Chapter 71
Min-Seo checked the note as soon as the exam began.
The condition to pass the first checkpoint was "entering the Ark within the time limit." Since the Ark was on top of a mountain, the candidates inevitably had to climb it. After finishing her calculations, Min-Seo gave her instructions to Ha-Yeon and Su-Ryeon and used a blessing to scavenge throughout the meadow.
"...Is this enough?"
Soon, she found a suitable rock. The rock was short and wide, resembling a steel plate. She wrapped her body around the rock and drew a blessing array, causing a collision.
Boom!
The shockwave from the blessing array collision launched the rock into the sky. Min-Seo flew into the sky by clinging to the rock.
"Phew... Wheeze, wheeze... I can do it. I can do it. Wheeze,” Min-Seo murmured as she flew through the sky. Blood poured from her mouth.
Her internal organs were slightly ruptured from the explosion, and it felt like her legs were broken, but it didn't matter. Even if she got injured or died inside Ark, she wouldn’t really get injured or die. After all, everything that happened inside the Ark was nothing but an illusion. The pain was just a trick played by her brain.
Bang!
Min-Seo flew across the sky and fell near the mountaintop, making a sound in the process that resembled a crashing meteorite. Min-Seo forced her battered body up.
"Fuuuuck, why’d they have to do such a good job of making the pain seem real."
Of course, even though this was an illusion, she still felt pain. Min-Seo stumbled towards the apex of the mountain, cradling her stomach with her seemingly ruptured organs.
Walking was excruciatingly painful, and her injuries were severe, but with the help of the blessing array and healing array, she managed to perform emergency treatment and could take a few steps.
Using the blessing array and healing array on a body injured by itself was a recipe for disaster. Even if it were fine in the short term to use divine power for recovery, she would suffer from significant consequences. However, Min-Seo didn't care. After all, everything was just an illusion.
"Phew."
Soon, Min-Seo arrived at the mountaintop. Rain pelted down from the skies, and the meadow below gradually filled up with water. Students were running from the meadow towards the mountain in disarray. Their appearance resembled ants fleeing from the rain.
Min-Seo infused divine power into her holy artifact, the Burning Bush Twig. She had two twigs of the burning bush, one connected to Ha-Yeon, and the other connected to Su-Ryeon.
The twig she had just infused with divine power was connected to Su-Ryeon.
"Test, test. Su-Ryeon. Can you hear me? If you can, respond."
—Yeah, I hear you. Why?
"Which way are you coming from?"
—I’m taking the shortcut with Jun-Hyuk~ All is going according to plan!
"Okay." Min-Seo nodded with a satisfied smile.
Through illegal pathways, she had received intel that the re-election test for the Holy Name of Charity was divided into the first checkpoint and the second checkpoint.
Candidates would be weeded out during the first checkpoint, and then the standings obtained from the second checkpoint would be compiled to select the new Holy Name of Charity.
Min-Seo's plan was to eliminate everyone except Sun-Woo and Jun-Hyuk at the first checkpoint. Thus, they would face each other at the second checkpoint.
The reason why Min-Seo was on top of the mountain, risking death by explosion, was all for the plan.
—But aren't you on disciplinary probation? Are you sure about doing this? What if you get caught?
"What if? In that case, I'll face the consequences. I’ll just take a break from school. I wanted to take a break anyway."
—You're really a crazy one, aren’t you? Alright, I understand.
Su-Ryeon cheerfully hung up the call.
As the sparks on the twig gradually diminished, Su-Ryeon's voice also faded away.
Min-Seo was currently under disciplinary probation. If it was discovered that she had illegally obtained information about the re-election test, things wouldn’t end with a minor disciplinary action but could lead to suspension or even expulsion.
However, Min-Seo wasn't afraid. She was confident that she wouldn't get caught. With a strange smile that made others uncomfortable, she silently drew a blessing array.
"Everything is ready here as well."
She looked at the blessing array she had drawn and nodded in satisfaction. She had drawn a fusion blessing array formed by connecting a total of twelve blessing arrays. However, it didn't activate—it wasn’t meant to.
As soon as Min-Seo completed the blessing array, she infused divine power into the twig connected to Ha-Yeon. The Burning Bush Twig caught fire, and soon Ha-Yeon's voice came through the static.
"Ha-Yeon. Can you hear me? If you can, respond."
—Ah... Wha... Hel...
"...What? Can you hear me or not? Hey, answer me!"
Even though Min-Seo called again, there was no response, only static. However, she could still hear Ha-Yeon's voice and Sun-Woo's voice. It seemed that she had at least managed to approach Sun-Woo, but whether she had successfully guided him through the "shortcut" remained uncertain.
