Chapter 72
"Ugh, ugh... uh..." Strange sounds flowed out of my mouth.
My vision was red. Whether it was blood flowing from my forehead or blood streaming out of my eyes, I couldn't tell. But it didn't matter. If I had made it to the Ark, it was enough.
—Participant number 041666, Sun-Woo, Ark entry. 1:09:12.67.
—Participant number 041666, Sun-Woo, ‘2 [Unreleased Condition]’ met.
As I finally entered Ark, a harsh mechanical sound accompanied the halo that enveloped me. Immediately afterward, my red vision gradually turned white, and drowsiness washed over me.
The pains that had plagued me all over my body began to fade away little by little.
"Heh, heh..." I found myself unintentionally laughing.
It wasn't just because I had passed the first checkpoint. It was because Ha-Yeon was wrong when she said that the easy path was a trap. It was indeed a trap, but I had managed to avoid elimination. Not only that, but I even fulfilled the undisclosed second condition and passed the first checkpoint.
I was not wrong. Ha-Yeon was wrong, and ultimately, my judgment not to trust Ha-Yeon was correct. I was so delighted about the fact that I found myself laughing without even realizing it. The halo wrapped around me, and I was met with a flash of brilliant light, but my smile stayed on my face till I lost consciousness.
***
"That was Sun-Woo who just passed by, right? Wow... he’s a fierce one, isn’t he?" Su-Ryeon said while rubbing her arms as if feeling a chill.
She thought of Sun-Woo, who had blood splattered all over his body and bloody tears streaming down his face as he split the waterfall. He seemed like another person compared to the laughing fool who took care of In-Ah and Jun-Hyuk.
...A completely different person?
"..."
While Su-Ryeon was shaking her head due to a weird feeling she had, Ha-Yeon was staring blankly at the spot Sun-Woo had passed. Her eyes, which had not shown a single change in emotion even in the midst of arguing with Min-Seo, were flickering noticeably. Fear was evident in her eyes.
"That guy, he's really something." Min-Seo's arrogant tone broke the silence.
The smile on her lips was as chilling as ever. She looked at Ha-Yeon with a calm expression on her face.
"Hey."
Ha-Yeon turned her head at the calling voice. It wasn't as intense as before, but there was still a hint of fear lingering on her face. It was the face of a person who hadn't fully regained their composure.
No one could tell what had frightened Ha-Yeon so much. However, since there was no need to know, Min-Seo decided not to ask and only relay what she had to say.
"I'm sorry about earlier. You had it all figured out, right?"
"Huh...?"
"Well, didn't you calculate that he would make his own way here? If you had shared your plan in advance, we wouldn't have had to fight. Things would have gone differently," Min-Seo chuckled.
Her laugh sounded villainous. Ha-Yeon looked silently at Min-Seo with an uneasy expression as Min-Seo had pushed Ha-Yeon’s already dazed mind into a deeper state. Ha-Yeon struggled to suppress her overwhelming confusion and slowly nodded.
"Yes, well..."
"Anyway, everything went according to plan. Let's get out of here."
The venom filling Min-Seo's eyes suddenly disappeared. Min-Seo unfolded the note she received as soon as the test began and quickly scanned it.
"What? Why isn't the way out written here? Can't we forfeit? I want to leave."
"...If you tear the note, you'll be able to leave. I'll go first."
Rip.
Once Ha-Yeon tore the note, a light started emanating from her body. More precisely, her body gradually transformed into light and disappeared. Eventually, Ha-Yeon's form vanished without a trace.
"How does she know that? Is it because her dad made this?" Min-Seo said with a puzzled look. "Well... Anyway, I'm leaving too. Su-Ryeon, join me quickly."
"Byeee."
"Pfft. Byeee, my ass. We'll see each other right after we leave."
Rip!
Min-Seo ripped the note with a snort. Soon, her body also turned into light and vanished. Su-Ryeon watched the disappearing Min-Seo and felt a strange sense of unease.
