The next day, all the regulars who had passed the Mule Love test went to meet the test director of the 20th floor, Augusgus, a man with ashen skin and red eyes. He presented to them the test that had been prepared in utmost secrecy by Grace Mirchea Luslec just for them.
"Now that you are all present, we can begin the final test on the 20th floor," said Augustus with a slight air of guilt as he opened the large door behind him.
When the door opened, it revealed a vast room, where one could see in the distance a new door locked this time by a large padlock. However, upon entering this new testing chamber, what caught the eye the most was the immense pit, which contained not only countless carcasses of mechanical robots that still seemed operational but also the regulars who had failed the previous test.
"Wow! This room is gigantic, but why are there other regulars besides us in here, and why do they all look terrified?" questioned Wangnan, preparing himself psychologically, as he felt a bad omen upon entering the room as if he had already experienced a similar trial that had traumatized him before.
"Everything in its own time, Mr. Ja Wangnan..." replied the test administrator calmly. "However, as you've rightly noticed, these are indeed the regulars who failed the previous test, and they will be present for our test titled 'Submerge the Robots. You will have the choice to save them or not, but that's not the purpose of this trial, it's purely optional."
What Augustus had just said made Yeong grit his teeth, drawing a comparison between his test and the one Headon had given him at the very beginning of his ascent. "So we have the choice to sacrifice regulars who should normally just retry the test next time. Don't you find that cruel, Test Director Augustus?"
"I would be lying to you if I said that this isn't dreadful," spoke the High Ranker. "However, Yeong Yeon, don't you think it's like the Tower to be cruel? Furthermore, as you must have learned from your mother, this is not a new concept introduced by King Zahard. When the 13 Great Warriors conquered the Tower floor by floor during their arduous journey, the cruelty of the trials set by the Administrators was a very common occurrence."
Talking about the existence of 13 Great Warriors confused almost all the members of the Ten Great Families, who had only heard of 11 Great Warriors. However, Yeong's heir quickly understood that he was referring to Arlen Grace and V, which made him furrow his brow, knowing that few people were aware of this taboo. "You are from FUG, aren't you, Mr. Augustus? Because no one knows Arlen Grace and V better than the leader of FUG and his associates."
"So, in the end, the head of the Yeon family chose not to erase her memories of the existence of Lady Arlen and Lord V..." murmured the test director. "Whether I am an agent of FUG or not is irrelevant, because I am in charge of the test that I am about to administer to you."
"What does your test consist of, then?" Rose said impatiently, already ready to fight.
"That's a very good question, Princess of Zahard! The rules of my test are quite simple. You just need to go fight the leader of the Robots in that pit and retrieve the Shinsu key that is on him to open the locked door that will take you directly to the 21st floor." explained Augustus.
"So we just need to destroy a simple robot to pass the test? This trial doesn't seem too boring," replied Ran.
Augustus smiled slightly at such naivety. "Yes, it's a very simple rule to understand, but I haven't finished my explanation. I still need to tell you that next to you, there is a control panel with a lever. By pulling that lever, you will release high-pressure water that will destroy all the robots and open the door. But as you might suspect, doing so will also drown all the regulars present in the pit."
"And can each of us activate the lever?" asked Yura Ha, receiving numerous reproachful looks from her fellow teammates.
"Well, no, that's the whole point of this trial. Only the one who has passed Mule Love's test can have the privilege of pulling that lever. Furthermore, Yeong will not be able to come down to help you, otherwise, your entire team will be disqualified. It's only natural to proceed this way since none of you have passed the previous test, you were only selected by your friend." said the test administrator.
Having such a responsibility weighing on his shoulders made Yeong angry. "What are you trying to do, FUG agent, by preventing me from helping my team members? Do you want to capture them with an ambush from your little crime syndicate and then blackmail me afterwards?!"
"Far from my intention to do such a thing," said the test director, his red eyes fixed on Yeong. "I simply want to test the seven regulars you have chosen. Instead of getting angry, you should see this trial as a test of trust. If you have enough faith in your comrades, you won't need to worry about pulling that lever to your right."
"Now that I have explained this entire trial to you, I just need to return to my office and wish you good luck, regulars, you will greatly need it," said Augustus as he walked away, seeing that everyone understood the rules of his test.
As the doors closed behind the test director, the test began without delay, as the mechanisms of the robots created by Macseth started to activate, aiming to shred all the regulars present in the trial. Even though Yeong and his group were very tense, hearing the screams of the regulars in the pit below, Aldwin tried to formulate a strategy as quickly as possible.
"Listen to me carefully. Through my Lighthouse, I have already located the leader of those robots, it's the red robot surrounded by the others as if they are protecting it." communicated the member of the Tu Perie family. "We need to come up with a strategy to retrieve the key and save as many regulars as possible, knowing that we won't be able to save them all."
"Why can't we save them all?! None of them wanted to be there; they haven't done anything wrong except fail a test!" shouted the young regular with blond hair with all his might, knowing better than anyone that he could have found himself among them in this grim trial, having failed several times at the tests on the 20th floor.
Ari Chun clenched his fist in frustration, knowing that Wangnan was right, but he had to remind him of reality, aware that every minute spent talking was less time to save as much as possible. "Wangnan, we don't have time for this debate, but we will save as many regulars as we can without putting our lives in danger! Now, let's listen to Aldwin; otherwise, it would mean even more lives lost for nothing."
"Thank you, Ari Chun. To recap what I was saying earlier, we will develop a strategy to both retrieve the key and save lives. First, since Yeong will be defenceless up top, we need someone to protect him without compromising our fighting strength. I've chosen Wangnan because, with the Shinsu bombs, he told us about last night, he can fend off any robots trying to come up.