"Hey, hey! Are you coming through the shortcut? Can you hear me? Are you listening?"
—Thank... off...
"Hey, you little stuck-up dad-leeching parasite!! Huh, still no response?"
Min-Seo tilted her head. It seemed like the connection was established, but her words couldn't be heard from the other side. Well, at least she could hear Ha-Yeon’s and Sun-Woo's voices. It seemed like it would be better to assume things were going roughly according to plan.
Min-Seo looked down at the path below. She watched the students struggling—they looked ridiculous with their pained expressions crawling up the steep slope. Was this what a bear felt like when they saw salmon swimming against the current toward them? She couldn’t help but smile as the prey were walking into a trap all on their own.
"Now..." Min-Seo muttered in a low voice as she unleashed divine power.
"You've done a great job climbing up, and I apologize."
Bababaaang–!
The blessing array she had drawn collided with the fusion blessing array she had drawn earlier. The blessing arrays intertwined and collided, causing a chain explosion.
Ku-gu-gu-gu...
The gravel and rocks scattered on the mountaintop, along with the mud that had become heavy and viscous from the rain, emitted a sound resembling a resounding scream. They soon merged into a mass and rolled down the mountain.
The mass flowed down the ridgeline, growing in size, and eventually became a giant wave that swept away trees with deep roots and the like. The landslide that Min-Seo had so diligently set in motion swept away the students climbing up the path. They would be considered dead and immediately expelled from the Ark.
The only safe path from this massive landslide was Min-Seo's “shortcut.” All the other students who were ignorant about the location of this shortcut, let alone know that there was a shortcut at all, would be swept away by the landslide and disqualified, except for Sun-Woo and Jun-Hyuk, guided by Ha-Yeon and Su-Ryeon.
Therefore, only Sun-Woo and Jun-Hyuk would pass the first checkpoint. As for who would win between the two at the second checkpoint, it was left for fate and capital to decide.
"Wow, this is going to hurt," Min-Seo muttered, looking down at the students.
The students screamed, shouted, and descended into the landslide, their faces engraved with despair.
***
The landslide was approaching. No matter how optimistic one was, the enormous landslide could not be avoided. It was approaching with a threatening force that seemingly would engulf Ha-Rin and me at any moment.
"What, huh, what, huh?" Ha-Rin muttered with a blank gaze, seemingly unable to grasp the reality of the catastrophe unfolding before her.
Her words lacked meaning and dispersed into nothingness.
Ruuuuumble!
"──...?"
Soon, as the deafening noise caused by the landslide drew closer, Ha-Rin's voice became inaudible. The sound of the collapsing mountain and the occasional screams from the students being swept away by the landslide filled the surroundings.
I stared blankly at the approaching landslide. It felt as if time had momentarily slowed down. Could it be that what Ha-Yeon said earlier was true? Was this path indeed a trap, as Ha-Yeon claimed, where one would inevitably be disqualified? Was Ha-Yeon's claim that she knew the shortcut also true? In the end, was Ha-Yeon right, and was I wrong for not believing her?
I didn't want to admit it.
“──.”
Bossou.
[Landslide! Bossou likes landslides. They're noisy.]
“──.”
I ignored Bossou's nonsensical remark and gave him an order.
[...I’ll obey the command of the Prophet. However, it's dangerous. Are you sure about this?]
Unlike usual, Bossou responded with a cold warning. But there was no room for reconsideration. I used his power.
My blood boiled up in an instant. My body, previously soaked in rain and chillingly cold, now burned hot. My hair stood on end, and the back of my eyeballs stung with pain. I didn't know for sure, but it felt like my intracranial pressure had increased, damaging my optic nerves. My vision was blurry, and I couldn't see well.
[Power has exceeded the Prophet's limit. You will suffer from the load.]
“──.”
[It’s not fine. You might lose your eyesight.]
No, I was fine. Everything happening within the Ark was just an illusion.
Even if I lost my eyesight, it would be no different from losing it in a dream. The excruciating pain that I felt with my body tearing apart was just phantom pain. All of these were injuries that would heal once I left the Ark.
This moment was the only time when I could fully utilize Bossou's power to its maximum extent without worrying about the state of my body.
Ruuuuumble—!!
Before the landslide could engulf me, I grabbed Ha-Rin's wrist and climbed up a nearby tree during that fleeting moment. The tree, unable to withstand the force of the landslide, swayed precariously as if it would collapse at any moment. Although I hurriedly climbed up the tree, I didn't think I could stay there for long.
"Urgh...!" I held Ha-Rin’s wrist, but she screamed while clutching her shoulder.
