Jamma Cave's First Trial
"The first trial begins now!"
The once-quiet Jamma Cave erupted into chaos. The Chief Instructor had just announced the start of the first examination, and with murder permitted under the rules, every candidate's wariness spiked to a razor edge. Some were already glancing sideways at the person next to them, hunting for the slightest opening.
Unrefined killing intent rolled through the air in thick waves. Shin Gi-woon frowned. A single barked order from the instructors to settle down was enough to rein most of it back in.
"The first trial is simple. On the mountain peak behind you, four hundred weapons have been placed. Naturally, that includes the divine weapons our cult poured its heart and soul into forging."
At the words divine weapons, the candidates' eyes changed. The ones who had survived this far were no fools. They already knew exactly what the instructor was about to say next.
"The path to the peak is riddled with traps. Break through them, reach the summit, and you will have your chance to claim a divine weapon. Return before sundown with the weapon of your choice, and you pass. One more thing — killing is forbidden on the peak itself. Remember that."
The Chief Instructor had deliberately mentioned murder. Forbidding it only on the peak meant the road up and the road back down were anything but safe. Evading traps while staying ready for sudden ambushes — this was going to be a trial of real difficulty.
"Take this to heart. Each of you may bring back only one weapon. Carry two or more, and an instructor will intervene on the spot and kill you."
There was a gap in the Chief Instructor's words, and Shin Gi-woon caught it immediately. Not a single mention of plunder.
They could just gang up on anyone coming down from the peak and take them out.
The moment the instructor dangled the existence of divine weapons, the greedy ones would start planning ambushes for when the strong were exhausted. The sharper candidates were already trading information with their alliances, heads bent close together.
Right on cue, Se-hwa drifted over to Shin Gi-woon's side.
"So what's the plan? Want to try snatching one?"
"Don't say things you don't mean. Even with divine weapons in the mix, there won't be five of them total. We need to get there first and claim one."
"And if we get jumped on the way back?"
"You and me traveling together — you really think some idiot's going to pick that fight?"
"Fair enough."
A rough hierarchy had already settled into place inside Jamma Cave. No formal sparring matches had been held, but everyone had watched everyone else train. And among them, Se-hwa and Shin Gi-woon's sessions were enough to make jaws drop. Both of them pushed themselves to the absolute limit, every single day.
The real question is how nasty those traps are.
There were plenty of ways up the peak. Shortcuts existed, no doubt. But would the instructors have left those shortcuts alone? Not a chance. They would have rigged them with every dirty trick in the book.
"Everyone to the starting line."
At the Chief Instructor's signal, the candidates formed up in four ranks. Judging by the arrangement, it looked like they had been ordered by ranking. The strongest of Jamma Cave — Shin Gi-woon and Se-hwa among them — stood in the front row.
A heavy silence settled over them. Even Se-hwa's face hardened as she locked in her focus. This was the first trial, after all.
The cold quiet held for only a moment. Then the Chief Instructor raised both hands —
Crack!!
— and clapped, pouring internal energy into the strike. The first trial of Jamma Cave had begun.
"I-I'm going first!!"
"Out of the way! That divine weapon is mine!"
The starting line dissolved into pandemonium. Apparently even the schemers decided that murdering someone right in front of the instructors was a bad idea, because the whole pack of them hurled themselves toward the mountain range. The lead pack split almost immediately.
Shashashashak!
Se-hwa tore out in front with footwork so fluid it looked possessed, Number One and Number 999 thundering after her in that order. Shin Gi-woon held his speed in check, wary of traps that might be waiting, but still kept close enough that he never lost them.
"Kyaaaaah!"
"Aaagh!"
Screams erupted from every direction before long. Candidates were already hitting traps. Nothing particularly vicious had shown itself yet — but Shin Gi-woon never once let his guard down. Traps had a habit of appearing exactly when and where you least expected them.
Kwa-rung!
"Kh!"
The ground under Shin Gi-woon's foot gave way the instant his mind wandered. A pit roughly three jang deep, packed solid with needle-sharp spikes. Fall in properly and you wouldn't be talking about injuries — you'd be talking about a corpse.
These traps are vicious. Now this is the Demonic Cult for you!
Shin Gi-woon wiped the cold sweat from his brow with his forearm. Up ahead, Se-hwa and the rest of the lead pack had already vanished from sight. Most people would have written off catching them. Shin Gi-woon closed his eyes and drew a long, deep breath.
All of my internal energy... into my legs!
Wuuuung!
He had the measure of the traps now. No more holding back. The gap to the leaders had opened — time to close it.
"Haap!"
Tu-kwaaaang!
