As soon as I stepped onto the stairs, the stone statue moved, closing the path.

 

Darkness fell for a moment, but at the same time, light came on from both walls.

 

Thank goodness this was just like in the game.

 

I almost regretted not bringing a torch.

 

The only sound I could hear was the sound of me trudging down the stairs.

 

When I reached the end, a completely different place than the damp cave just before unfolded.

 

There was nothing in the temple that hadn’t worn down over time.

 

Cracked pillars and a floor covered with unnamed plants.

 

A wall that once had a beautiful painting and a statue of a goddess in the middle.

 

This was where Ruel’s ordeal began.

 

Before approaching the statue, I took out the potions I had bought from Evans the last time I visited.

 

Various potions that gave temporary buffs.

 

As expected from potions sold in small towns, they weren’t very effective, but it wouldn’t hurt to be prepared.

 

The moment I gulped down the potion, my mouth was filled with a bitter taste.

 

It felt like I had just poured the powder medicine I was given to mix in water when I was young into my mouth.

 

They say that what is bad for your tongue is good for your body, but isn’t this a bit too much?

 

Still, after drinking the potion, I felt strength rising in my body.

 

After finishing my preparations, I stood in front of the statue.

 

If this ordeal was like the game, it was time for the voice to come out.

 

“Are you the one requesting the ordeal?”

 

The voice of an old man, which did not match the merciful appearance of the goddess, leaked out.

 

When I first heard this voice, I was very surprised.

 

That was understandable, because the voice of an old man flowed out from the statue of such a pretty goddess.

 

It was so out of place that I couldn’t help but laugh.

 

“That’s right, you sloppy old man.”

 

“… Good.”

 

Oh.

 

I think he paused for a moment.

 

Was it my imagination?

 

“There are various ordeals prepared here to test your faith. All of this is to push you to the limit and see if your beliefs are true. The difficulty of the trials is by no means light.”

 

‘I understand, so let’s move on.’

 

“Sloppy old man, I understand, so shut up. I can only hear your voice, but I reckon you smell like an old man.”

 

Oh.

 

That was a mistake.

 

The old man’s words were too long, so I couldn’t control my gamer-specific skipping instinct.

 

No, he was repeating the same story I’d heard hundreds of times.

 

I used to get so upset because I couldn’t skip the old man’s lines when I entered the trials.

 

When I was speed running, I would always say to myself, “I understand, so shut up.”

 

| never thought that because of that habit, I would end up saying, “Move on,” in real life, and in Mesugaki.

 

What’s wrong with being a little aggressive?

 

The voice that tells you about this trial is just a voice.

 

No matter what I say, you’ll just silently proceed with the trials.

 

I kept my mouth shut and waited for the voice to talk about the trials, but there was no answer.

 

…

 

Huh?

 

What?

 

Did that voice announcing the ordeal have a personality?

 

In the game, it only talked about the content of the test without any emotion.

 

Did this change because it is now reality?

 

No way.

 

“I understand, since you seem confident, I’ll go straight into the test.”

 

The voice talking about the test was full of anger.

 

This is fucked up.

 

This is really fucked up.

 

No, there was no personality or nonsense in the game!

 

There wasn’t even a story related to that voice, so it wasn’t worth more than a real narration!

 

How could I possibly think there was a backstory behind it!

 

This is ridiculous!

 

“The first test is the test of protection. Those who hold the shield under God must know how to protect what they must protect without breaking in any situation. I will test that.”

 

The voice stopped explaining and closed its mouth.

 

As if it had said everything it wanted to say.

 

Hey, Grandpa?

 

You should have told me more about the exam.

 

You’re just a useless old man.

 

But why are you stopping talking like a child?

 

…

 

I think I did something wrong.

 

But you’re not going to put weird things in the exam because you’re upset, right?

 

I’m level 3 right now, and I know what comes out in Ruel’s trials at level 3.

 

Just try to say something weird.

 

The legendary knight Ruel will have rumours spread all around the neighbourhood that you’re a petty old man.

 

I didn’t know how things would change if I said it out loud, so I kept complaining to myself internally, when I heard a giggling sound in the darkness.

 

It’s goblins.

 

I’ve really been sick of them for the past two days.

 

You damn goblin idiots.

 

I counted the number of goblins by eye.

 

Twelve in total.

 

A group of goblins with spearmen, shield men, archers, and even magicians.

 

It’s the same as what I know.

 

Thank goodness.

 

He wasn’t that petty.

 

The goblin group is the same as I remember, but it is still not an easy opponent.

 

Goblins in a group can be more cunning and threatening than any other monster.

 

This is especially true for me, who has not experienced much in actual combat.

 

To be honest, I am not sure that I can achieve a perfect victory against those twelve.

 

But that is okay.

 

I do not necessarily have to win.

 

The condition for passing this test is to protect the stone statue behind me for a limited time.

 

And that is the type of event that I am most confident in.

