I Became the Cute One in the Troubleshooter Squad-Chapter 129: The Fixer Exam: Is This Really Okay? (4)

The third task of the fixer exam, the Color War, seemed incredibly simple at first glance.

Just protect your marker for 24 hours and obtain a marker of your target color, and you pass.

The rules were straightforward, with no room for misinterpretation or variables depending on the situation.

However, the task required more than just physical strength—it demanded a psychological battle far more challenging for the examinees than expected.

This was because the three teams were interlinked like a game of rock-paper-scissors.

Let’s think about it. For White team to succeed, they need the Blue team's marker.

The Blue team needs the Red team's marker, and the Red team needs the White team's marker.

In other words, it would be meaningless if White team had 100 of the Red team's markers but lacked a Blue team marker.

Therefore, fighting the ones targeting you was a pointless battle that didn't benefit anyone.

Especially since the examinees would have to survive for 24 hours scattered across a large forest,

it wasn’t just about minimizing unnecessary energy consumption but also precisely targeting their goal and getting the marker.

The Color War wasn’t only about pure fighting; it would evaluate multiple factors.

‘Teaming up with examinees of the same color is a trap... From a different perspective, those with the same color are competitors with overlapping goals.’

It was simple logic. If 10 examinees from the White team grouped together and barely managed to defeat 5 from the Blue team to get their marker,

what happens if there’s only 1 hour left?

Naturally, they’d fight each other to secure a marker to become the winner.

Just like how large animals are strong, but they have to eat a lot to avoid starving.

Of course, if the 10 of them got more than 10 markers easily, it would be a different story.

At that point, the remaining examinees would be those with exceptional skills, and it wouldn’t be easy to collect markers without any damage.

‘But what if they all have the same White team marker? They could offer a trade and avoid the fight. In survival, avoiding unnecessary battles and reaching the goal without excessive energy expenditure is the best outcome.’

So, the Color War in the original story was a battle full of betrayal and schemes.

At first, examinees would group up with teammates of the same color, forming large groups.

But as the fear of elimination set in, they’d waste time avoiding fights.

By mid-task, at night, there would be ambushes to steal markers and items,

or betray weaker opponents to snatch their markers and make deals.

This 𝓬ontent is taken from freeweɓnovel.cѳm.

Naturally, by the morning of the final phase, the once large groups would disband due to betrayals.

The exam site would turn into a chaotic battlefield as examinees fought to survive and secure markers.

It could be seen as a team game, but in reality, it was a cold individual competition, where no one could be trusted except yourself.

This was a task where pure skill would be crucial.

‘Especially in this exam, there are some real monsters who are even stronger than active fixers. For those with mediocre skills, this task is going to be extremely tough. I, myself, am a rookie who can't even stand up to them.’

For reference, the answer I had devised for the third task, after a week of planning, was simple:

Hide and survive for 24 hours, then at the end, ask Alice for a Blue team marker.

Alice was from the Red team, the team I had to get a marker from. However, she wasn’t the type to hide, so by the end, she would have surely acquired the White team's marker for her team.

If you are reading this translation anywhere other than Novelight.net or SilkRoadTL, it has been stolen.

If she didn’t hide, she’d inevitably be attacked by the Blue team...

In that process, I would simply ask for a small favor: to give me one of the markers. It was a simple request.

It might seem a little underhanded, but what could I do?

By the third task, without telekinesis, no one could win on their own.

Even if I thought about it, sticking with Alice was the least wasteful and easiest method.

Eventually, by the final task, such shortcuts wouldn’t work, and I’d inevitably fail.

But for now, using these small tricks was acceptable, right?

‘...This was how I imagined passing. I didn’t expect things to turn out like this.’

Of course, the plan I had carefully devised was already shattered.

I had ended up with the absurd companion, Vespera...

This person, despite everything, seemed to have no real interest in the third task!

“Wow, a sap tree! It’s been a while since I’ve seen one! It reminds me of my childhood... Hey, kid, the sap from here is super sweet. Want to try it?”

“....”

“Don’t want to? Ah, right. When I gave it to my cat, it threw up blood. Well, never mind. I don’t feel like cutting the branches anyway.”

She was offering something that made her cat throw up blood, and now she’s trying to feed it to me?

I couldn’t help but look at Vespera with a bewildered expression as she casually said such terrifying things.

