a few seconds.

"Urgh!"

"Crazy, ack..!"

I quickly ran over and beat them down with the gloves.

The tactile feel of the marshmallow gloves was quite satisfying.

I was particularly focused on beating Banana.

"Fuck, knock Han Goyo off first!!"

Banana screamed. The surviving trainees all began to target me at once.

Unconsciously, the corners of my mouth curled up.

Just as a brawling was about to begin-

"Trainee! I’ll help you!!"

Angel Wings came running toward me.

In his arms was a popping candy bomb.

In the blink of an eye

Pop-pop-pop!

The popping candy exploded, and all the surrounding trainees, including Angel Wings, were blown off the disc.

Only I and Banana remained on the disc.

I stared blankly at the scattering remnants of candy.

"Ah, fuck."

Banana cursed and sneered at me.

"Hey. You’re a Special Task Team trainee, but you’re fucking terrible."

"I guess so."

I honestly admitted it.

"I’lI have to work harder."

And I changed my plan.

I decided not to take first place.

***

From the moment Han Goyo entered Hop-and-Pop, Won Tae-beom felt as if he were slightly losing his mind.

Since The Cell-X, he hadn’t rested his thoughts on Han Go-yo for a single moment.

That ecstatic memory of being enveloped in perfect silence would not let Won Tae-beom go.

Once he escaped the golden influence, the auditory hallucinations that returned felt even more painful than before.

What tormented Won Tae-beom wasn’t just the longing for silence.

The protective instinct, the feeling that he must protect the young god also plagued him.

He didn’t know if this was truly his own intact emotion.

Considering he had been seized by the blind faith of the young god, it was possible that some of it still remained within him.

However, Won Tae-beom...

From the moment he witnessed the miracle of resurrection after three days of death, he had felt an intense temptation.

Even if he were to be blinded by blind faith again, he wanted to reside beneath that golden light.

Was there any reason to think about other things?

He only needed to desire and want the young god. That would be the utmost happiness.

Amidst this confusion, he entered Hop-and-Pop with Han Goyo.

With Han Goyo right before his eyes, the manic thoughts he had barely suppressed began to run wild.

Won Tae-beom struggled tirelessly to maintain the attitude of a neutral instructor.

Along with the urge to protect, worry surged within him.

This was because the reputation of Han Goyo among the trainees was not good.

Since instructors did not intervene regardless of what happened within Hop-and-Pop, there was a high possibility that the trainees would bully Han Goyo.

Even knowing it wasn’t a dangerous trial, he was worried.

He was just a child being dragged around powerlessly.

The image of him being happy over a single sandwich in The Cell-X, and his gentle smile while giving a slightly clumsy salute when their eyes met in the classroom today, were vivid.

It was while he was straining to wear the mask of a fair instructor.

"That bastard is a complete psycho!"

"Crazy guy. Totally insane."

"No, fuck, what the hell is that guy trying to do right now!"

Trainees continued to revive at the starting point.

They would pour out curses toward Han Goyo, then belatedly shut their mouths upon noticing Won Tae-beom’s gaze, and this cycle repeated.

Furthermore, from a certain point, the number of trainees who had exhausted all their hearts and become spectators was increasing.

Something was clearly happening.

No matter how he looked at it, it seemed Han Goyo was being bullied by the other trainees.

The moment the thought occurred that he was barely enduring the harsh bullying of the trainees alone, he could no longer stand it.

Won Tae-beom immediately began to break through Hop-and-Pop.

Having entered countless times, passing through the stages took only an instant.

However, even after passing several stages, Han Goyo was nowhere to be seen.

’Where the hell is he?’

The place where he finally found Han Goyo was the final stage.

Han Goyo was perfectly fine. He was simply standing before the finish line like a gatekeeper, holding a giant lollipop.

"Fuuuuuuck!"

"Just end it already!!"

"Please, just go in! Just take first place already!!"

The trainees screamed as they charged toward the finish line.

My heart sank.

Just as I was about to stop them-

Whack!

Han Goyo swung the lollipop like a baseball bat.

A trainee was struck squarely by the candy and sent flying out of bounds.

Watching the trainee soar into the distance, Han Go-yo said with a smirk,

"Wow, a home run!"