Next, inside the pit, I thought we should create two teams; one to fight the robot leader, made up of the strongest, Rose, Yura, and Ran, and another team to rescue the other regulars, composed of those who are more versatile, myself, Darius, and Chun. I hope this team composition works for you because we don't have time to waste. Let's go!" shouted Aldwin as he jumped into the pit with Rose, Yura, Ran, Darius, and Chun, leaving Yeong and Wangnan up top.
However, nothing had gone as planned. Aldwin had underestimated their power and numbers, and as a result, his entire team was paying the price. He never would have predicted that his teleportation would be anticipated by the mechanical enemies, who were already beginning to surround them with the intent to eliminate them.
[ Arie Swordsmanship - White Oar ]
Fortunately, just as they were about to be completely overwhelmed by the weight of the robots, Rose unleashed her most powerful Shinsu attack on the battlefield, carving a path toward the strongest of the robots. However, it didn't take long for that opening to be blocked again by a multitude of enemies that barred their way once more.
"Tsk! They're too many and too resistant. We won't get anywhere if we don't stick together. I think it's better to focus solely on retrieving the key; otherwise, we risk losing several of us in this trial." Rose said reluctantly, as she continued to clear a path for her team with the help of Ran's spears and Yura's punches.
Ari Chun, driven by his family's pacifism, could not tolerate this way of thinking and decided to confront the princess of the Arie family. "No! While I'm not as idealistic as Wangnan, we can't just leave these other regulars who are crying out and begging for our help!"
"Don't get yourself in such a state, Chun, we have no choice! However, if we decide to focus only on fighting the giant robot, then why not just pull the lever?" the singer wondered, as she began to tire from all the fighting.
It was the giant of the team who answered in Aldwin's place, as he was injured after taking several slashing attacks from their metallic opponents. "Because Yura, we don't want Yeong to bear the responsibility for the deaths of all the regulars who would drown if the lever is pulled. We can only hope that by defeating the strongest robot, all the other robots will deactivate."
At the top of the pit, while Wangnan was admirably fending off the robots trying to climb up, Yeong bit his lower lip in frustration as he watched his teammates among the robots, unable to save the other regulars. "Argh! If only I were down there, I could incinerate all those robots with my flames, and we could have saved several individuals. But none of them have area attacks powerful enough to advance quickly toward the robot king." thought Yirang's son with the greatest sense of helplessness.
[ Maschenny Style: Lightning Spear Technique - Sword of Brillant Light ]
Finally, when Khun Ran's most powerful lightning spear reached its target, it did not cause serious damage to the titanic robot, even though it had pierced through most of its guards. It was to be expected; after all, if this series of robots had posed problems for the 13 Great Warriors during their training in the Hell Express, a regular from the 20th floor wouldn't fare any better. Watching his comrades struggle desperately, launching their most powerful attacks, tempted Yeong to consider pulling the lever anyway.
"I can't pull that lever; otherwise, I would cause irreversible consequences... But if I don't, my friends might lose their lives. Ahhh, what should I do!? This trial is even worse than Headon's because now I have allies and friends in the equation of my thoughts. But I can't bring myself to cause the death of others for selfish reasons. Is that why my mother always told me to be wary of friendship? Yet it's so nice not to be alone." Yeong thought with pain.
His urge to pull the lever peaked when he saw the worst happen, among the group in the pit who could no longer keep up with the successive waves of enemies crashing down on them while they fought the king. As they started to suffer more and more injuries from the relentless assaults of the robots, Rose, trying to defend Yura, was caught by the leg and severely wounded by one of the robotic guards. The wound was deep, and no one could help her.
Aldwin was paralyzed at the sight of his teammate so injured that she could no longer move. He felt an overwhelming sense of guilt for failing his entire strategy. But fortunately, he was jolted back to reality by a voice yelling in his ear through one of his lighthouses. "Aldwin! Don't hesitate, teleport them all to me!" It was Yeong who had made his choice.
"I can't hesitate any longer, I will save Rose no matter what. My green flames can heal her, but we need to finish this test first so I can use Shinsu again. I'm so sorry, so sorry to all of you regulars still alive, we couldn't help you, and now I'm even guilty of your impending deaths..." Yeong thought with deep regret before running toward the lever, seeing that Aldwin had transported all the team members.
Seeing what Yeong was about to do, Ja Wangnan tried to stop him in his tracks by shouting, "No! Don't do it, Yeong!"
But unfortunately, it was all for nothing, as the act was already done. The irregular from the Yeon family had pulled the lever with all his strength and was now kneeling, consumed by guilt, as the water gates opened and flooded the pit, drowning all the robots.
Yeong didn't want to open his eyes out of denial, but when he no longer heard the sound of rushing water, he forced himself to look. He first noticed the sombre faces of his teammates, who stared at the ground in shame, seeing the devastation caused by their failures, which filled the young Yeon with a profound sense of unease. However, that was nothing compared to when he turned his gaze toward the pit and saw the water tinted red, with the bodies of regulars floating on the surface. At the sight of this, he could only weep in guilt, silently begging for forgiveness.
When the locked door to the 21st floor opened, they all remained silent and still, reflecting on the past events and wishing to erase their memories too. That day profoundly marked the 'Little Warriors', changing each of them in significant ways.
After many millennia, someone made the same choice as Lo Bo Bia Traumerei for the same reason, to save their friends. However, by doing so, just as the 13 'Great Warriors' all became Fishermen, the 'Little Warriors' became sinners in turn through the same process. The tower was cruel and made its inhabitants cruel, revealing this once again through this trial.