47 – Last Examination

The day of the Guardian's test finally arrived.

I had my magic circuits reactivated and Agate brought out of hibernation, while my new Shinsoo manipulation abilities were no longer suppressed by my magic.

I was no miraculous talent like Baam, and so I couldn't really form a proper Baang yet, but I was now able to manipulate Shinsoo in its pure liquid form. According to Hwaryun, only those blessed by the Tower or were Irregulars could manipulate the purest of Shinsoo, so it wasn't a bad thing. She judged that I might be able to form a Baang eventually with enough practice, and starting with raw high density Shinsoo manipulation would be beneficial down the line.

From my perspective, it was already an enormous difference, because I could now control more Shinsoo items than just the Pocket, such as Lighthouse and Arms Inventory, and use Shinsoo internally for physical enhancement.

It also let me channel Shinsoo into Derflinger to restore his reserves, and he'd similarly learned how to use Shinsoo inside of his own body and to absorb incoming attacks, albeit it was much less effective defensively than his ability to almost instantaneously absorb even large FoZ spells.

The attacks I could form externally with Shinsoo amounted to basic water manipulation, which was pretty much useless in real combat. But the water spirits were obviously much better at it, and it was their preferred way of using Shinsoo, compared to making Baangs.

Yu Hansung had gathered the Regulars to explain the test, then gave us a few hours to prepare. Of course, I already knew the details because Rachel had told me beforehand.

I hadn't remembered all of it from canon, but the test was surprisingly large scale in terms of the area we had to cover. It would take place at a wine-glass like hole which was underneath a relatively soft but deep layer of earth. That hole would fill up with water in the morning. The middle of it opened up to where the Dolphin Madame, or Queen of the Goby Dolphins would be, waiting to feed.

The smaller Goby dolphins would create an underwater net with Shinsoo and herd fish towards the Queen to eat. The Shinsoo bubble that Baam and Rachel were in would be sent through a side tunnel into the water, and then be attracted to the net and they'd get eaten by the Queen, but the bubble was made such that it would survive the digestion tract and come out the other end.

While this was happening, some goblin-like creatures called Thieves would bring huge worms with very long and stretched throats and mouths to burrow holes into the water and suck up the fish from the net, competing for the food. There would also be "Dogs", or striped earthpigs that were another group of creatures that would try to eat the herding dolphins above ground directly.

Then there was the bull, which was a dangerous predator too powerful for most Regulars, that would try to eat anything, including people.

The rest of the team's job was to keep the dolphin herders safe so that Baam and Rachel would be carried by the net to the Queen.

I listened to Khun Aguero Agnis and Ship Leesoo analyze the challenge. They quickly determined that the ecosystem was normally in balance so it wasn't like we really needed to protect the herders. The Thieves would fight the Dogs because they needed the herders to keep herding fish so their worms could suck them up. But if the worms caught the bubble before it got to the Queen, then the test was failed. So the strategy was to have the Scouts look for the Thieves, then get the Spearbearers to attack from afar while hidden and focus only on the worms.

The Bull was the major threat to everything, so Khun concluded, "Let's use our own wildcards. Among the Fishermen, Axion, Androssi, and Anak should be the strongest, so they're best suited to fighting the Bull."

I raised my hand.

O O O

[Interlude]

"Hm? What is it, Axion?" Khun asked, seeing the strongest Regular politely raising his hand the way he was known to do.

'Don't tell me he doesn't want to chase the Bull? I figured Androssi and Anak would refuse, but they left after their argument earlier so they can't object. What do I say if Axion refuses?' Khun thought to himself with a sweat. 'Nobody will listen to me over him. But doesn't he realize this is the best plan?'

"It's a good plan, but I'd like to propose a minor adjustment. You should all be aware by now that Fisherman isn't my preferred position in battle. But now that we're working as a team, it would be more efficient for me to take up my true position."

Khun shared a look with Ship, who looked equally confused as he himself was.

"And that would be…?"

"Lightbearer," Axion said, turning a silver Light Cube visible behind him with a gesture, then smirked very slowly and deliberately. "I didn't bother switching positions since there were more passing spots for Fishermen, but I'm far more used to being a commander than a frontline fighter."

Khun's mouth fell open, much like the looks of shock on all the other Regulars' faces.

'I know his game now…damn, he's like me! He probably just likes giving out orders!' Khun thought as he grimaced.

Axion continued. "But don't worry, I'm not asking you to defer to me, since you're doing a good job of things. I'm just suggesting that I help with the coordination, since you probably can't control enough Cubes for everyone by yourself, am I right? And Rachel can't help as a Lightbearer during this test. With me as a supporting Lightbearer, we can cover more ground. And I have some tricks that should make dealing with the worms and Dogs easier."

"The Bull is still the bigger threat though. If we can split up the princesses, it might help us find it faster, but what if they can't handle it on their own?" Ship asked. "Or if the Bull attacks someone else first?"