While other examinees were probably looking for good spots or cooperating with others,

Vespera seemed so confident in her abilities.

She had the relaxed demeanor of someone who came out to play in the backyard rather than face a dangerous task.

I, on the other hand, was eager to find a good spot and set up a blanket to rest.

‘Because of her, my original plan of sticking with Alice has become difficult... Honestly, I don’t want to run into other examinees.’

I silently followed Vespera, who was casually walking ahead, and made a decision in my mind.

Then I quickly ran ahead, blocking her path and stopping her.

She tilted her head in confusion at my sudden movement.

But I took her hand and guided her to the place I had planned earlier.

It was a secluded space that was hard to find, but easy to notice what was happening around it.

Nearby, there was a spot hidden among the trees that fit the criteria perfectly.

‘I think it’s around here... Ah, found it!’

It was a shelter made from otherworldly trees.

Like a cave, cold wind didn’t seep in, so it wasn’t cold at all.

There were no visible bugs, and if we just laid out a blanket, it looked like we could sleep without issue.

This was more than enough space for both me and Vespera to use.

Especially since the entrance was cleverly concealed with roots and branches.

You couldn’t tell there was space inside unless you pressed it with your hand.

If Meori hadn’t hacked and given me the location of Reverse Mountain, I wouldn’t have noticed it after walking around the area dozens of times.

Perhaps Vespera could sense it just by casually looking around.

She followed my lead and entered the shelter, blinking in surprise as she spoke.

“Oh my, such a space exists here. I don’t think anyone made it... it must be a wonder of nature.”

“...!”

“Hmph, to find a place like this so easily. You’ve got a pretty amazing skill, don’t you? You’re cute, but not just on the outside.”

Well, it wasn’t really me—it was all thanks to Meori.

But I could still say it was my skill since I had fed Meori the energy to use it.

I nodded lightly in thanks to Vespera’s words and dropped the bag I was carrying onto the ground.

Looking at the watch on my wrist, the time was 4:53.

There were only 7 minutes left until the Color War began.

Who would’ve thought such a secluded spot would be this close to the gym?

I bet others could never imagine it.

‘Sigh... I have to stay with this person until 5 PM tomorrow... I just hope we don’t run into trouble...’

How would I get Alice’s Blue team marker, and what if I ran into Alice or David?

My head was spinning with worries and thoughts.

But with the Tesseract and Meori hidden in my pockets,

I was able to shake off some of the anxiety.

I had the ultimate last resort for the very last moments.

Though it was uncomfortable, I could at least hold onto my sanity next to Vespera.

Whether she noticed my inner conflict or not,

Vespera, having placed her own bag down, glanced at me and spoke in a tone that seemed to ask why I was so worried.

“Hey, kid, are you scared you’ll fail? Don’t be too nervous. I’ll definitely get you that blue one. Let’s make it to the next task together, okay?”

“....”

The main source of my anxiety was you.

I bit back my frustration and nodded with a calm face, trying to keep my composure.

I didn’t know how she would react if I made her upset.

Thinking about it, it was wise to avoid emotional confrontations.

So, for now, it was best not to upset her.

Since my life was on the line, I focused on maintaining control over my emotions.

[ The fixer exam’s third task, Color War, has begun.

Time remaining: ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ 23:59:48... ]

As I sat in the shelter, quietly observing the outside,

my watch vibrated lightly, signaling the start of the Color War.

The watch also had a function to send alerts to the nearby staff,

so if I were seriously injured and wanted to withdraw, I could contact them at any time.

Given that they even brought in the heavyweight Tempest as an examiner for this task,

they likely wanted to minimize the number of casualties.

Of course, this didn’t concern me much.

Until I figured out Vespera’s intentions, I had no intention of withdrawing.

If I backed out now, Vespera would be set loose without any reins.

I had to stick it out until the very end.

“Well then... since there are too many eyes on us, how about we move quietly at night? It’d be bad if we attracted attention and caused a stir.”

“...!”

“Huh? You want to go with me? Alright, let’s take a nice evening walk, kid.”

As various commotions happened outside,

we spent a while lounging in the shelter.

After having some dried food for dinner from the bag,

we finally left the shelter around 11 PM.

The start of a terrifying night walk with Vespera,

the beginning of violent aggression aimed at the examinees.