That’s right. Just like this.

Watching the vigilant knights before her, Yuri’s lips slowly curved upward.

One-sided slaughter never fit a demon’s aesthetics. Only screams born of despair were what they truly craved.

But it wasn’t enough. Not nearly enough! More. She wanted more!

Yuri’s gaze settled on the five knights—already killed once by their own comrades.

In the next instant, all five bodies began trembling simultaneously…

They were mere puppets dragged back from hell. Unless torn to shreds or severed from the hand controlling them, they’d remain ravenous ghouls!

And Yuri was the one pulling their strings.

As long as her will persisted, no amount of “killing” mattered.

After all, they were already dead!

So, before their eyes, the blood-drenched knights slowly rose again.

“…Puppetry?”

Wes spotted the corpses’ unnatural movement instantly, his guard never slipping.

“Hmph. A filthy ability.”

With a cold snort, before the bodies fully stood, the emerald bow in the young man’s hand erupted with blinding light!

Boom!!

This arrow didn’t just pierce the corpses—it shredded them apart with raw force in an instant.

Green flames then ignited, burning every trace of filth to ashes!

Who was it?

Wes kept his bow raised, his brow tightening further.

A pair of eyes watched him intently from the shadows, yet he couldn’t pinpoint their direction.

Had he been reckless after all? Rushing into this eerie place alone.

But this castle likely hid Zuo Yuan—he couldn’t afford to wait.

His superiors were growing impatient. Failure meant facing that demon’s terrifying “reward” upon return.

Just thinking of that monstrous figure made Wes shudder involuntarily.

“Stay calm! Stay alert! Our enemy’s just a rat hiding in the shadows. Drag him out and tear him apart—that’s our task now!”

Wes’s words steadied the slightly chaotic knights like a soothing balm.

After all, with this powerful man leading them, everything would be fine.

Wes’s displayed strength had earned their deep trust!

“Right! He’s just a rat. Mainly… uh?”

One squad leader tried to agree, hoping to win Wes’s favor—but his words died halfway.

Behind him, a blood-soaked arm slowly withdrew from his body. The girl who’d appeared there whispered, “What did you say?”

Thud.

The corpse hit the ground. The knights’ frozen faces made the scene absurdly grotesque.

“A rat? That’s you…”

Bang!!

A deafening blast echoed as Yuri’s voice faded.

A knight stumbling backward exploded at the chest!

The mysterious-patterned weapon in the girl’s hand still smoked faintly.

Before Yuri could pull the trigger again, a beam of green light tore through her body.

Poof!

An arm disintegrated into powder within the emerald glow, crushed to nothing!

“Finally showed yourself, filth.” Wes’s face darkened, his eyes brimming with killing intent.

Yuri glanced at him indifferently. Her remaining hand lifted—the black gun spat fire.

But…

Slish!

More green beams flashed, canceling the shot while carving bloody holes through the girl’s chest!

“Hmph. Fool!”

Wes sneered at the nearly unrecognizable corpse on the ground.

He’d expected a formidable foe. Was this all she was?

Just as that thought surfaced…

“That’s it… haha, that’s it…”

Laughter—joyful laughter—rose from the girl who should’ve been dead.

Wes’s pupils widened in disbelief. How? With wounds like that, she should’ve…

“Should’ve died, right?”

Black particles drifted upward unnoticed. The huge moon above seemed veiled in crimson.

Amid the dark specks, the girl rose slowly under everyone’s horrified stares.

Her chest was flawless—not a scratch, not even a torn thread on her clothes!

The black gun lifted again.

Bang!

Another gunshot. Another knight’s body shattered by a silver-white bullet.

Fear began to spread.

“Impossible! It’s an illusion. Kill her!”

Gulp!

At Wes’s command, the knights exchanged glances, swallowing hard.

“Kill her!”

Their hesitation injected anger into Wes’s voice.

He fired another arrow, ripping through Yuri’s chest.

Yet Yuri kept smiling.

No resistance. No words. Just standing there quietly—radiating pure dread.

That very terror froze these battle-hardened knights in place!

Breaking an enemy’s spirit before battle even began—a demon’s most basic skill.

It was an aura. Those caught within it were shackled by nightmares, unable to escape!

Humanity and Monsters had ceased true war a millennium ago. They’d forgotten the nameless fear that once made them drop their swords.

But survival instinct eventually overpowered that dread.

The knights roared and charged at Yuri like madmen.

Facing the onslaught, a faint smile crept onto Yuri’s lips.

This expression—this was what she craved…

Then her body was torn apart again. Shredded completely. Fear made the knights hold nothing back!

Blood. Screams. The mournful clash of blades filled the cramped space.

The brutal slaughter lasted until Yuri’s remains couldn’t reassemble. Only then did the knights pause.

“D-Dead?” one knight whispered, gripped by unknown terror.

“Sorry. Not quite.”

As if answering him, the girl’s voice rang out the next moment.

Silence swallowed the surroundings like death itself.