Team B entered the testing building under the looming pressure of Team A's failure.
Baam stood quietly among the gathered Regulars. He wore the sleek black jacket trimmed with gold that Khun had given him, its hem catching the light. A simple headband kept his hair out of his eyes, but couldn't quite hide his focused expression.
As soon as they arrived, murmurs and arguments broke out among the group.
"We need someone who can actually lead."
"I'm not taking orders from some random."
"Why not me?"
The bickering intensified, egos clashing. But then a sharp voice cut through the noise.
"We're all good with me being the team leader, right?" Endorsi's tone made it clear she wasn't asking for opinions.
Everyone froze. A beat of silence followed before heads nodded in quick succession. No one wanted to cross a Princess of Jahad.
"Good." Endorsi smiled coolly, producing the "it" badge with a flick of her wrist. "Then I'll go ahead and wear this."
With that declaration, the group dispersed. The Regulars began ascending the stairs, heading for their predetermined positions throughout the structure.
As they walked, discontent simmered in hushed voices.
"She wants all our fishermen to move together? Is she stupid?" one muttered under his breath.
"If we bunch up like this, their 'it' will find us instantly. Game over," another whispered.
Hatz, walking ahead of them, glanced back without stopping. "You should know better. Capturing a Ranker is impossible. Her real plan is probably to scatter once we assess how the enemy moves. It's misdirection. Besides—this time, we have a Wave Controller on our side."
---
Meanwhile, Baam was moving with Endorsi and two others up a narrower corridor. He kept to the back of the group, his breathing steady, his body light and responsive—results of relentless training.
Though still not physically imposing, he was far from the boy who had first stepped into this tower.
As he jogged, Baam pulled up his system with a thought.
> System Status:
> Basic Sword Wielding Efficiency: 40%
> Basic Combat Efficiency: 80%
> Basic Shinsu Control Efficiency: 50%
He exhaled quietly, gaze sharpening.
'Even now, I'm not strong enough to fight a Ranker. But... maybe I can support the team.'
They rounded a bend and came to a stop.
Endorsi glanced back at him.
"Stay alert," she said. "Things are about to get interesting."
Baam nodded.
---
Back at the safe zone.
Serena leaned against the cold stone, arms crossed, her gaze distant.
"Hey, Hoh," she said suddenly, her voice low but cutting through the silence. "Are you still serious about climbing the Tower?"
Hoh turned, caught off guard. His eyes flicked toward her, uncertain. "Huh?"
She met his gaze, solemn. "I've been thinking… I'm not sure I can keep doing this. I don't know if I can keep killing people I've come to care about—at least, not without hesitation."
A bitter smile tugged at her lips.
"I was always a wreck. A bottom-feeder. A petty thief, a cat burglar—they had a lot of names for me. I was slippery, good with my hands, lucky enough to survive. But that luck ran out the day I boarded the wrong ship."
She paused. Her eyes dimmed, the memory bitter.
"There was a Ranker on that vessel. I didn't even see it happen. One blink—and everyone I knew was gone. My friends, my crew, my life. All wiped away like they were never there."
"I didn't want to die. I didn't even want to keep living like that. But then, as if by fate—or cruelty—a god showed up and brought me here."
She looked around the room, then down at her hands.
"At first, I was driven. Desperate. I killed everyone who got in my way. That was the rule: kill or be killed. That's how you survive in this place. That's how you climb."
Her voice lowered, tinged with exhaustion. "But now…"
Hoh studied her in silence for a moment, then spoke, his voice equally subdued.
"That's how it's always been for us, hasn't it? We fight. We betray. We kill... all for the Tower."
His expression was hard to read—somewhere between resignation and understanding.
"No matter what happens… no hard feelings."
Serena's eyes lingered on his face. Something passed between them—faint but unmistakable. A quiet, shared grief.
"Hoh…" she murmured.
---
Meanwhile, Hatz's voice echoed through the communicator.
"It's the Ranker. Everyone move. We'll hold him here—buy time."
Baam's group burst through a side door into a dim corridor, footsteps pounding, breaths heavy. They kept running—until, without warning—
Crack!
Endorsi spun on her heel and launched a devastating kick into one of her teammates' chest. He tumbled back with a grunt, crashing against the wall.
"What the hell?!" the boy gasped, winded.
Baam skidded to a halt, eyes wide with confusion. "Endorsi?!"
The third member of their group—sword drawn in an instant—stepped in defensively. "What do you think you're doing?"
But Endorsi only smiled.
And then, in a strange, calm voice, she began to speak.
"Once upon a time," she said, "there was a little girl taken into the house of fallen nobles. The lowest of the Ten Great Families. They wanted a Princess of Jahad, so they brought in dozens of orphaned girls. Talented ones. And made them compete."
Her voice had a sing-song quality, but the chill in it was unmistakable.
"Training was brutal. But that wasn't the worst of it. Meals were ranked. First place got a five-course feast. Last place? A moldy piece of bread. Cold. Hard. Barely edible."
She looked to the side, as if seeing it again.
"Every night, that girl gnawed on her crust of bread, watching her sisters feast. Wishing. Hoping. Starving. Until one day, they were all gone. And the food? All hers."
Endorsi turned to face them, her smile razor-sharp.
"Happily ever after, right?"
The boy she kicked groaned on the floor. "What is she talking about?"
Baam stared, baffled. 'What kind of stupid story…?'
His instincts screamed at him, unsure whether to raise his hands or step back.
The swordsman next to him clenched his jaw. "Don't tell me… this was your plan?"
Endorsi stepped toward them.
