Chapter 28: Calm

Talice' expression became grim, but Yabin's expression was even worse.

"But I can give you a chance. Cut off her head and show me your determination to useful to me."

Even the most seasoned judges and inquisitors could not speak with such cold authority as Knight Tamik. His gaze remained wooden, yet the pressure he exuded was no less than that of a massive guillotine's blade. Yabin's face twisted even further, his features convulsing.

"Judge for yourself. I will count to five. If you don't act, you won't get another chance."

The female knight on the ground roared, "Tamik! How can you still call yourself a Temple Knight after doing such things? Do you still deserve to stand within the Glory Fortress and receive the Lord's grace? If His Holiness knew of this, he would surely punish you!"

Knight Tamik didn't even glance at Talice, keeping his eyes fixed on Yabin as he declared, "One."

Yabin was not only twitching in the face but trembling all over.

"Two… three…" Tamik counted without pause. He wasn't the type to drag things out to showcase his superiority; his pace was just right to make the urgency sink in.

Yabin's body was still shaking, sweat as large as beans rolling off his forehead, gathering at his chin before dripping to the ground. His hand clenched around the sword so tightly that it turned deathly pale, as if his own grip might shatter it.

"Four…" Tamik raised his blade. Even at this moment, his face showed no killing intent, though everyone knew he wasn't joking. Talice could no longer speak. She could only feel absolute despair and terror.

Yabin suddenly threw his head back and let out a dying beast's roar, his expression completely overtaken by a primal ferocity. It was impossible to imagine that such a handsome and lively young man could exhibit such an animalistic outburst. He raised his sword abruptly and slashed it down toward Talice' neck.

The blade gleamed like a ribbon of silver, slicing through the air with a beastly howl. But with a sharp clang, Yabin's sword was knocked aside.

Knight Tamik withdrew his own blade, looking at both Yabin and Talice with the same blank expression, as if deep in thought. Eventually, he seemed to come to a conclusion and nodded at Yabin.

"Alright. You might actually be useful."

Yabin collapsed to the ground, gasping as if he had just finished a hundred-mile sprint, utterly exhausted—physically and mentally drained.

Talice, on the other hand, was completely frozen, stunned. It wasn't just because she had narrowly escaped death; what shocked her more was that the sword had been swung by Yabin himself. She knew that strike wasn't feigned—she had felt the killing intent. If not for Tamik's intervention, her head would have been severed.

If the attack had come from someone else, she wouldn't have been this shaken. But coming from Yabin… she couldn't accept it.

When she thought of the word friend, the first person that came to mind was Yabin.

Growing up and training in Celeste, then spending her adult life under the guidance of the Templar Order, she had always been surrounded by rigid, solemn priests and knights. In a life of extreme discipline and hardship, she had never even had a proper companion to converse with.

Until she met Yabin in Alrasia.

Only then did she truly understand what the word friend meant.

And as a woman, she had even developed some… peculiar feelings toward this quick-witted yet undeniably strong young man.

Later, circumstances changed drastically, and she lost all trace of him. When she suddenly met him again in this chaotic and dire situation, she instinctively saw him as her only true friend.

But this very friend had just tried to behead her.

"Very good. You've proven that you understand what's at stake and know when to submit. I now have a reason to keep you alive."

Tamik nodded at Yabin. Then, he gestured to two Holy warriors. The warriors quickly grabbed a vine from a nearby tree and efficiently tied up Talice.

"You two bastards, animals… You're filth more corrupted by demons than necromancers! You're unworthy of using holy magic—"

Before she could finish, one of the warriors stuffed a wad of leaves and grass into her mouth, silencing her.

So I'm just 'useful' for this?

Dragged outside, she heard the conversation between Tamik and Asa, but her mind had gone completely blank.

Tamik's sudden attack had already thrown her thoughts into chaos—betrayal in an unfamiliar land, her supposed friend turning against her, the sheer confusion of it all.

Rage and unwillingness churned within her, threatening to burst.

She knew that trying to use herself as a hostage to threaten Asa was laughable. Their positions were completely opposed—there was no real reason for him to care. And yet, when she saw him barely glance at her, not even blinking, and then smirk indifferently, something inside her shattered.

Comrade? Who's a comrade? Do I have comrades? Who is right? Who is just? Is justice even real?

As Knight Tamik's black longsword swung toward her, she felt almost no fear. She only sensed a cold breeze brush across her face, every pore and strand of hair keenly aware of the dark magic pulsing from the blade. Then came the sickening sound of steel slicing into flesh, followed by the overwhelming stench of blood.

For a moment, she was dazed. Then, she realized that she wasn't missing any body parts.

Snapping back to her senses, she understood—Tamik's strike had missed. Or rather, it had only grazed her.

Knight Tamik missing his strike, failing to kill a defenseless person—this was as absurd as someone accidentally eating his own hand and arm while having a meal. Talice had no idea what was happening.

Then everything that followed left her even more bewildered, giving her no time to understand. The entire world seemed to explode in an utterly incomprehensible way under Knight Tamik's inexplicable strike.

Explosions, flames, the sound of shattering, bones breaking, the clash of swords, and screams erupted simultaneously. Blood, limbs, and wild magic elements filled the air, as if they had suddenly been thrust from a quiet forest into the midst of a raging battlefield.

As Talis regained her senses, she saw Knight Tamik retreating, his black longsword dripping with blood, a severed hand flying through the air. It wasn't her hand. She was being carried away by someone with only one arm.

Taking another step back, she realized it was Yabin. His sword arm had been severed at the shoulder. His sword, now embedded in Tamik's waist, wasn't deep, but it was enough to make the knight take a step back.

The holy warrior who had been standing beside Yabin was gone—or rather, he had been flung into the air, pinned to a tree by a black blade like a straw doll. A half-scream escaped his throat. His sword was also bloodied, though Talice knew it wasn't her blood.

But these were minor compared to the largest commotion, which came from the man who had thrown the blade to pin the holy warrior to the tree. He had been standing motionless in a pool of blood, a faint smile on his face, but now he was the most dynamic and dangerous figure, charging forward amidst explosions and magic.

Asa was charging forward. His white aura blazed like a star, battle energy surging like a tsunami. Beyond his protective aura, magic raged—explosions, fire, stone spikes, lightning. Yet he tore through it all, advancing relentlessly.

From the moment Knight Tamik summoned Yabin and Talice, Asa had known this was the final part of the trap.

Using a hostage was a tiresome tactic, especially when the hostage's side was completely opposite to his own. Even if there was an emotional reason to use her as leverage, Knight Tamik would have realized that Asa wouldn't falter in a life-or-death situation. So Asa understood that the threat wasn't just a bluff—Knight Tamik intended to dismember Talice right before his eyes, to unsettle him.

But Asa remained calm, because he could see that Yabin was the one holding Talice.