'...You've got to be kidding me!'
A resentment that burst out on its own!
Even with his eyes closed, whether he rolled or stood still, the unfairness surged up like waves pounding the shore!
Kim Jangcheol looked at the barrier with a dumbfounded gaze. Of course, he couldn't actually see it. It was transparent. But he could feel it.
...Bzzzzzz!
To confirm, he stretched out his fist.
The moment his fist touched it, a powerful repelling force and shockwave erupted. It spread in all directions. The force was so great he almost slid backward.
Thanks to that, he became completely sure.
"...."
This thing, he couldn't break through it.
He had only struck it lightly just now, and already his whole body had staggered and almost been thrown back. If he tried to seriously smash through? Or pound it with something like a millstone?
The enormous rebound force would send him flying.
'...But still, that doesn't mean I can just give up!'
You don't know unless you try.
This brief moment was the perfect opening that Artanis had stepped in to create. Right now, in this gap, he had to get out of the plaza. He had to lure the statue to an unpopulated area!
".......Hmph!"
Kim Jangcheol took a deep breath.
And then—
"Haaahp!"
Boom!
He struck the barrier blocking his path with all his might.
And as a result, he flew.
Propelled by the repelling force of the barrier.
Soaring all the way to the opposite side of the plaza.
Thud!
'...Urgh!'
A sudden force pushed his entire body backward. His feet lifted off the ground. No, his whole body floated upward.
Was this how a soccer ball felt when kicked far and high by a goalkeeper? He seemed to be soaring to a height of about 60 meters.
Yes.
Around 60 meters sounded right.
That's why, at the same height as the statue of the Archangel, which had been spun around from Artanis's tail slap, he could exchange a little eye contact in passing.
'Hello?'
Without realizing it, he gave the statue a playful wink.
The Archangel statue, taken aback, nodded in response. Then, realizing its own reaction, it wore a startled expression.
Whoosh!
The statue belatedly reached out a hand. But by then, Kim Jangcheol had already drifted far away. The statue's massive fingers stretched out but couldn't reach him and regretfully withdrew.
Yes. Goodbye. We'll meet again someday. Roughly... maybe 10 seconds after I land? Or perhaps even sooner?
'Tsk!'
The arc he was drawing across the sky above the plaza tilted downward. The moment of falling approached.
Kim Jangcheol balanced himself to turn the fall into a landing. And then he spotted it.
A massive flag unfurled and fluttering, prepared for the inauguration ceremony.
"Hup!"
He reached out.
Grabbing the end of the flag.
Rip!
The flag tore mercilessly.
A brake seized his whole body.
The flagpole bent as if about to break.
At that moment, he let go.
Thud!
Thus, the momentum of his fall was reduced.
Just then, a familiar voice called out from below.
"Ugh?!"
He looked down.
A round, sturdy figure.
The Bearded Dumpling—no, the king's startled face looked up at him. His figure rapidly approached!
Thunk!
"...Your Majesty!"
Ah, sorry, Bearded Dumpling.
I never imagined I'd end up using you as a landing cushion in my lifetime.
"Y-Your Majesty!"
The fainted Bearded Dumpling, fortunately, didn't seem seriously injured. But just the sight of the king, who had been suddenly squashed by Kim Jangcheol, caused an uproar all around.
Of course, there was no time to offer any sincere apologies.
"I'm sorry!"
Dash!
He immediately leapt away.
To avoid responsibility?
No.
Because the longer he stayed near the king, the more danger it would bring not only to His Majesty but to everyone nearby. It was obvious that the statue's attacks, which were targeting only him, would involve them too.
He quickly descended from the platform where the king had been and ran. But during that moment, an unexpected companion joined him.
"Sir Kim Jangcheol! Are you alright?"
A voice just as familiar, though for a different reason than the king's. Turning his head, he saw the archbishop running alongside him.
Seeing the blond archbishop immediately filled Kim Jangcheol with renewed resentment, and he snapped in frustration.
"You think I look alright?!"
"Well, no, you certainly don't!"
"Then why ask?!"
"Because it's the responsibility of our Holy Order!"
The archbishop cried out, his face a mixture of panic and guilt.
"I sincerely apologize! I have no idea how this happened... why the statue of the Archangel is running rampant, nor why it's so obsessively targeting you... I truly don't know! But regardless, I apologize!"
"........"
"The statue was originally designed to react only to the demons, especially beings on the Demon King level...! I have no idea why it's attacking someone who's neither a demon nor a Demon King!"
The archbishop was speaking from the heart.
He was completely bewildered.
In truth, he still hadn't let go of the possibility that Kim Jangcheol might be the saint of ten.
It was understandable.
Even amidst the chaos unfolding now, while running alongside the archbishop at such a desperate moment, even while shouting in frustration, Kim Jangcheol aligned all his actions according to the number ten.
He ran in increments of ten steps. Sprinting ten paces, then briefly pausing, and repeating.
Even his breathing followed this pattern. He inhaled and exhaled in sets of ten, pausing for a brief moment before exhaling and starting another set of ten.
Even his blinking was no exception.
Despite the urgency, despite the crisis, even now, in this moment, he blinked exactly ten times at a time.
"........"
This man might really be the saint of ten. But then why, why, was the statue—the Holy Order's ultimate weapon—so relentlessly persecuting and trying to kill him?