Her shoulder seemed to have dislocated while I was pulling her wrist. It couldn’t be helped—I couldn't control my strength with Bossou’s power coursing through me. However, even so, seeing Ha-Rin screaming in pain made me uncomfortable.
Ha-Rin cried out in pain, and I lay her on the tree.
Crack!
I struck my father's ring against the tree. The gem embedded in the ring cracked, and the Voodoo mist I had infused into the ring slowly flowed out beyond the rift. The mist approached the half-conscious Ha-Rin.
"Ah...?" Soon, Ha-Rin let out a scream and passed out.
But she didn't close her eyes. Her pupils peeking through her half-open eyelids were unfocused as if fixated on something beyond her consciousness. The spell I imbued in the ring was an enthrallment spell, specifically a “hallucination” spell, and it was especially powerful.
Unlike the curse of fainting, the hallucination spell maintained the target's consciousness. However, the boundary between consciousness and unconsciousness of the target would become blurred, and their cognitive abilities would decline below normal. It rendered the person under the influence to question any situation unfolding before them. With skillful manipulation, one could even control the target.
I had chosen the spell because, unlike the curse of a fainting spell, it had versatile applications. Unfortunately, for now, I resorted to using it as a sedative to put Ha-Rin to sleep. It would be a lie to say I was disappointed, but I needed to put Ha-Rin to sleep anyway. I needed her by my side to prove my “hypothesis.”
For the next ten minutes, Ha-Rin would sleep. The urgent situation had been temporarily resolved.
"...Ha, damn it." Even so, a curse slipped out of my lips.
The real problem wasn't Ha-Rin.
Ruuuuuumble–!
Mud, rocks, gravel, and trees poured down from above. Once the landslide started, it continued to pour down with great force. We had to climb the mountain to enter Ark within the time limit, but it didn’t seem like the landslide would stop in time. However, we couldn't ride along the treetops either. The landslide swept away all the trees. The tree I was on was the last one standing.
[Bossou recommends breaking through this landslide.] Bossou suggested a solution to break through the landslide.
Bossou's power, maximized in output by sacrificing my optic nerves, might be enough to achieve it. No, it was definitely possible.
"..."
However, the force of the landslide was no joke. Even a graze could tear through my flesh. Even if that didn't happen, I would have to endure an immense amount of pain. Fear dominated my thoughts, and doubts crept in.
Was it possible to break through the landslide and climb the mountain? Did Bossou propose an absurd solution?
Snap!
The situation didn't give me a moment to think. The tree couldn't withstand the force of the landslide and snapped. It was time to make a choice.
***
"...Huh? Why are there so few people around?" Jun-Hyuk questioned as he looked around curiously. He had reached the top.
Su-Ryeon had guided him to the mountaintop through a shortcut. She smiled mischievously and replied, "Well, I wonder why."
Although her answer seemed somewhat suspicious, Jun-Hyuk didn't dwell on it and continued forward eagerly. Finally, he arrived at the large Ark resting on the rock. Due to its massive size, the Ark gave the impression of an additional mountain atop the mountain.
“Wow... They've really made it seem so real." Jun-Hyuk marveled as he scanned the Ark.
Thump!
With a swift kick, Su-Ryeon launched a fierce attack from behind Jun-Hyuk. Jun-Hyuk, unable to even scream, tumbled into Noah's Ark.
“...What was that fo–”
Trrrrk!
A halo of pure white light enveloped Jun-Hyuk as he stared at Su-Ryeon with betrayed eyes. Eventually, he merged with the halo and disappeared.
—Observation Code 065626, Jun-Hyuk, Ark entry. 1:02:32.72.
Then, a mechanical sound emanated from the Ark, indicating that Jun-Hyuk had passed the first checkpoint and successfully proceeded to the second checkpoint.
While Su-Ryeon wore a satisfied smile after completing the mission, Min-Seo approached from behind her with big strides.
"What's up? Did you send Jun-Hyuk in?"
"Yes, just now."
"Okay, that's one down. As for Sun-Woo..." Min-Seo's eyes widened as she trailed off.
Walking through the shortcut from afar, Ha-Yeon approached, but Sun-Woo was not by her side.
Ha-Yeon had been tasked with bringing Sun-Woo. Why was she here alone...? Min-Seo's face contorted in a grotesque manner.
"Hey, where's Sun-Woo?"
"No matter how much I tried to persuade him, he refused to come. I couldn't do anything about it."
"Wasn’t it your role to persuade him against all means to bring him along? Or is that just how I think taking on a role works?"
"That's why I told you I would go with Jun-Hyuk." As Min-Seo growled, Ha-Yeon retaliated with an impassive expression.