Just moments ago, Min-Seo looked like she was ready to kill Ha-Yeon, but she suddenly apologized to Ha-Yeon as soon as things went according to plan. The change in attitude was too abrupt. It was as if she were a different person.
"A different person."
Rip.
Su-Ryeon suddenly thought that Sun-Woo and Min-Seo resembled each other in strange ways as she tore her note. Soon, her body also transformed into light and disappeared.
***
When I regained consciousness, I was sitting in a chair. In front of me was a massive dining table with the food and wine of communion set upon it.
"Arrgh, Su-Su-Ryeon, where the hell did that bastard go?"
"God, you scared me. What’s going on?"
At that moment, someone suddenly shouted. Startled, I turned my head and saw Jun-Hyuk. Sweat trickled down his forehead, and his eyes were bloodshot. He looked extremely angry.
"..Huh? Where am I? Ey? Sun-Woo, why are you here?" Jun-Hyuk asked with a puzzled expression while looking around.
Since I didn't know why I was there or where this place was, I just silently looked at Jun-Hyuk.
Click, clack, click, clack.
Then, I heard shoes clacking coming from a distance. I turned my head in the direction of the sound and saw someone walking slowly toward us with a faint smile on their face. They wore a robe that was as blue as the sea.
"Welcome, all of you examinees who passed the first checkpoint!"
It was Noah. He laughed heartily and adjusted the cuff of his loose robe.
"Although, all of you are just three of you. Hahaha. Well, anyway, the reason we gathered you here is..."
"Just a moment, Noah... Mr. Noah?"
As Noah continued his explanation, someone raised their hand and spoke in a weak and feeble voice. It was Ha-Rin. She looked at Noah with a dazed expression and barely managed to speak up.
"I have no memory of making it to the Ark or even making it past the first checkpoint. I just opened my eyes, and I was here."
"Ah~ Ha-Rin! Right, right. You’re saying that you woke up and found yourself behind the first checkpoint and that this must be some mistake, right? "
"Oh, yes." Ha-Rin nodded and tightly bit her lip.
Noah looked between Ha-Rin and me with a cheerful smile on his face and chirped, "To keep it short, it wasn’t a mistake! While you were unconscious, Sun-Woo carried you over there and into the Ark!"
"Aha, I see... huh? Sun-Woo? What?"
Ha-Rin looked at me with a confused expression on her face. I avoided her gaze and turned my eyes toward Noah. He was looking at me with a glimmering gaze as if he was looking at something interesting. His looks were burdensome. I couldn't decide whether to look at Ha-Rin or Noah. Lowering my head seemed like the best option.
"Hahaha, well, as you just heard, Sun-Woo carried you into the Ark. Do you need further explanation?"
"Well, no... But why me?"
"Exactly, why! That why is an important question! That's exactly the question I wanted to ask!" Noah pointed at Ha-Rin excitedly.
Ha-Rin's startled shoulders tensed up a little. There was something about excited Noah that felt slightly unsettling. Soon, Noah turned his gaze toward me. His eyes overwhelmed me as they sparkled with an intense and piercing gaze.
"Sun-Woo, let me ask again. Why did you carry Ha-Rin into the Ark?"
"... "
It was a difficult question to answer. I remained silent for a moment. There were two reasons why I had carried Ha-Rin to the Ark. One was Baron Samedi's prophecy. His warning to not go alone had suddenly come to mind.
However, it wasn't solely because of Baron Samedi's prophecy that I went through the hardships of climbing the waterfall while carrying Ha-Rin on my back.
"I remembered a passage from the Holy Book."
Noah's face lit up when he heard my answer.
"A passage! What passage is it? Which chapter and verse?"
"I don't remember the verse, but it's probably Genesis, Chapter 6... I remembered when God told Noah to 'Bring every kind of living creature into the ark, two of each, male and female.’"
I tried to conclude my statement, but Noah continued to look at me with bright eyes as if he was expecting more.
