Eidel spotted a ship as he fell toward the mother planet.

Another Celestine warship.

Judging by its appearance, it's Ship No. 1.

[─ The 'God of Wisdom and Curiosity' is concerned about your injuries.]

[─ The outer god forcibly took 500 Pron.]

[─ In return, you received <Impact Resistance (Major)>.]

I'm not sure if my suit will hold, but it's a better option than burning up in the planet's atmosphere.

I took out my Calipers and swung them.

Crash! The glass shattered and air rushed in.

After falling in zero gravity, the sudden resistance made it impossible to control my body. Flailing in the turbulence, I instinctively searched for something to grab onto.

Just then, I spotted a spider monster.

No, is it a Divine Avatar?

I noticed a perfect target hanging in mid-air, ideal for stabbing and grabbing.

["Kyaaaaaaah─!"]

Right after putting my thought into action, a terrible scream erupted from the Divine Avatar's mouth.

[─ You've landed an effective hit on Divine Avatar 'Lüzlaktia'.]

I see. So this is the Divine Avatar that appeared on Ship No. 1. It seems to have manifested earlier than expected.

Anyway, I need to deal with this quickly.

I looked down to assess the situation. Skilled swordsmen were preparing to attack.

"Now!"

[─ The 'God of Talent and Preservation' grants EX-grade conversion <Strong Sword>.]

The first strike begins.

Snap! The thread Lüzlaktia was manipulating broke.

[─ The 'God of Surface and Embrace' uses EX-grade conversion <Meteor>.]

Boom! A sword energy like a falling star flies toward her.

It was a feint targeting the thread she was hanging from, not the Divine Avatar's main body.

There was no time to adjust. Lüzlaktia and I fell helplessly downward.

"Keep pushing!"

The real attack was just beginning.

[─ The 'God of Suppression and Control' infuses EX-grade conversion <Polyphonic Sword Energy> into the blade!]

[─ The 'God of Disruption and Tolerance' infuses EX-grade conversion <Polyphonic Sword Energy> into the blade!]

[─ The 'God of Aspiration and Advancement' infuses EX-grade conversion <Polyphonic Sword Energy> into the blade!]

Polyphonic Sword Energy. A technique that directly imbues the blade with constellation energy based on the Body Star.

Turning one's sword into a sacred relic is the ultimate level that distinguishes between EX-grade and S-grade.

Sacred relics are effective against Divine Avatars. The active stellar energy greatly disrupts the anti-Aether energy created by Pron.

Now, this spider monster faced the crisis of being eliminated before it could properly move.

["Do, do you think I'll just let this happen...?"]

Lüzlaktia spun new threads.

She created a spider web, sparse but strong.

A vast network covered the spaceship. And starlight shot upward from below to counter it.

Whoosh!

The boundary between ceiling and floor. Starlight and madness clashed, tearing at each other.

This was my only chance.

["Th-that level of attack won't work...! My threads are extremely tough... Kyaa!"]

With quick judgment, I drove my Calipers into Lüzlaktia's chest.

[─ You've landed an effective hit on Divine Avatar 'Lüzlaktia'.]

["W-who are you...?!"]

Lüzlaktia reached out to remove me. I need to stab once more and get away.

[─ You've landed an effective hit on Divine Avatar 'Lüzlaktia'.]

["Th-this is...!"]

[─ Divine Avatar 'Lüzlaktia' uses <Paralyzing Thread>.]

That should be enough. I let myself fall into the void, satisfied, knowing that going further might get me killed.

"Student!"

[─ The 'God of Embrace and Stability' uses A-grade conversion <Target Deceleration>.]

A leap of faith. Two swordsmen gently caught me as I fell. Lüzlaktia's thread grazed just above my helmet. My heart sank.

"That was close to being fucked."

If I'd been 0.1 seconds slower, my head would have been gone. I keep realizing that my skills are woefully inadequate against Divine Avatars.

"Student, are you alright?"

"Thanks to you, I survived."

I removed my helmet and shook my head.

[According to the automatic management system, bulkheads are activating to normalize hull pressure.]

Just then, thick steel walls rose behind the glass window I had broken through. The pressure normalized. Gravity was clearly felt. Yes, people really should stand on solid ground.

"Where did you come from?"

"Ship No. 4."

I quickly explained to the swordsmen what had happened on Ship No. 4. They seemed surprised but adapted quickly. As expected of those who've been on the front lines.

"Understood. Please go over there for now."

