The battle raged on with ever-increasing intensity. The sound of clashing weapons echoed across the barren field, punctuated by shouts and bursts of energy. Linggis moved with an almost incomprehensible speed, frustrating his opponents even more. Seo and Han tried to maintain their coordination, while the High Priest Saint launched spells from a distance, ensuring Linggis had no chance to counterattack.
However, Linggis's attention briefly shifted to the naive man still standing frozen at the edge of the battlefield. The man was trembling, unable to lift his weapon. His eyes were filled with fear, and his body seemed paralyzed—unable to flee or help his comrades.
"Ah, you're still here," Linggis said casually, though his gaze was sharp as a blade.
The man flinched, his knees almost buckling under him. "P-Please… don't..."
"Don't?" Linggis smirked, taking a small step toward him while still parrying Seo and Junn's desperate attacks. "Then why are you here? To stand idly and hope no one hurts you? How pathetic."
"Stop talking to him, Linggis!" Seo shouted, leaping at him with a slash of her holy sword.
But Linggis jumped back, using her attack as an opportunity to edge closer to the trembling man. He raised his cane, pointing its tip at the man's throat, making him shake even harder.
"I'm curious. Why would they bring someone like you to this battlefield? Someone must've sent you here. Are you just a pawn to be sacrificed? Or do they simply not care if you die?" Linggis said in a low voice, dripping with venom.
Junn lunged forward, swinging his massive sword at Linggis, but Linggis nimbly sidestepped. As Junn turned, he realized too late that Linggis had already pulled a small knife from his waist.
"Don't you dare touch him!" Junn yelled, but it was too late. Linggis hurled the knife with deadly precision.
Fwhip!
The blade flew fast, heading straight for the naive man's chest. His eyes widened, his body frozen, unable to move out of the way.
"N-No..." Seo dashed forward in an attempt to intercept the knife, but Linggis had anticipated her. With incredible speed, he moved to her side and struck her with his sharp cane. Seo barely managed to block, her momentum stopping abruptly.
Thud!
The knife struck true, embedding itself in the man's chest. Blood flowed from the wound, and his body wavered before collapsing to the ground with a soft thud. He clutched at his chest, his mouth moving as if to speak, but no words came out.
Seo froze, her eyes wide as she watched the man fall before her. "NOOO!!!" she screamed, her voice filled with rage. Linggis leapt back, grinning.
Junn also stopped for a moment, staring at the man's lifeless body in disbelief. "You… you actually killed him..."
Linggis stood near the man's body, his cane swinging casually in his hand. His face showed no guilt or remorse. Instead, he wore a faint, cruel smile, as if savoring the moment.
"Of course I killed him," Linggis said coldly. "He was a liability. And liabilities must be eliminated."
Seo rushed forward with a slash fueled by pure rage, her sword glowing brightly. "You'll pay for this!"
Linggis deflected the attack with his cane, the loud clang ringing out. "Oh, I already paid. With his blood. And you're next."
Rin, who had remained composed until now, raised her holy staff, unleashing a wave of light toward Linggis. But Linggis evaded it effortlessly, moving like a shadow too slippery to catch.
"You're all shaken now, aren't you? Because he's dead. But that's war," Linggis said as he leapt away. "He was too weak to survive. And you… might be next."
Seo continued her relentless attacks, her strikes full of fury, but Linggis remained calm, parrying each one with ease. He had already won the psychological battle. With one death, he had disrupted their focus entirely.
The fight wasn't over. But Linggis now held the upper hand—not just physically, but on the psychological battlefield as well.