"Then I'll go back them up, since I'm the fastest, and I'm my own Lightbearer, so I'm also the best at navigating through any dark places to find them," said Axion.

"I guess that's for the best then," said Ship.

"Are you really a Lightbearer? Why haven't you used any Lighthouses before?" Khun asked with a skeptical expression. "You sure you can handle it?"

"How do you think I was able to find my way around in the Hide and Seek game and know exactly where Androssi was after she destroyed Rachel's Cubes?" Axion asked. "Or did you guys not see that part in the observation room? Hong, you were there when Androssi destroyed the Cubes weren't you?"

"Tch, don't remind me, you guys are the worst teammates," said Hong Chunhwa.

"Hey, don't blame me, I didn't tell her to betray you guys," Axion said. "Didn't I give you back your sword? You ought to be grateful."

Hong grumbled but made no further protest.

"Damn, you must be really good if nobody noticed your Lighthouse the whole time," said Khun.

"No, I wasn't using these," said Axion while pointing to his Cube. "I just got this recently. I have a different special item that I can use as a Lighthouse, but it doesn't work with other Lighthouses. I'll use these for this test though, so we can hook up the data connection between us."

Khun nodded. "Alright, that's that then. I think whoever wants to leave can go get ready. I'll stay a bit to think some more about our strategy."

"I'll also stay," said Ship.

"As will I," said Axion.

Everyone else left, and then it was just Khun, Ship, and Axion.

For a few minutes, each seemed to be in their own thoughts.

"Hmm…I'm trying to remember…but I think I've read in a book about these striped earthpigs before," said Ship.

"Really? Anything useful?" Asked Khun.

"I think they're known for digging tunnels that damage farmers' fields. There are a lot of crop fields nearby as well. Remember the survival test?"

"Oh yeah…tunnels huh?"

"If the worms are able to dig through the surface to get to the water, that whole area is probably soft enough for tunnels," said Axion.

"I was just thinking that," said Khun. "And since this is an ecosystem that's been running for a long time, those Dogs probably already have a system of tunnels. And if we mess with those…"

"…then we could lead the Dogs right to the Thieves," Ship concluded. "But we'd need a way to map it out. That won't be easy though since the tunnels would make it out of range from Observers."

Khun held a finger to his chin, tapping it. "I think I might have an idea for that."

"You do?"

"I found out that girl Sunwoo is an Anima, she's got a Shinheuh that should be able to do it, I'll just have to think of a way to convince her," said Khun.

"Passing the test together isn't a good enough reason?" Ship asked.

"Nope, she's too selfish. Just like this guy and our resident princesses," said Khun, pointing a thumb at Axion.

"When did I ever give the impression that I'm selfish?" Axion asked, seemingly offended.

"How about when you helped steal the Black March?" Khun retorted.

"And then I gave it to Androssi, and I even convinced her to trade it back to Baam," Axion said.

"Yeah yeah, whatever. Anyways, I'll take care of convincing Sunwoo," said Khun. "If her Shinheuh can do it, then it should make the test a lot easier."

"Are you thinking of trading her your bag?" Axion asked.

"How did you know?!" Khun asked, looking suspiciously at Axion.

"I also had my eye on that bag, so I noticed her drooling over it," said Axion, who smirked.

"Well you can't both have it, and we're gonna need her help," said Khun.

"I can make you a better offer. First of all, that special item I mentioned? It won't be out of range in the tunnels so I can map it out for us too, probably faster than she can. Second, Sunwoo owes me a favor after I returned Hong's Narumada back to him, remember? Even if she doesn't want to do it, I'll get 'her knight' to scold her for being dishonorable. If both of us work together, mapping the tunnels should be a breeze," said Axion.

"I don't mind trading you Manbarondenna instead, but are you sure you can convince her like that?" Khun asked. The bag wasn't worth that much to him, and it was mostly a gimmick that would only be useful on lower floors, and he had lots of other treasures. He was more concerned with making sure they got past this test, and he had to take every chance to stack the odds in their favor, it being an Irregular test that was probably much harder than normal.

"I'll give it a try first, and if it doesn't work you can make your offer. But I'm sure I can convince her, because she probably doesn't even want your bag for its features, it's just because it looks expensive. I can just offer her this," said Axion, reaching into his cloak and rummaging around a bit before pulling something out.

"A literal gold bar?" Ship's eyes bugged out. "What kind of cliché is this? You were secretly a rich bastard too?"

"Okay, you got a deal," said Khun. "If you convince her yourself then I'll give you Manbarondenna."

O O O

Hong sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Look, he's right Sunwoo, I do owe him."

"But I don't want to!" Sunwoo complained.

"How about if I throw this in?" Axion showed the gold bar.

Sunwoo's face changed immediately, her eyes lit up. "Hah…? G-g-gold?!"

Axion pulled it back quickly before the girl could swipe it. "Only if you do it though, and I'll give it to you after."

