WARNING: The following contains major spoilers for Season 1, Episode 9 of Tower of God, "The One-Horned Ogre," now streaming on Crunchyroll.

Tower of God's devious Tag test comes to its conclusion in Episode 9 -- and it's a surprisingly somber ending. The test pitted not only the anime's cast of tower-climbing Regulars against one another but also threw a test administrator into the mix in the form of Ranker Quant. To make up for his mishandling of the deathmatch test, Test Director Hunsang Yu adds his subordinate to the game as a third "It." But the flame-haired Ranker turns out to be the least of Bam's team's troubles: there's a traitor in their midst.

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Unlike Khun's daring tactic in Episode 8 -- deliberately losing Team A the game by giving Quant a helping hand -- Team B's Judas appears to be going entirely off-plan. Or, at least, off of any plan that's in the spirit of teamwork. While Endorsi and Bam argue over the ethics of comradery vs. individual gain on the upper levels of the indoor arena, Hoh decides to come down on the side of the latter. With a knife pressed to her throat, he takes Rachel hostage, indicating that he's carrying out what was written to him in the letter left outside of his room in Episode 7. "It said if I got rid of you, Bam would also go away." The series has been teasing a villainous turn from the tangerine-skinned Regular for a while, making his dislike of Bam a barely-concealed rage. Now, Hoh is out for blood.

After shaking off Hatz and the cowardly Spear Bearers, Quant appears and attempts to diffuse the situation, disgusted and irritated by Hoh's desperation. When Bam shows up -- alarmed that he couldn't detect Rachel's Lighthouse -- his shock triggers a Hoh to start doubting that he's doing the right thing. He wonders if he's actually been tricked by the mysterious letter-writer, who we know only as "He." Reclaiming his resolve, he orders Bam to fight Quant, perhaps in the hopes that the Ranker will take care of his problem for him. He threatens to stab Rachel if they don't comply, which is all the motivation Bam needs to begin forming a Shinsu ball between his hands.

Tower of God Hoh flashback

The fight is over before it begins: Quant demonstrates his mastery over the divine substance by freezing Bam in place with it and sneering that if he doesn't "like it," he should learn to do the same -- which, to Quant's amazement, the Irregular does minutes later. Unfortunately, none of this prevents Hoh from accidentally piercing Rachel's back with his blade when she tries to wriggle free of him. As Rachel lies bleeding out in Bam's tearful embrace, Hoh recounts a childhood lived in fear of an ogre-like monster who slaughtered those he loved while he was powerless to stop them. Then, he turns his own knife on himself. "I wasn't trying to kill her in order to climb the tower. I just... hated you, Bam."

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When Endorsi arrives on the scene, it's only a matter of time before the Princess of Jahad is able to swipe Quant's "It" badge, claiming victory for her team; a small consolation prize for those who witnessed the tragic turn of events. But Hoh's deception and Rachel's near-fatal injury leaves some interesting unanswered questions behind. The anime hints that anyone from Khun to Yu could be the master manipulator behind Hoh's actions -- or it could be someone we've yet to meet. They might have been putting Hoh's allyship to the test (a test that he failed), or are simply working to sow discontent within the group in order to thin the herd as their journey progresses.

There's also the strange circumstances of Rachel's survival, which appears to be linked to the large, silent warrior who she and Endorsi partnered with to make it through the deathmatch test and Crown Game with. They seemed to sense the second that she was in danger, despite being far away from her, and vanished from thin air at the moment she was seriously injured. Clearly, there are far more hidden agendas and abilities at play than we realize.

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