"Still don't get it?" she said. "You actually believed I'd group all the Fishermen together just to 'see how the Ranker reacts'? What kind of idiot do you take me for?"
Baam flinched.
She turned her gaze to Baam briefly and added, almost teasingly, "Don't look so heartbroken. You're ruining that cute face of yours."
The swordsman gritted his teeth. "So this is your goal? To eliminate the competition? Only four out of six Fishermen can pass. You're thinning the herd."
The wounded boy tried to scramble away—but Endorsi lashed out with a second kick, sending him back to the ground.
"Didn't anyone teach you?" she said coolly. "Never show your back to a Princess of Jahad."
"I messed up in the last test. Took things too lightly. I won't make that mistake again."
The swordsman beside Baam lunged, blade slashing through the air—but Endorsi slipped past it with dancer's grace and countered with a spinning kick that sent him sprawling across the floor.
The second Fisherman, already rattled, exchanged a glance with the fallen one.
"I'll finish her off. You distract her."
Both of them rose to their feet.
Baam stood frozen a few steps away.
'She's too fast… too strong. Even if I tried, I'm not sure I could land a hit, let alone stop her…'
Endorsi's gaze drifted to him. Her voice softened, but only slightly.
"This is the reality, Baam. If you want to climb the Tower with her, you'll have to be ready to do this too. Ready to betray, to fight, to win at any cost."
Behind Endorsi, the two boys moved again, rushing her from both sides.
She glanced over her shoulder, unimpressed.
They attacked together, but she weaved between them effortlessly. A swift elbow to the gut dropped one. A knee to the jaw toppled the other. Neither stood a chance.
Baam stepped forward. "Hey! Please, stop!"
She turned her head slowly. "You're still here?"
Baam's voice trembled. "Why are you doing this? We're supposed to be a team."
Endorsi scoffed. "Supposed to be. We were assigned to the same team, Baam. That doesn't make us allies."
Just then, the wounded swordsman staggered back to his feet, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. His grip on his weapon tightened, knuckles pale.
He glared at Endorsi with grim defiance.
"You underestimate me… Princess of Jahad."
Baam's eyes widened as the young man held his blade aloft.
"Narmada… ignition!"
A sharp crack split the silence, and the blade erupted with a surge of luminous Shinsu. The very air trembled as a blazing wave fired toward Endorsi, distorting the ground in its path.
The explosion engulfed her.
Smoke and debris flared outward, momentarily blinding everyone.
Baam thought. 'An Ignition Weapon… That's power on a whole different level.'
As dust settled, Baam squinted through the haze.
A silhouette emerged from the fading smoke.
Endorsi stepped forward—scuffed, blood running down her cheek, one sleeve torn—but very much alive.
"Tch. Damn… so it was an Ignition Weapon." She wiped a streak of blood from her lip and smirked. "Didn't think you had that in you."
Baam thought. 'She's hurt. Distracted. If I fire a Baang while her guard's down, he might be able to finish her. I could help without getting too close… but…'
'If I miss, she'll come after me next. And… even now… I'm not sure I can do it.'
He hesitated.
'No. I should wait. Observe. Act only when I'm certain.'
The boy roared and launched himself forward again, blade ignited. His companion flanked from the side, hoping to catch Endorsi off-balance.
But Endorsi had regained her composure.
She moved like lightning—fluid and precise. Her heel smashed into one boy's side, sending him crashing into a wall. She spun, ducked under the ignited blade, and with a brutal upward kick, shattered his jaw.
"You think a fancy weapon can make up for weakness?" she snapped, voice dripping venom.
One of the boys tried to crawl away.
She didn't let him.
With one final strike—a crack of bone, a scream abruptly cut off—both boys lay crumpled on the floor. Unmoving.
---
Meanwhile, deep within the maze-like structure of the testing area, Serena moved briskly through the corridor, glancing over her shoulder.
"Let's regroup with Hatz and the others," she said firmly. "Our job now is to buy time—however much we can."
She stopped, scanning the area. Her brow furrowed.
"Hoh? Where did he go?"
She called out louder, her voice edged with urgency.
"Hey! Don't go wandering off on your own, damn it!"
Elsewhere, Rachel stood alone, sheltered within the translucent walls of her mobile Lighthouse.
Her thoughts were distant—until a voice called out.
"Michelle…"
Startled, she turned.
Hoh stood just outside her Lighthouse. His expression was unreadable, his eyes shadowed by the fringe of his messy hair.
"I'd like to talk… about you and Baam."
Rachel's eyes narrowed. "Who told you about Baam?"
Hoh stepped back slowly, gesturing for her to follow.
"So you do know each other," he muttered. "Just as the letter said."
Hesitant, Rachel stepped out of her Lighthouse.
Then it happened.
In one swift motion, Hoh spun behind her and pressed a long, curved knife against her throat.
Rachel gasped, her body going rigid.
His voice trembled—equal parts desperation and resolve.
"The letter said… if I got rid of you, Baam would break. He'd give up. He'd disappear."
Rachel's eyes widened, disbelief flashing across her face.
"You… got a letter?"
"They told me it's the only way," Hoh whispered, eyes wild. "It's the only path left for someone like me."
---
Back in the control room, the mood turned chaotic.
Lero-Ro stared at the screen.
"Director! We have a situation—Michelle's been taken hostage! We need to stop the test now!"
He turned, expecting action.
But Hansung Yu remained seated, legs crossed, casually sipping tea from a delicate porcelain cup.
"Even so…" he said coolly, setting the cup down. "The test cannot be interrupted."