I needed to find the true cause of the slaughter. 

There had to be clues. 

Steadying my racing heart, I refocused on the test.

“Next, No Ji-tae!”

“Yes!”

As expected, Park Ra-hee hadn’t awakened, and now it was No Ji-tae’s turn. 

Ji-tae, my green-haired teammate, proved surprisingly capable.

“Oh! This kid’s got talent! Aim for the body, not the arms! That’s it!”

Ham So-bong cheered with clenched fists, like a coach who’d just discovered a promising athlete.

Swish!

The sword cut through the air in a swift descent.

Clang!

The goblin’s iron claws blocked its path. 

Though the recoil lifted his sword, Ji-tae immediately redirected the blade for a second strike.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Even to my amateur eyes, his movements seemed masterful. 

How was he trading blows with a goblin? 

He was incredible! 

More surprising though, despite his skill, he hadn’t scratched the goblin. 

This thing… it was way too powerful. 

Were goblins usually this strong? 

How could anyone be expected to awaken against such an opponent?

“Hmmm, that’s weird. That blow just now should have landed… Change your pattern! It seems to have adapted already.”

Ham So-bong frowned in frustration. 

But something about his words was odd. 

Goblins typically had low intelligence and shouldn’t adapt so quickly… 

I glanced at Ham So-bong. 

His face was tense, and he was gripping his sword tightly, his usual ease gone.

Just then—

Screeeech!

The goblin’s eyes flashed. 

For just two seconds, a yellow glint flickered in its red pupils before vanishing. 

Goosebumps covered my body.

Was that what I thought it was?

This wasn’t an ordinary goblin. 

And I knew exactly what it was.

It’s an experimental goblin. 

Experimental monsters introduced in chapter 118, were created by the villain. 

There were modified beasts. 

When their eyes turned yellow, a strange trait activated— a passive ability that made them stronger with each hit. 

Simply put, the more damage they took, the more powerful they would become.

An experimental goblin here, at this stage?

Thud!

The goblin finally fell.  

Sensing something was amiss, Ham So-bong had eliminated it himself rather than letting the child continue. 

“I guess this one’s a mutant. Let’s try another.”

A true professional. 

Even without background knowledge, he’d made the right call. 

There was only one way to defeat an experimental goblin: avoid minor hits, and deliver critical blows to kill it swiftly. 

If its ability was to grow stronger with each strike, you had to take it down before it could power up.

“Let’s take a break.”

“Huff… okay!”

“Take a five minute rest.”

“Understood!”

Ji-tae collapsed to the ground while Ham So-bong examined the dead goblin. 

Should I tell him what I knew? 

No, that was pointless. 

Saying, That goblin is a genetically modified experiment created by a dark, shadow organization, and it grows stronger the more you cut it! would make me sound insane. 

But things were becoming clearer. 

Experimental goblins were part of the test. 

While the outbreak raged outside, experimental goblins would attack within the testing area. 

Not all goblins were experiments—after all, the ones Hyo-jun killed hadn’t shown yellow eyes. 

Still, something felt missing…

I haven’t fully solved the puzzle. 

My gaze shifted to Ham So-bong.

We have a ranker here.

Each test area had a ranker. 

I may struggle against a single goblin, but Ham So-bong can kill even an experimental goblin in one second. 

Yet, in the novel, the slaughter succeeded despite having a ranker present. 

There were two possibilities:

1. An ambush,

2. Overwhelming numbers.

Just as these thoughts aligned—

Rumble!

The ground quaked as if struck by an earthquake. 

This wasn’t a mere tremor; it was strong enough to make standing difficult.

“What… what is that?”

“An earthquake?”

“Everyone, inside the barrier!”

Absorbed in watching the fight, my teammates and I had drifted outside the magic circle. 

Being safety-conscious, I darted back first, the others quickly following. 

However, the barrier wasn’t large enough to accommodate Ham So-bong.

“If we abandon our weapons, maybe the examiner could—”

“Keep your weapons! Just stay quietly in the barrier!”

Ham So-bong barked his orders and began manipulating his wristwatch. 

Well, it’s actually called a device. 

It’s like a smart watch for hunters. 

He was probably trying to contact outside help, but the device was malfunctioning. 

The outbreak had severed all communications. 

We’d be cut off from the outside for the next two hours. 

Gulp. 

I swallowed hard.

This is it.

That tremor was the sign of an ambush. 

The massacre would begin soon.

#

The ambush should start any moment now… 

If my deduction was correct, this was definitely the right time. 

And yet… 

“Examiner, how much longer do we have to wait?”

“If anything happens, we’ll get orders. Just stand still.”

“Shouldn’t we leave before the cave collapses?”

“Not an option; we follow protocol. Besides, the barrier will protect us from any quake.”

Everything was eerily calm. 

No, beyond calm—downright boring. 

Twenty minutes had passed without incident.