"Okay, okay, I'll do it!"

O O O

"Huh? Mr. Axion?" Baam opened his door to see Axion in the hall.

"I wanted to talk to you Baam. The strategy discussion is over, and everyone's getting ready," said Axion.

Baam led him inside. "That's good to hear. Do you think it will go well?"

"I think we're as ready as we can be, all that's left is to do our best," said Axion. "But there is something I'm worried about."

Baam looked concerned. "What's that?"

"That somebody might interfere with the test. Similar to what happened with Hoh last time. I'm concerned that somebody might use the test as an opportunity to attack and achieve a different objective than the test," said Axion.

Baam gasped. "But I'll be right with Rachel this time. I'll keep her safe."

"The target might not be her this time, and I don't think it'll be a Regular. Did you ever notice anything strange about our Wave Controller Instructor Yuga?"

"Instructor Yuga? No, he was really kind to me…are you saying he might do something? But why?"

"Haven't you wondered why he hides under a costume and never shows his face?"

"I guess that is a little strange…but he doesn't seem like a bad person? Maybe he just has his reasons," said Baam.

"Hwa Ryun told me…she overheard him talking in secret. His real name isn't Yuga, it's Lo Po Bia Ren—and he's a member of the Royal Enforcement Division. His true goal is to retrieve the Black March and Green April, and to kill Anak Zahard," said Axion.

"What? But I don't understand, why would he do that? Isn't Anak a princess?"

"It's complicated, but she's not a real princess. Her mother was, remember what Androssi said before? Princesses of Zahard aren't allowed to date anyone. They're definitely not allowed to have children. So the king wants her dead. But it gets worse. The Bia family has their own princess, and Ren might try to get rid of the competition—that means even Androssi, who's a real princess—and steal the Thirteen Month Series weapons for his family's princess while he's at it. So he isn't going to care that Ms. Yuri gave you permission to hold the Black March."

"That's terrible…the king doesn't sound very nice, and I can't believe Ren would do that," said Baam, now looking quite worried. "But what should we do? We can't let him hurt our friends."

"You just focus on protecting yourself and Rachel. I'll do what I can to stop him, but you should lend me the Black March for this test. Besides, as long as you're holding on to it, you become a target for him too, and you don't want to put Rachel in danger, right?"

"No, you're right. Here, please take care of it, I still have to return it to Ms. Yuri later," Baam said and then handed over the Black March without a second thought.

"Don't worry, I will. And if I see Ms. Yuri I'll return it to her myself," said Axion.

"Thank you. Good luck, and please stay safe Mr. Axion."

"You too Baam, you too."

O O O

[Kaleidus]

I heard an angry earful from the Black March as I made my way through the halls. But she couldn't stop me, and it was necessary.

Not only would Baam holding onto the Black March pose a problem for Rachel's plan if he killed the Bull too fast, I needed to get it from him to ensure my own safety.

The point wasn't to use it as a weapon, but to keep it as a lure for Yuri Zahard.

I had no idea how Yuri tracked down the Black March to the fight with Yuga in the first place, and while it was possible she randomly found her way through after getting lost in the darkness, I wasn't going to rely on canon proceeding the same way if the Black March was missing from the scene.

Which meant that I had to make sure the Black March appeared in the same place, so that Yuri could get there to save our asses.

O O O

Two Lighthouses floated slightly in the air beside each other, one blue, one silver, above a high cliff.

I sat in my own Lighthouse, with a communications line with Khun's Lighthouse open, while my cubes invisibly followed Androssi and Anak.

Agate was mapping out the tunnels at high speed together with Sunwoo's Shinheuh, while I typed and drew on my input panels quickly, transmitting the data to Khun. We might be able to finish the tunnel routing and collapse plan before the herders even moved at this rate.

It would be nice to get Manbarondenna as a storage item after the test was over, but my main reason for offering to be a Lightbearer was also for my own safety. I didn't want to meet Ren alone too early, after all. It would be hard for Ren to assassinate me while I was out in the open like this, yet I'd know where Androssi would be so I could quickly get over once Ren showed up.

"Hatsu says the thieves have started moving. How's the mapping going, Axion?"

"Just wrapping up. And…done," I said.

"Great. Okay, I'll get those two to send in Laure," Khun said. "No sign of the Bull yet?"

"Not yet. I'm not letting the princesses get too far from Ship though, just in case," I said.

"Probably a good precaution, Ship will be in trouble if the Bull finds him first," said Khun.

The area that we were operating in was large but still a distance easily crossed by Agate flying at top speed because it could phase through all obstacles. It was much harder for a person to get around.

So after the mapping was done, I sent the Kaleidostick to follow Androssi around instead.

Eventually Khun's voice came back with an urgent tone. "The Bull is attacking Ship!"

"On it, sending them in" I said, then ordered Anak and Androssi to move.

This was also my cue, so I exited the Lighthouse, compressed it back down, then started moving there myself.

O O O