The Jester Temple Showdown

The golem knocked its carnival mallets together—CLONK!—a gong-like blast that shook the air. Dust and pebbles rained from the eternal grin carved into its stone jaw. Ryo swallowed hard; the echo rippled through the pillars as a reminder that "alive" was a very temporary status.

Slowly, he stepped back without releasing Yuna's hand. The monster crunched after them. Five meters away, Haru watched with his arms folded, eyes glowing with the crimson rune beneath his feet.

"Relax, boy," the ex-priest called. "My toy just pounds until the mixture is nice and smooth. It doesn't hurt—much—if you scream."

"Thanks for the tip, psychopath."Ryo inhaled to trigger Courage I, but his inner run.exe was still on cooldown. The compass vibrated with one message left: Protection I ready. One single-use life insurance.

Toru planted his staff like a spear and signaled the rookie bandits. "Go for its legs—hit the joints!"

Sugi nodded, sword stump quivering. Chio stretched her string-less bow—then improvised and gripped it like a club. Doi raised his nail-plank "combat guitar."

Gumi-chan gave a determined plop, swelling to watermelon size. The compass beeped: Bond energy at maximum.

Ryo felt the jelly vibrate on his arm; a wild idea struck. He glanced at the flour sack on his belt.

"Team—we're executing Plan… Gummy Bear?"

"Plan what?" Chio asked.

"Just follow me!"Ryo tore open the sack and dumped flour over Gumi-chan. The slime soaked it up, turning milky white with golden flecks.

The golem thundered forward, swinging a mallet at Ryo. Protection I auto-triggered: the hardened clay-cape inflated like a shield and deflected the blow—though Ryo was tossed two meters, clutching Yuna so she wouldn't tumble.

Toru barked an ancient-sounding command; his staff cracked the golem's knee. A chip flew off—barely a scratch. Sugi jammed his chipped sword into the joint; the blade shattered, the knee remained.

Ryo staggered up—daily "lethal-hit shield" spent, Courage I half-baked. The golem swung its other mallet at Toru, wind howling. The old man dodged with surprising grace—until the second mallet clipped him and hurled him into a pillar.

"Toru!" Ryo shouted.

The elder coughed, gave a thumbs-up: alive, just bruised.

Compass pinged: Wisdom 80 % → 85 % (observed tactic). "Now's not the time for stats!"

Doi tried distraction, belting an improvised redemption ballad. The golem didn't sing—but its fist did a drumroll on the ground; Doi rolled away, nail-plank splintering.

Chio sprinted to help. Sugi retreated with his useless sword hilt.

"Plan Gummy Bear," Ryo gasped, "I need real cover!"

"I'm a swordsman—my sword's toast," Sugi wailed.

Yuna struck a twig and lit it with stolen tinder.

Ryo hefted Gumi-chan like a gelatin grenade. "Ready to fry stone."

Yuna touched flame to the slime. Gumi-chan absorbed the fire; the flour crust glowed red, throwing sparks. The golem locked onto the light like a cat chasing a laser.

Behind the brute, Ryo spotted a puddle of torch oil—perfect.

"Sugi, Chio, distract left. Doi, crack a terrible joke on the right!"

Doi blurted, "Uh… What do you call a thief in an oat field? An oat-law!"

The golem turned, baffled. Ryo thought it was the stupidest—and most effective—thing he'd heard. Courage I re-lit: three seconds of glory.

"Gumi—bomb-flan mode!"

The slime glowed neon orange. Ryo yelled something between "Charge!" and "For Pastry!" and hurled it at the golem's chest.

PLOF!—followed by a WHOOMP! of blue-orange flame. The flour ignited in a flash, fire racing through fresh cracks. For the first time the golem wobbled.

From his pillar, Toru seized the opening—chanted a single ceremonial word. The red floor rune died; Haru cursed as control faltered.

Gumi-chan, singed but intact, bounced back and latched onto Ryo's leg, caramel-colored now.

The golem dropped to its knees; stone split, exposing a melon-sized crystal core.

"The core!" Yuna cried.

She vaulted the monster's leg, jammed her hand into the crack, wrested the gem free, and tumbled onto Toru, who cushioned her fall.

Core removed, the golem froze mid-sneer and collapsed like a drunken Jenga tower.

Silence hit harder than the fight.

Haru panted, stunned. Ryo, barely upright, drawled, "Told you—my flour beats rock."

Haru laughed—a mix of rage and fascination. "Don't overrate yourself, outsider. First trial only. Hand over the slime and compass, and I'll let you leave."

"I'll pass."

Haru raised a hand. A dozen more bandits poured from the ruins.

Compass buzzed: Wisdom 85 % → 90 % (failed negotiation) then Hidden Attribute progress 5 %—whatever that was, probably "Bad Luck."

Sugi, Chio, and Doi circled Yuna and Toru. Gumi-chan flattened into a disc, clinging to Ryo's forearm like a shield.

Haru stepped forward—then halted. His tattoos glowed red, then violet; his face turned ashen.

"What…? No—the compass—rebelling…"

Ryo's compass pulsed blue, counter-beating Haru's crimson. A thin beam linked the two devices. Haru screamed, knees buckling. Confused bandits lowered weapons.

"Boss?" someone muttered.

Clutching his chest, Haru rasped, "Relic… you… don't reject me!"

The ground trembled. The temple's pediment cracked; a lilac beam shot skyward like a beacon. The compass sparked: Wisdom 90 % → 92 %.

"Is that part of Plan Gummy Bear?" Ryo asked.

"No," Toru admitted.

The beam twisted, plunged, and struck the now-dark rune. A violet dust explosion engulfed the area. When it cleared, Haru was gone—only a compass-shaped tattoo remained, burned into the rock like a decal.

"Did Haru… vanish?" Yuna whispered.

Toru touched the still-warm stone. "Or the temple's matrix absorbed him. Either way—bad."

Ryo collapsed, exhausted. The slime ploped soothingly, reverting to baby-blue.

That night they camped by a stream, far from the unstable ruins. Haru's leaderless bandits fled, vowing to take up farming—faith is funny like that.

Sugi roasted mushrooms, Chio finally restrung her bow, Doi composed "The Exploding Flan and Fearsome Haru-Pop."

Boots drying beside him, Ryo studied the core gem Yuna had saved—pulsing silent lilac waves.

Toru sat. "An arcane stone. It condenses trickster energy and purifies chaotic impulse. Gumi-chan recognized its 'sibling' and acted."

"So the slime's no random pet?"

"Part of the same seal-network as the compass. Haru tried to bend it to his will. You, unknowingly, follow the original design."

"Crazy design," Ryo chuckled.

The compass warmed in response.

"You know I'm talking to you, huh?" he whispered. The needle spun a full circle, then pointed north again.

Yuna handed him a bowl of soup. "So you don't starve, explosive hero."

"Thanks, Yuna."

She sat. "I thought heroes were tall and muscular… but you're normal and still fight. Mom would be proud."

A lump formed in Ryo's throat. "When we find her, we'll tell her her daughter saved the world with flour."

Yuna smiled. Across the fire, Gumi-chan mimicked it—forming a glowing "U" shape. Everyone laughed.

The compass displayed a private note:

Protection I: 100 % | Courage I: ready | Wisdom: 92 %

Ryo closed the lid with a satisfied sigh. The road was long, but beneath absurdly huge stars, he allowed himself to believe he might survive another day.

End of Chapter 6.