“Ji-tae, where did you learn swordsmanship?”

“My father taught me.”

“Is he a hunter too? What’s his name?”

“No, not a hunter, but he runs a swordsmanship school…”

We’d devolved into small talk. 

Park Ra-hee prayed fervently while Hyo-jun, Ji-tae, and Ham So-bong chatted away.

“Anyone hungry? Want a snack?”

“Nice one, Ju-wan!”

Even Ju-wan was rummaging through his backpack, distributing snacks and drinks. 

It almost looked like we were on a picnic. 

The snacks… they matched those from the waiting room. 

When had he gathered them? 

As I marveled at his preparedness, he offered me a pink macaron.

“Sora, want one?”

“I’ll eat later.”

“Why? Thought these were your favorite?”

“Not in the mood.”

Who could eat macarons while waiting for an ambush? 

I watched the rotating goblin machine. 

Fourteen down, thirty-six to go.

“Nervous about your turn?”

I nodded. 

Better than explaining everything. 

By my theory, those experimental goblins would launch an ambush. 

But they were still chained and frozen. 

How would they break free to attack? 

That was the key to solving this massacre… 

Then,

A flicker!

A tiny light caught my eye. 

Squinting, I spotted a small light bouncing in the distance.

A firefly?

Its glow suggested so, but instead of flying, it hopped toward the goblin machine. 

Weren’t fireflies drawn to clean places? 

Despite the cave’s stench, perhaps it was clean enough…

Wait…!

My thoughts froze. 

Something impossible was unfolding in front of my eyes. 

The moment the firefly reached the goblin machine, every frozen goblin simultaneously started to move. 

Thirty-six goblins cracked their necks and stretched. 

The chains around their necks dropped silently to the ground despite their weight.

Sound-muffling magic?

Before I could process this, the goblins were already lunging — straight at the relaxed Ham So-bong.

“Examiner, behind you!”

Ham turned at my shout, just in time.

“Tch!”

Ham So-bong’s reaction was incredible—dodging the goblin’s attack with a backward lean, then springing ten steps back while cutting down one goblin in that brief moment. 

How had he managed to do all that?

“Ahhh! Examiner, in front of you!”

“Stay in the barrier! Don’t step out!”

In an instant, thirty-six goblins surrounded Ham So-bong, their iron claws stabbing at him from every angle like a grotesque game of barrel roulette. 

He deflected every strike.

It really is sound-muffling magic!

Despite the clash of metal and claws, not a single sound emerged. 

However, even with dampened senses, though, Ham was holding his own against 36 opponents. 

Impressive, but I couldn’t relax. 

Some of those goblins were experimental monsters. 

“Damn it! What’s with these things?”

As expected, the goblins grew stronger, and Ham So-bong began losing ground.

“Shouldn’t we… help?”

“I said stay put!”

“But…”

Ji-tae stepped forward with his sword, but Ham So-bong somehow heard us and shouted back. 

Unfortunately, a goblin noticed our exchange and turned toward us.

No, don’t come here!

The goblin licked its lips and approached the magic circle, bringing down its long, iron claw.

Clang!

The claw bounced off the barrier’s protective field.

“Everyone, stay well inside the barrier,” Ju-wan warned in a low voice. 

We huddled together, knowing a single toe outside would be instantly severed.

Clang! Clang!

… Seventeen, eighteen, nineteen.

After nineteen attempts, the goblin finally seemed to accept the barrier’s strength and turned back to Ham So-bong, who’d already eliminated five goblins. 

Maybe we could survive if we held out? 

He was a ranker, after all… 

Just as I started to relax, a familiar sight caught my eye—a firefly. 

The tiny bug watched us from afar, tilting its head as if curious. 

A sense of dread crept over me.

“Ju-wan…”

“What?”

“We need to kill that thing.”

“What thing?”

“That glowing bug.”

“What nonsense are you talking about, at a time like this?”

Ju-wan’s reaction made sense; stepping outside the circle meant certain death.

There’s no proof it’s the bug’s doing, right?

It had only approached the goblins before their chains fell—hardly conclusive evidence. 

As dark as the world of <Doomed Academy> was, it wasn’t absurd enough to feature magic-casting insects. 

Must be coincidence… right? 

Better not harm a harmless bug. 

But that ominous feeling persisted. 

If that bug reached us, we were finished. 

I had no proof, but I was certain. 

Hop. Hop.

The bug drew closer. 

Only ten meters left. 

Hop. Hop.

Five meters remaining.

One hop away—

“Sora! Hey!”

Ignoring Ju-wan’s cry, I lunged forward.

Crack!

It was like crushing a brittle shell. 

A glow seeped from beneath my shoe.

Got it!

Before I could celebrate, though, ice ran through my veins. 

Turning, I saw three goblins charging toward me, all drooling hungrily. 

Strangely, I could read their expressions perfectly.

Oh, a snack?