Jiwon moved in again, faster this time, committing fully as her dagger drove toward his side. But Jisung just took the hit, completely ignoring her.
Ara's follow-up came a beat later, her sword crashing down with everything she had. But Jisung simply dodged, redirecting the trajectory as her blade crashed down into the ground by his side.
"…What—?"
Hyunwoo's voice wavered, but Jisung was already gone.
He cut straight through the space between them and Amon, a blur that none of them could properly track. His blade came up, and instantly landed on its target.
One of Amon's arms, the one holding the lantern, was sliced completely clean off. The arm spun through the air before crashing against a nearby stone pillar, the flame inside the lantern flickered before going out.
For a split second, it looked like that might be it, but Jisung moved again.
The second cut was just as clean as the first, completely separating Amon's arm that held the torn prayer book. The rotted pages scattered across the floor like debris, the monster's massive form shuddering as the book disintegrated into smoke.
Minjae's eyes narrowed from behind.
There it is. Phase Two.
Amon's body convulsed, his remaining limbs twitched violently as a guttural screech tore across the cathedral.
But with the torn prayer book destroyed…so was 'False Judgement'.
Jisung rolled his shoulders, as if shaking off the weight that had been holding him down. He turned slowly from where the monster stood…and looked at the three members of Group 7.
"…Now I'm done playing," he said quietly.
In the next instant, the gap between them disappeared completely as Jisung tore through their formation.
Jiwon barely managed to raise her dagger before Jisung struck her. His attack went straight through her guard, sending her flying into the floor as her HP dropped to red levels.
Ara tried to step in and get a cheap shot on him, but the clash didn't last more than a moment. Jisung's blade slipped past her guard with ease, pushing the blade aside before he delivered a punch straight into her torso.
Her body folded instantly and Ara was sent straight into a pillar of broken stone, where she dissolved into blue pixels.
No! How did she just get one-shotted like that?!
Hyunwoo tried to fire, tried to do anything, but his arrow never even left the string. Jisung was already in front of him, his blade driving straight through the boy.
Hyunwoo's eyes widened, but only for a second as he turned into blue pixels as well.
And in the span of just a few seconds. Jisung had wiped out two members of Squad 7 like they were street-level thugs.
Jisung stood there for a moment, his blade still in hand, breathing hard as he looked down at where Hyunwoo had been.
"…Heh. Look at that…"
A quiet laugh had slipped out. "Look at how easily I tore down your plan, Minjae-ah…"
"Every step, every move you made—I saw through it," he murmured. "You really thought you had something, didn't you? Really thought you had me there?"
"Ha! HAHA! Look at what I just did! I dismantled it all!"
"But still…why did Blue Comet have to fall apart?! When it had such a talented player like myself!"
"WHY!"
His voice cracked slightly—but he pushed through it. "I know why…IT WAS BECAUSE OF YOU, KANG MINJAE!"
"WHY COULDN'T YOU JUST BEAT THAT PRICK LEE TAEHYUN! WHY WAS IT YOU IN THAT SITUATION AND NOT ME?!"
"If it was me…I would've easily won! Blue Comet would've gone on to Tier-3 easily, and eventually…I'LL MAKE IT TO THE BIG LEAGUES!"
"SO WHY—"
"KANG MINJAE—"
"WHY DID YOU HAVE TO RUIN MY DREAM!"
…
...
...
"Why was I in that situation, you ask?
Jisung froze, trying to turn toward the source of the voice, but he couldn't find it through Amon's roars.
"Because you died first, and left the rest of us to clean it up."
"Your ego never ceases to amaze me, Han Jisung."
"You're exactly like the head of the snake. You've had chances, plenty of them. But you never took them."
"Why?"
"..."
"Because you're scared, Jisung-hyung," Minjae continued. "Scared of what happens when you're not the best player in the room."
"SHUT UP, KANG MINJAE! WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT ME?!"
"You're scared…of being the tail of a dragon."
Where, where is he?! Where is that damn bastard! Jisung thought, his eyes snapping wildly across the ruined nave before finally finding its mark.
Minjae stood along the fractured ceiling, one foot braced against the stone. His silhouette was barely visible.
Blood stained his lips…but he was smiling.
"…That same fear, hyung," he said quietly, his voice carrying just enough through the chaos. "…Is why you're going to lose this match."
And then…
He stepped off.
His body dropped cleanly from above, cutting through the air as the cathedral seemed to hold its breath for a split second.
Mid-air, he reached into his pocket and produced the small ring from within. He raised it toward Amon, jewel gleaming from the dim light as he held it forward.
Immediately, the bright pearl cracked, bursting into pieces as water poured out from it.
It's Holy Water!
Amon's grotesque form froze in place, flesh hissing where the water had touched it.
Jisung's eyes widened. "What?! What the hell are you doing?! Kang Minjae stop that!"
But Minjae never looked back.
All he needed to do now…was finish it.
[Stat Conversion]
[Agility 22 → 0▼; Endurance 18 → 0 ▼; Mana 12 → 0 ▼]
[Strength 20 → 72 ▲]
With his Strength at the maximum limit of what he could achieve, Minjae barreled downwards onto Amon like a wrecking ball.
His blade plunged into the demon, splitting through bone and tearing through flesh. He carved a clean line from crown to core, cleaving the monster in half with one attack.
And just like that, the False Archbishop was no more. Cracks of light seeped through the severed halves before the entire body began to break down, dissolving into ash as the force of the strike sent dust and debris throughout the cathedral.
Silence filled the Cathedral, almost as if everything there had held its breath for this exact moment.
Until—
[Ding!]
[Ding!]
[Ding!]
[Ding!]
[Ding!]
[Level Up]
[Level Up]
[Level Up]
[Level Up]
[Level Up]
[Current Level: 5]
"No…" Jisung stumbled backwards. His grip tightened around his blade as his expression twisted, the calm from before snapping apart completely.
"…No, no—!"
A surge of mana rippled through his body as he stepped forward, forcing everything he had into one last push.
"I'm not losing here—!"
He shifted his stance, pouring all his energy into one last desperate attack. He was prepared to lunge, prepared to take Minjae down before—
His foot stopped.
Something was holding it.
"...What?"
He looked down…a hand, wrapped around his ankle. It was Jiwon.
Her body was barely holding together, HP deep in the red. She was face flat on the floor, yet she clung to him with everything she had left.
"…Got you."
Jisung's eyes widened.
"You—?!"
But in that split second, he found himself with a blade straight through his chest.
"Checkmate, hyung."
Minjae had appeared in front of him, hand holding the blade that had just entered before he ripped it straight out.
"You…bas…tard…" Jisung barely managed.
His body flickered, image wavering before the entire thing dissolved into blue pixels.
And just like that, horns blared as a small blue textbox appeared on both Minjae and Jiwon's screens.
[Match Concluded: Group 7 Victory.]