‘What else should I say?’ After a brief hesitation, I managed to continue.
"Yes, considering the private condition might be related to that verse, I entered the Ark with Ha-Rin."
"Yes, the part you mentioned is Chapter 6, Verse 19. You deduced the second undisclosed condition through the contents of the Holy Book! Now, may I ask one more question?" Noah smiled, now seemingly satisfied.
Once I nodded my head, he said with a brighter expression, "What if your deduction was wrong?”
"What do you mean?"
"For instance, what if you didn't meet the undisclosed condition after all the trouble of carrying Ha-Rin?" Noah looked at me with eyes full of anticipation.
It was an unnecessary question.
"Well, then I would have been disappointed." I immediately responded.
"Hahahaha! Ah, that's truly remarkable. Yes. Hahaha, oh, hahaha. Man.”
I didn’t know what had gotten into him, but Noah laughed excessively, tilting his head back with exaggerated laughter. Jun-Hyuk, Ha-Rin, and I looked at the chuckling Noah with strange glances as if we were staring at a peculiar person.
"Ah, wow. That was amusing. It's been a long time since we’ve had a candidate who met the undisclosed conditions... Phew. Anyways, allow me to continue. The reason why you all are gathered here is because of this," Noah said after chuckling for a while. He took a deep breath to calm himself down from laughing and continued speaking. "It's to ask whether you would like to proceed to the second checkpoint!"
"Huh?" Jun-Hyuk questioned.
He must have been extremely puzzled, as his face was completely contorted. It was an expression I had never seen before. How could a face make such an expression? At this point, I was amazed at his ability.
Noah glanced briefly at Jun-Hyuk's face and continued speaking with a smile. "If you consume the communion before you, namely the bread and wine, you will be deemed to have the intention to participate in the second checkpoint. Then you will immediately be sent to the location of the second checkpoint."
"I see. So, if we eat this, we move on to the second checkpoint?" Jun-Hyuk asked with a bit of attitude.
Noah didn't seem to mind at all and simply answered, "Yes, that's correct. Those who wish to participate in the second checkpoint can just eat the bread and wine."
"Say less," Jun-Hyuk remarked indifferently as he held a plate with bread and a cup with wine in both hands. Just as he was about to put the bread in his mouth, he suddenly glanced at me. "Hey, you should give up here. After all, I'm going to win anyway."
"Huh? What are you saying all of—?"
Before my words could reach Jun-Hyuk, he swiftly stuffed the bread and wine into his mouth. It was obvious that he was provoking me, but instead of feeling bad about it, I found it rather amusing.
I picked up the bread and cup, following in Jun-Hyuk's footsteps in order to proceed to the second checkpoint.
"I’m giving up." Just then, Ha-Rin, who had been shaking her head and fidgeting with her hands, spoke up.
Noah raised an eyebrow, looking puzzled. I was equally perplexed. I went through all that to bring her into the Ark just for her to give up?
"What's the reason?" Noah asked, and Ha-Rin’s gaze shifted between Noah and me with a determined look in her eyes. "I didn't pass the first checkpoint with my own skills. To be honest, I don't even remember it..."
"Ah, shouldn't you consider teaming up with Sun-Woo as something that you’ve done with your skills?”
"Um, well, that's... um. Honestly, I don't think I'll do well at the second checkpoint, so..." Ha-Rin stumbled with her words.
Noah smiled as if trying to relieve her tension. "Of course, that's also up to you! If you don't want to participate in the second checkpoint, you can leave through that door and leave the bread and wine behind."
"Ah, I see."
Ha-Rin stood up and walked toward the door with feeble steps. As she opened the door, she, too, disappeared, enveloped in a halo.
Eventually, I was left alone at the table.
“Sun-Woo, of course, you intend to participate?' Noah asked with a cheerful laugh.
Without a doubt, I wanted to participate in the second checkpoint. However, there was one thing that bothered me.
“Is there any extra credit for fulfilling the second condition?”
“'Of course,” Noah replied.