Shin Gi-woon slammed off the ground and accelerated. He was moving so fast that traps triggered too late to catch him — he was already through before they finished deploying. Like a predator at full sprint after its prey, he shut out everything around him and poured every scrap of focus into his movement technique alone.
Of course, the instructors' traps were not so easily dismissed.
Hwiririk!
"Ugh!"
Without the slightest warning, iron chains erupted from every direction. Locked into his movement technique, Shin Gi-woon couldn't react in time — the chains snared his legs and killed his momentum cold.
"Damn it!"
At the same instant, trees on both sides toppled and came crashing down toward his head. His right foot was still bound. With no other choice, he raised his spear and split the falling trunks apart.
"If the traps are this bad... the ones ahead of me must have hit a few too."
He cut the chains free with his spear and narrowed his eyes. These were no ordinary traps. There were traps for when you stopped, traps for when you ran full speed, traps for when you moved at a moderate pace — three separate categories, each designed to punish a different approach.
The people out front would be getting tangled up the same way.
If I push hard, I can still catch them.
Shin Gi-woon scanned his surroundings once more, then drove hard off the ground. His speed climbed steadily, and he began blowing straight through traps that would have snared him earlier without breaking stride.
Before long, the backs of Number One and Number 999 came into view. Se-hwa was already far ahead of them. The two were still trading probing strikes at each other even as they ran — until they sensed Shin Gi-woon closing fast. Both of them nodded.
"Hey. You two aren't suddenly teaming up on me, are you?"
"Number 295. Sorry, but if you overtake us, this gets a lot harder."
"You're first on the list!"
"Tch. What a pain."
Number One and Number 999 skidded to a halt. Shin Gi-woon stopped at a measured distance and leveled his spear at both of them.
Number One fought with fist arts. Number 999 was an archer. Before Shin Gi-woon arrived, Number 999 had been on the back foot — but the moment a common enemy appeared, the two of them moved in perfect sync.
Close-range specialist Number One, long-range specialist Number 999. This is going to be a problem.
He swallowed dryly. He had grown considerably stronger since entering the cave, but he still couldn't say with certainty that he held a clear advantage against both of them at once.
Alone, that is.
"It's the way of the martial world for the strong to give the weak a three-second head start, so mind if I go first?"
"This isn't the martial world, Number 295."
"We've never actually coordinated before either, so cut us some slack."
Number One ignored him entirely. Number 999 smiled sweetly and vanished from perception. Her concealment was near-perfect — so refined that Number One's own presence might have been masking her completely.
"Your head could get put through any second. You really trust Number 999 that much?"
"Hahaha! Number 999 and I have known each other since we were ki—"
Swaeaeek!
Before Number One could finish the sentence, an iron bolt skimmed past his hair and buried itself in a tree trunk. His face went dark. From somewhere unseen, Number 999 called out brightly:
"Ah, sorry! My bad!"
"'My bad' doesn't cut it, you little—!!"
"Focus!"
"Damn it!"
Number One snapped his concentration back into place just in time. By a hair's breadth, Shin Gi-woon's spear carved through the space where he had been standing. Settling into his stance, Number One immediately circulated internal energy through his entire body, reinforcing his flesh.
Even with his decisive strike failed, Shin Gi-woon didn't give up. That iron bolt had told him everything he needed about Number 999's archery — skill level and approximate position both.
Her archery still isn't fully polished.
Which left him with exactly one workable tactic.
"If I mix us up so she can't tell friend from foe — problem solved!"
"...!"
Shin Gi-woon closed the distance until he was inside Number One's punching range. Number One flinched, then threw the punch on pure martial instinct.
Tuung!
Shin Gi-woon had anticipated it long ago. He caught the fist on his spear shaft and completely nullified the impact. Number One tried desperately to create space, but the spear tip was already leveled at his heart.
"This ends—"
The spear never finished its thrust. Number 999 had ghosted to a new position and loosed an iron bolt with inhuman timing. It was already too late to complete the thrust and pull free. Dodge now, or the bolt would punch straight through his skull.
Hwiririk!
Shin Gi-woon made the call in an instant and rolled across the ground. A gleam lit Number One's eyes. He condensed internal energy into his foot and stomped — a true step.
Kururung!
"Kh!"
The shockwave slammed through him. He had only just finished the roll and was still finding his balance — and Number One exploited that opening perfectly, shattering his center of gravity.
"Tahahat!"
This time Number One charged him. Shin Gi-woon wanted to meet the attack head-on, but the presence behind him was impossible to ignore. Number 999 was tracking every single movement he made.
I've been completely pincered.
If this kept up, nothing good was coming. Shin Gi-woon closed his eyes. When he opened them again, his irises had flooded with crimson.
Kwaaaa!
Demonic energy erupted — the last-resort power he had been holding in reserve.