Su-Ryeon observed the argument without intervening. Although the normal course of action was to try and diffuse the situation, for some reason, she didn't feel like doing so now. After all, everything happening inside the Ark was an illusion. Watching them fight seemed amusing.
"So, now, Sun-Woo is not taking the shortcut but heading through the fucking landslide?”
"Yes." Ha-Yeon nodded, showing no signs of regret.
Judging by the look on her face, she didn't seem to feel the need to feel regret in the first place.
Min-Seo's face crumpled in frustration. "Ha, look at your expression. You better stop messing around, cuddled under your father’s wings."
As soon as Min-Seo mentioned her parents, Ha-Yeon's previously expressionless face contorted with displeasure. The atmosphere felt tense, and it felt like a fight would erupt at any moment.
‘Their relationship is really messed up.’ Su-Ryeon thought, taking a step back and silently enjoying the spectacle during the explosive situation.
The seven, or currently, six, members of the student council all had sub-par relationships with each other, especially Min-Seo. If she ever felt the slightest displeasure with someone, she would start a fight. Su-Ryeon always found herself in the position of mediating those fights.
"Hey, let's not fight among ourselves─"
"Judging by the way you speak, you don't even seem to have a trustworthy father."
"..."
Whoa.
Su-Ryeon was about to stop the fight, when she froze in her tracks and studied Min-Seo's expression. Min-Seo wore the most grotesque expression she had ever seen. Ha-Yeon's completely empty eyes, stared blankly at her.
Min-Seo and Ha-Yeon had both crossed the line. This wasn't a fight that could be stopped easily. Whether they exchanged punches or crossed blades, it was clear that this wouldn't be a fight Su-Ryeon could prevent from happening.
"...Whatever. Do as you wish." Su-Ryeon resigned and turned away.
Divine power flowed from Min-Seo's fingertips. Ha-Yeon crossed her arms and looked down at her with a relaxed expression as if daring her to strike.
"Are you an animal? You seem to habitually resort to violence once you’re out of options."
"Oh, yeah. People like you seem to come to their senses quickly after a beat-up. I guess you don’t know because your dad has never hit you?"
"...Your words are vulgar, just like you."
"You really need to change that fucking way of talking like you’re sorting people into categories—"
Kgggrk—!
Min-Seo was angrily rushing toward Ha-Yeon but came to a halt. They could hear a splitting sound coming from the direction of the collapsed path caused by the landslide she had made.
KGGGRRRRGGKK—-!
The sound approached, getting closer to the top of the mountain. Ha-Yeon, Min-Seo, and Su-Ryeon, watching the situation from afar, all listened carefully. It was too big and weird of a sound to ignore.
Withdrawing her unleashed divine power, Min-Seo looked beyond the landslide she had caused. The path that was steeply carved due to the landslide had gathered the rain, bucketing down into a single cascade. The current of the waterfall was as strong as the rain. It was impossible to climb up through this waterfall. Or so it should have been.
As if mocking that thought, someone was climbing up against the waterfall. Using something like a plank as a shield to block the water, he was calmly climbing toward the top.
Kggrk...
Finally, the sound stopped. The man who scaled the waterfall to the top nonchalantly discarded the plank he had used as a shield and walked past Min-Seo and Ha-Yeon, who had been fighting each other silently, and made his way to the Ark.
"..."
Ha-Yeon looked at the man.
There was not a single inch of his body that was unscathed. His clothes were torn, and his flesh was cut or exposed. His soaked hair from the waterfall, stuck to his face, and tears of blood flowed from his lifeless eyes.
"That guy is insane─"
- Exam number 041666, Sun-Woo, Ark entry. 1:09:12.67.
Min-Seo laughed sarcastically as she watched Sun-Woo's back. It was truly awe-inspiring.
—Exam number 032811, Ha-Rin, Ark entry. 1:09:13.02.
At that moment, consecutive announcements echoed from the Ark. Min-Seo opened her eyes wide after hearing them.
"...Wow. This guy is completely insane."
Behind Sun-Woo, someone was hanging there unconsciously.
Sun-Woo had climbed up against the waterfall to reach the mountaintop, using only a single plank to block the harsh waters, all while carrying a burden on his back. And this was while his body was bleeding—he was even crying tears of blood.
Min-Seo stared at Sun-Woo as he passed by with his blank eyes. She had seen this look before when the bird demonic beast that had abducted Jin-Seo and Jun-Hyuk and he had shot it down with a mere stone.
—Exam number 041666 Sun-Woo, ‘2. [Unreleased Condition] met.
—Exam number 032811 Ha-Rin. ‘2 [Unreleased Condition] met.
It was the look in his eyes when he made the impossible possible.
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