 

With my Unbreakable Will, I will not give up under any circumstances.

 

I am an iron wall, and no matter what attack comes, I can move in the best way to block it.

 

And with the provocation ability of the Mesugaki skill, I can limit their attack target to only me.

 

The conditions were perfect.

 

From now on, what was important was my control.

 

Now that it is reality, it is not control but fighting skills.

 

I raise my shield and look at the goblins approaching me.

 

“You sloppy goblins, you’re scared even though you outnumber me? Ahaha. Sloppy, shitty. trashy goblin mobs”

 

I took a deep breath as I felt the direct killing intent directed at me.

 

It’s really strange.

 

When I first received the killing intent of the orcs, my mind went blank, but now I don’t feel that nervous even when I receive it.

 

Maybe it’s because I spent the whole day yesterday receiving the killing intent.

 

Possell is definitely good at training people.

 

I’m not going to thank him for that though because the painful memories of yesterday came back to mind.

 

“Come at me, you EXP-giving trash.”

 

The moment the goblins raised their weapons, my body gradually gained strength.

 

I learned this while fighting multiple people in the dungeon yesterday, but the buff effect of the Mesugaki skill doesn’t just target one person.

 

That means if you make multiple people angry, your stats will increase by that much more.

 

At this very moment, I’m probably three times stronger than usual?!

 

“If you’re a trash mob, sacrifice your life like a trash mob and become my experience.”

 

The moment the goblin archer drew his bow from afar, the Iron Wall skill told me.

 

To raise my shield.

 

I followed its call without any hesitation and moved my body.

 

Then, the arrow flying towards me was blocked by the shield and bounced off.

 

At that moment, my movements stopped.

 

The goblins holding spears stepped forward with fierce momentum.

 

Their spear technique was sloppy.

 

It was to the point where I thought it would be similar if I gave spears to farmers in the territory.

 

There was no need to go along with such an obvious and weak attack.

 

When I hit the spear shaft with my shield, the goblin staggered, unable to bear the weight of the spear.

 

I took advantage of the gap and dug in.

 

A spear is definitely a threatening weapon, but it’s only effective when there’s a distance between them.

 

Once the distance is narrowed, a spear is nothing more than an obstacle that gets in the way.

 

Especially when the allies and enemies overlap.

 

Arrows and magic are the same.

 

Where among the goblins would there be a great wizard or a divine archer?

 

Targeting me while I’m in close proximity to their allies means that they are likely to kill teammates.

 

I learned this from Possell.

 

He may not know about anything else, but he is a reliable person in this field.

 

I smashed the head of the goblin in front of me and rushed to the goblin behind him.

 

The opponent was flustered after seeing me, as if he had not thought that I would attack him.

 

By the time he got his bearings, the mace had already reached his head.

 

Crack!

 

Here.

 

Two of them.

 

The moment I tried to move my body again, the Iron Wall skill warned me.

 

So, I gave up on attacking and immediately raised my shield.

 

At that moment, I saw a fireball flying past the shield.

 

They made a quick decision!

 

Considering how long it would take to cast a spell, you were just planning on roasting me along with the other goblins?!

 

You must have gotten angry.

 

I forced a smile, holding back the stinging pain from my skin touching the heated shield.

 

“You sloppy goblin. Your magic is so bad. Well, there’s no way a retard like you could use magic properly.”

 

As soon as I taunted, the goblins surrounding me rushed to grab me.

 

At the same time, an arrow was shot above me, and the goblin wizard immediately cast the next spell.

 

Ahaha.

 

You’re angry?!

 

You’re really angry!

 

But what should I do?!

 

The angrier you get, the stronger I become!

 

I covered my front with my shield and put strength into my legs.

 

I felt it just now when I took the fireball.

 

If I left the wizard alone, I would definitely get hurt.

 

So, what I had to do now was simple.

 

Run towards the group of goblins who were desperate to capture me.

 

They were nothing much in my eyes though.

 

They attacked with the intent to break through at all costs.

 

Their carelessness was my opportunity.

 

I had to break through that carelessness and get to the goblin wizard.

 

I took a deep breath and put strength into my legs.

 

A fierce charge without thinking about what would happen next.

 

If I stopped midway, I would give the goblins a chance.

 

However, I was confident.

 

The training I had done so far.

 

The potion I had just consumed.

 

My Mesugaki skill gave me confidence.

 

Even though the goblin that was rushing at me collided with my shield, I didn’t slow down.

 

Forward.

 

If there was anything blocking me, I would blow it away and then move forward again!

 

The goblin archer fired arrows in a hurry, but it was meaningless.

 

Do you think that such a crude bow could penetrate my armour and shield?!

 

Even as I reached the wizard in front of him in one go, the wizard hadn’t finished casting.

 

My eyes met with the goblin reciting the spell.

 

I laughed as I saw fear forming on the goblin’s face.

 

“Just go away, trash”