Chapter 68

Chapter 68

From Cosmic Rascal to Professor.

Episode 68: Celestine Incident- Bay No. 2 (2).

The ceiling of Bay 2 had collapsed, sending panicked students into a frenzy of screams.

“Ahhhh!”

“Save me!”

Amidst the chaos, the inspectors remained calm, drawing their swords and springing into action. Observing them, Rustila also ignited her sword.

The ‘God of Purity and Persistence’ senses an evil presence.

Ever since the discovery of the breach in the ether belt, they had anticipated trouble. With a deep breath, Rustila mentally braced herself and activated her suit’s flight capabilities.

“Huh!”

Her sword emitted a fierce plasma beam, slicing through the air as if it intended to shred the ceiling itself. Empowered by the constellation, her strike shattered the silver pillars into dust.

Stone fragments rained down upon the students below.

“Ahhh!”

They instinctively shielded their heads. While the debris was painful upon impact, it was not lethal.

Rustila and the inspectors landed softly, their arrival drawing the awed stares of the students. Their expressions were blank, almost ghostly, as they gazed at Rustila.

“Wow.”

“Is she really one of us?”

“She’s in the elite class, isn’t she?”

“She’s so cool.”

Scratching her head, Rustila offered a sheepish smile. This was the first time she had received such widespread acclaim for her swordsmanship.

“You’re impressive,” Isaac remarked as he approached, his voice filled with genuine admiration. “Your reflexes are sharp, and your ability to improvise is remarkable. If you were to join the military, you’d easily be an S-grade from the start.”

“Ah, thank you!” Flustered and honored, Rustila snapped to a salute, almost as if she were in the presence of a Great Omega rank officer.

Isaac chuckled. “Save the salute for after you enlist.”

“Can I enlist right now, then?”

“First, graduate from the academy.”

“But Instructor, I want to keep fighting.”

Isaac’s expression sobered. “I respect your skills, but remember, you are still a student. If anything were to happen to you under our watch, it would put us in a precarious position. Worse, it could lead to the resignation of all the soldiers present.”

He paused, ensuring his next words carried the gravity they deserved. That a soldier’s duty isn’t just to win battles but to protect the people.

“It’s acceptable to miss a strike against an opponent, but losing one of you is a true defeat. Don’t let your abilities make you forget that.”

Rustila remained silent, absorbing his words.

“Always remember, we are social creatures.”

Feeling the weight of his advice, Rustila tightened her grip on her sword, frustrated yet convinced by his rationale. With a resigned nod, she walked back to join the other students.

Monsters are approaching.

Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom boom!

From every direction, a harsh, grating noise filled the space. Suddenly, the vent door shook violently and burst open, unleashing a barrage of white spears.

These were much faster than the silver pillars that had descended moments earlier; some moved so swiftly they blurred before the eyes.

S-class conversion:

Boom!

Isaac’s movements were so swift and precise that it appeared as though he was teleporting. He effortlessly sliced through the necks of the spears as they attempted to emerge.

Simultaneously, sharp pillars, akin to the horns of death, erupted from the floor. Invisible to the naked eye, they were more lethal than any spike. Yet, Isaac anticipated their arrival, dodging and severing them with a speed that was almost preemptive.

“Wow, so that’s an Omega-class swordsman,” Rustila exclaimed, her voice tinged with awe. She was utterly captivated. Each pillar seemed to spawn a monster, and Isaac was dispatching them single-handedly.

Rustila’s mind reeled at the thought. How many hours, days, and years of training would it take to achieve such mastery? The concept of reaching such an elite level made her world tremble, feeling that the realm was impossibly distant.

“Kizel!” Isaac called out to his lieutenant. “Take the troops and the students down the orbital elevator. Check on the other ships and keep the communication lines open.”

“What about you, Captain?”

“I’ll manage things here. Once the students are safe, I’ll follow.”

“Understood!” Kizel saluted sharply and began herding the androids and students. Despite the occasional pillars that crashed down from the sky or erupted from the ground, the expert swordsmen among them deflected the dangers with ease.

“The elevator on the stern is spacious, making it safer in case of an attack. Let’s head that way.”

Kizel led the way, and an android stepped forward to press the elevator call button. After a moment, the elevator arrived from the mid-level, its doors sliding open with a heavy thud.

Dozens of inspectors tumbled out, their bodies lifeless. Their eyes were hollow, limbs severed, and in some horrifying cases, their eyeballs gouged out.

“No, no!” Kizel stumbled back in horror. The sight was too gruesome, causing several students to faint.

Rustila clamped a hand over her mouth, taking in the dreadful scene. The inspectors wore purple epaulets, identifying them as S-grade.

“Who are these people? Why are they dead here?” Rustila asked, her voice trembling.

“I—I don’t know. But I recognize some of them; they were part of the ground forces…”

“An S-rank wouldn’t go down without a fight!”

“Exactly. Unless… It could be an Incarnate…”

“There’s no time to figure this out now. We need to clear the bodies and escape!”

Rustila fought back nausea as she began dragging the corpses out of the elevator. As she pulled, she felt a distinct snap and recoiled, initially thinking it was the bodies tearing apart. But it wasn’t.

“Huh…?”

In an instant, Rustila was hurled into a dark, oppressive space, utterly alone.

“This is… the lobby,” Rustila muttered, her voice tinged with utter confusion.