“'How much extra credit will be given?”
Though the difference wasn't significant, I had entered Ark later than Jun-Hyuk. While the second checkpoint still remained, I was uncertain whether I could surpass Jun-Hyuk in the test if things continued this way. Therefore, I asked about the reward for fulfilling the second condition. By knowing the reward for fulfilling the second condition, I could estimate what my chances were of surpassing Jun-Hyuk in this test.
“I cannot give you a definitive answer during the test,” Noah said, adjusting his collar. He laughed, “You'll find out when you leave. You'll probably be pleasantly surprised.”
It was a somewhat vague response, but I probably shouldn’t expect a more detailed answer. I gave up and took a bite of bread and a sip from the cup.
“Good luck,” I heard Noah say as my consciousness drifted away.
*
When I opened my eyes, I was lying on a rock. The glaring sunlight was scorching. I looked around. Sand covered everything, and dust and sand made a sifting noise as they fell from my hair. The location of the second checkpoint was none other than a desert. Distant heavy noises resounded as if construction work was underway.
[Truly a mysterious place,] Legba said while I was still trying to regain my senses.
At the same time, a piercing headache rang from inside my head. It was the same kind of headache I had when I had first put on my father's ring and had barely managed to regain consciousness after being immersed in a spell.
[A very intricate illusion. Hard to believe Sung Yu-Da created it.]
"...So?"
[No, Sung Yu-Da may have created it, but it doesn't seem like he created it by himself.] Legba muttered.
Didn’t he create it by himself? According to my father’s memories, Sung Yu-Da used to be my father's friend. My father was skilled in handling spells, and he would have had no problem identifying such an intricate illusion. Moreover, I could smell the faint scent of spells in the Ark's illusion—the distinctive, dense, and sticky smell of Voodoo magic permeated throughout the Ark.
Could it be...?
Thud.
At that moment, a note fell from the air. I unfolded the note, convinced that it would contain the rules for the second checkpoint.
~
[Test number 041666 - Class of Charity Sun-Woo]
The theme for the second checkpoint is Babel!
Overcome numerous obstacles and halt the construction of the <Babel Tower>! You are free to accomplish this through any means, but if you fail to stop the construction within one hour, you will be eliminated. Obviously, if you die due to an accident, you will be eliminated!
Evaluation criteria: 1. [Unreleased condition] / 2. [Unreleased condition]
'Ark's Test' concludes with the second checkpoint, and the records will be transmitted to the administrator: Noah.
Good luck!
~
"Goodness."
After reading the note, my headache seemed to worsen. Setting aside the idea of halting the construction of Babel Tower within an hour, I couldn't help but think that it was too harsh for all the evaluation criteria to be confidential. I had no idea where to start.
Rumble—
While pressing my temples, trying to alleviate the headache, I heard a distant sound of something collapsing. When I turned my gaze, I saw the tower.
It was a towering and enormous structure that seemed to touch the sky. It seemed almost... pridefully tall. At the base of the tower, rather than people, there were peculiar creatures resembling beasts carrying stones and building the tower.
"...This is a bit excessive,” I muttered to myself as I looked at the tower.
First of all, there were too many workers building the tower. The Holy Book mentioned that the construction ended due to jumbling up the worker’s language, but I didn't possess the ability to do so.
Although there was a Loa related to language, they weren't powerful enough to mix up a language. If that was the case, then it meant I had to halt the tower's construction using a different method, but no suitable approach came to mind. Regardless of how much I pondered, the only ideas that came up were futile and nonsensical.
"..."
Lost in thought while gazing at the tower, suddenly, a sense of unease washed over me, causing me to look around.
The vast desert was sparsely decorated with cacti, and the tumbleweed rolled in the sand as the wind blew. No matter how much I looked around, I couldn't find any traces of humans.
...There were no traces of humans anywhere.
In that case, where was Jun-HyuK?
This content is taken from (f)reewe(b)novel.𝗰𝗼𝐦