"...It seems the statue has malfunctioned and is attacking you even though you're neither demon nor Demon King!"
The archbishop cried out, his voice filled with both guilt and sorrow. Kim Jangcheol, inwardly feeling a pang of guilt, shamelessly retorted.
"Malfunction? Then what are we supposed to do?!"
"There's an emergency stop technique! It's something we can try when the statue malfunctions!"
"What is it?!"
Kim Jangcheol felt as if his ears had perked up. An emergency stop technique, he thought. Was this what it felt like to glimpse a ray of light in total darkness?
At that moment, the archbishop's shout pierced his eardrums.
"You have to kiss it on the cheek!"
"...What?"
What kind of nonsense was this now?
The archbishop's voice continued.
"I'm serious! You must kiss the statue's cheek with genuine love and affection in your heart! Then the statue will feel the warmth of your sincerity and cease its destructive actions!"
"...Are you serious?"
"Of course I am!"
"......"
Honestly, Kim Jangcheol thought, your Holy Order is sometimes—no, often—truly strange.
But now wasn't the time to argue about that.
"Alright then! I'll act as bait to draw the statue's attention! While I'm doing that, Archbishop, you climb up onto the statue and give it a kiss on the cheek!"
"That won't do!"
"...Why not?!"
"I don't think I can put any sincerity into that kiss!"
The archbishop shouted, looking flustered.
"To be honest, I'm... slightly angry right now! That statue had to go berserk today of all days, during an event like this, dragging the Holy Order's honor through the mud... and my own position has become extremely awkward as well!"
"...Ah, so you're saying you can't muster any loving feelings toward the statue?"
"Exactly!"
"Well, at least you're honest!"
Kim Jangcheol sighed.
A kiss full of genuine love and affection, he thought. No way.
That statue, still stomping around, trying to kill him with bloodshot eyes after shaking off Artanis's interference? Honestly, not even Buddha or Jesus would be able to love that thing.
And he was no different.
So now, he was in a bind.
"Seriously now! Who in the world could genuinely love that thing enough to kiss it? What kind of emergency stop technique is that?!"
An emergency stop technique he knew, yet couldn't use.
But then, it happened.
"Baal! Baal can do it!"
An unexpected shout roared from beside the archbishop. Startled, Kim Jangcheol turned his head and saw Baal, who had somehow joined them and was running alongside.
"Baal heard the archbishop! Baal will do it!"
"What? You'll do it? You'll use the kiss-on-the-cheek emergency stop technique?"
"Yes! Baal can do it!"
With the face of a romantic comic protagonist, utterly at odds with his usual raspy voice that sounded like he'd boiled and eaten a train engine, Baal roared with confidence.
"Baal! Likes the statue! It's pretty! Baal approves!"
"...Seriously?"
"The statue! Big and beautiful! Baal's type!"
"...R-Really?"
"Baal! First love, heart pounding!"
"......"
Kim Jangcheol fell silent.
Then he stared at Baal.
Bloodshot eyes?
No need for that.
The slightly flushed face, the sparkling eyes as Baal gazed up at the statue—those were more than enough to convey his true feelings.
Because of that...
'Should we give it a try?'
In that fleeting moment, he glimpsed a possibility.
Hope, countless scenarios.
Prospects, various branching paths.
The probability of success for each.
All of these rapidly arranged, combined, calculated, and evaluated themselves within Kim Jangcheol's mind.
And the result was clear.
"Asurat! Sirgi! And Captain of the Royal Guards!"
The most suitable plan.
The most realistic execution.
Recalling this, Kim Jangcheol shouted. He called out to everyone except Artanis, who was still holding the statue back.
Then he gave quick instructions.
"Listen carefully, everyone. Baal will climb onto the statue's face and attempt the emergency stop technique. Each of you must carry out your roles precisely to make this happen, understood?"
"...!"
Baal clenched his fist.
Asurat and Sirgi's eyes sparkled.
Hector, captain of the Royal Guards, felt a bit indignant, wondering why even he was being spoken to so informally.
Meanwhile, Kim Jangcheol quickly continued his briefing.
"We'll begin immediately. From this point on, you must respond and move exactly as I direct. There's no rehearsal. We only get one chance. I'll start counting to ten, and we begin on cue."
Dash!
Having finished his instructions, Kim Jangcheol ran.
He quickly distanced himself from the others.
And he signaled the start of the operation with his count.
"10!"
Dash dash dash!
He sprinted even harder.
Widening the distance further.
"....9! 8! 7! 6...! 5... ngh!"
Boom!
The statue, having shaken off Artanis, swung its massive greatsword down at Kim Jangcheol.
"...4! 3! Nghh!"
Crash!
".....2! 1! Start!"
Even while being attacked by the statue, Kim Jangcheol pushed through and completed the count.
In most situations this urgent, someone would count down from three at best, but Kim Jangcheol stubbornly counted to ten.
And even then, instead of shouting "zero" at the end—which would make it eleven numbers—he simply declared "start."
Thus, even in a moment where his life was hanging by a thread, Kim Jangcheol adhered relentlessly to the Rule of Ten.
Watching this, the archbishop finally understood completely.
This man is definitely the legendary Saint of Ten.
[T/L: I am not getting any support from webnovel platform, so please support me and read ahead chapters on my ko-fi page "RevengerScans" : https://ko-fi.com/revengerscans ]