“You were teleported. It’s probably the ability of the Incarnate. Don’t panic. Stay calm and accept the situation.”

Vega, her sponsor, offered words of comfort. Rustilla nodded and took a slow, deep breath.

The lobby was dark and foreboding. Slipping her helmet on, Rustila activated the infrared viewer and moved forward, using the faint, flickering lights as guides.

As she walked down the wide corridor…

“Rusti, stop. It’s an Incarnate.”

At Vega’s words, Rustila immediately ducked behind a nearby pillar.

A rustling sound caught her attention. Something white flickered at the edge of her vision. The fine hairs on the back of her neck prickled in alarm. Rustila swallowed hard and cautiously peeked around the pillar.

There, in the distance, she saw a figure confronting a tall, white creature.

“Aidel…?” she whispered in disbelief.

Enabet had disappeared without a trace. Just as I had narrowly escaped two attacks, an Incarnate materialized out of nowhere. Without the protection of an EX-grade inspector, I felt utterly defenseless.

The Incarnate ‘Yoodles’ is observing your actions.

Could this be the second target for subjugation? His slender frame brought to mind the eerie figure from the Slender Man movie, except this one was bathed in a ghostly white glow.

“It feels like I’m encountering a deity,” I quipped, forcing a smile. The figure slowly raised its elongated right arm and began to approach.

“To lesser beings, I might as well be a god. So, meet your end without fuss, inferior creature.”

Whoosh! The Incarnate lunged forward. Its speed was astonishing. I ramped up my thought acceleration to its maximum and sidestepped just as he moved.

Bang!

The impact obliterated the billboard behind me, sending sparks flying. Not stopping there, the force also cracked a supporting concrete pillar, causing the ceiling above to tremble ominously.

“It appears Lyzlactia has been defeated. Unlike that failure, I am different. I only hunt those weaker than myself.”

“Ha, so you’re essentially a coward then.”

“Avoiding stronger opponents and preying on the weak is a fundamental strategy.”

The tips of his fingers grew sharper, a clear indication that he was readying his next assault.

“It’s above you. Dodge.”

At Cartesia’s warning, I instinctively dropped to the ground. A silver spike, launched from an angle in the ceiling, whistled past where my head had just been. It was a close call that could have ended fatally.

With Yoodles launching more attacks, I dodged each one, relying partly on accelerated thought processes and partly on Cartesia’s timely guidance.

“You dodge well. So, you are indeed a possessed body harmonizing with an Outer God.”

The murmur came from the Incarnate Yoodles, its voice tinged with curiosity and disdain.

“…No, something too weak to even properly take over a human body cannot be called an Outer God. Then, are you a possessed body or a materialized Outer God?”

“What are you talking about?” I retorted, confused and on edge.

“If it’s neither, then I am unsure. Regardless, it does not alter the fact that you are marked for elimination as per the Lord’s command.”

Yoodles then positioned his long palm on the ground and bent his knees, resembling a runner poised at the start line.

Sensing the imminent threat, I cursed under my breath and braced myself to flee.

“Running away is useless now.”

I’m acutely aware of that fact. My physical capabilities are no match for an Incarnate; I can only hold my ground for a few minutes at best. The suit I wear boosts my abilities, but even it has its limitations. My only significant advantage is my intellect.

It seems I have no other choice.

Reluctantly, I decided to tap into a tech tree I had previously ignored, deeming it impractical. Now, in order to survive, it appears to be my only viable option.

It’s a shame to use up the Pron I had been carefully saving, but desperate times call for desperate measures.

Used 100,000 Pron to integrate and

.

Integration successful.

Acquired .

Due to the trait of Incarnation, additional evolution of the skill occurs.

Acquired !

As the integration completes, my vision fills with white lines crisscrossing the space around me—across the floor, walls, ceiling, and even the air. Each line is labeled with a time.

[0.8 seconds]

That’s the one to watch.

Whoosh!

I leap aside just as the trajectory of the line indicates where a solid object will land. A mere second later, a silver pillar crashed down exactly where I had been standing.

I started running in earnest.

0.5 seconds

Whoosh!

0.7 seconds

Whoosh!

0.6 seconds

Whoosh!

Each attack from Yoodles missed me by less than a second. It wasn’t that I had suddenly become faster; my body was still slow. However, I had begun to anticipate where each attack would come from.

“To evade all my attacks, you must be one lucky inferior creature,”

Yoodles sneered, his voice echoing as he chased after me relentlessly.

“But your luck ends here.”

5 seconds

Within seconds, the environment transformed drastically. From the sky to the ground, from left to right, the lobby was swiftly entangled in a web of silver threads.

The Incarnate ‘Yoodles’ is preparing the !

I don’t know what it is, but it’s an area attack. I need to dodge it, but there’s no escape. Everywhere I look, there’s no blind spot.

3 seconds

The only possible cover is a pillar… Honestly, it doesn’t seem like it would offer much protection.

1 second

Damn, I’m screwed.

The ‘God of Wisdom and Curiosity’ is concerned about your death.

The ‘God of Wisdom and Curiosity’ is devising a countermeasure.

With no other options, I pull out the calipers and spin around.

0 seconds

If you can’t dodge it, you have to block it.

Then, in the next moment.

Kaaang!

A sharp metallic clang echoes, and a golden thread falls before my eyes.