Following their guidance, I temporarily retreated to where students were gathered.

"Eidel?"

There I met Welton.

"You, you really have a unique way of making an entrance now."

"I suppose so."

"So, what exactly happened?"

I told him a story similar to what I'd told the swordsmen.

He clearly didn't believe me.

The swordsmen were gaining the upper hand against Lüzlaktia. Seeing the increasingly favorable situation, the students looked relieved.

So I had time to reunite with Welton and everyone else. Mathers was frowning deeply, while James remained characteristically calm.

The problem was Mezulen.

"W-what do we do? Kris will live, right? Right?"

Welton examined Kristin with gritted teeth. Apparently, she had been attacked by that Divine Avatar before I arrived. Blood was slowly seeping from her back.

"All we can do is first aid."

"Please, the bleeding needs to stop..."

"Damn it, she'll be fine. She will."

Mezulen was sobbing. And Mathers was comforting her.

Classmates who had been on equal footing were now supporting each other through this ordeal.

I looked at the Calipers in my hand.

This was a moment when my role became important.

["Yes, you...! It was you...! The one the Master told me to eliminate...!"]

Hearing a growling sound, I looked up. An enraged Lüzlaktia glared at me with eight eyes.

So I've been marked.

The game ends here.

[─ Using <Thought Acceleration>.]

I braced for impact.

["I-if I just take you down...! Mission complete...!"]

The spider monster, battered and tattered from the EX-grade swordsmen's attacks, climbed back to the ceiling. Then, using her web as a hook, she began flying toward me.

Damn, she's incredibly fast.

I ran away screaming.

["D-don't run away...!"]

[─ Divine Avatar 'Lüzlaktia' draws out <Adamantine Thread>.]

A silver thread flew toward me. Judging by its trajectory, it was aiming for the back of my head.

Its path was easily blocked. An EX-grade swordsman appeared in front of me and twisted his sword to intercept the adamantine thread.

But.

The thread didn't break.

"No...?"

["I-it's useless...! That thread uses my core as a medium...! It's connected to my mind, so of course it's strong! You can't cut it with such clumsy attacks...!"]

Wait. She uses her core as a medium? It's connected to her mind?

I figured out how to defeat her.

["D-die quickly...!"]

Whoosh!

Another thread bypassed the swordsman and targeted me.

No one was in a position to help me.

Of course, while I was chatting with my friends, that Divine Avatar had spawned a bunch of monster offspring.

Everyone was busy fighting one of them.

"Student! Dodge!"

I needed to hold out for at least a few seconds until they finished dealing with the monsters.

I rolled with all my might.

[─ Divine Avatar 'Lüzlaktia' uses <Moving Thread>.]

Threads everywhere I tried to escape. If even one touches my body, it's game over. If not for the 'Thought Acceleration' skill making the world appear 10 times slower, I would have been dead long ago.

["W-where are you running to...! Give up and d-die quietly...!"]

[─ Divine Avatar 'Lüzlaktia' uses <Adamantine Thread>.]

Damn, I was wrong. This one is much denser than what I've been dodging so far.

She's clearly determined to kill me now.

I have no choice.

I have to gamble.

I swung my Calipers at the adamantine thread.

["...Kyaaaaaaaaaah!"]

Splat!

Two of Lüzlaktia's eight eyes burst.

[─ You've dealt a critical hit to Divine Avatar 'Lüzlaktia'!]

["How, how is this...!"]

Oily tears dripped down.

So I was right.

The core is the source of a Divine Avatar's power and mind.

And these "Wisdom Calipers" I received from Cartesia are a cheat item that attacks consciousness, regardless of what kind of being the target is.

Lüzlaktia vomited black liquid and collapsed.

"First squad, deploy!"

The EX-grade swordsmen seized the opportunity, pulling out available forces to pound Lüzlaktia.

But she was no ordinary opponent.

Even with severe injuries, she wove adamantine threads to defend herself.

While she was locked in a power struggle with four swordsmen, a student cautiously approached from behind.

A petite girl with short green hair.

Mezulen was also a girl who had contracted with a constellation, though not particularly strong. She was approaching Lüzlaktia's blind spot, tightly gripping her sword.

[─ The 'God of Courage and Dismantling' infuses Mezulen Hueritia with brave courage.]

In that moment, her eyes flashed.

"Y-you'll pay for what you did to Kris...!"

Mezulen thrust her sword into Lüzlaktia's spinnerets.

Squelch!

Lüzlaktia's waist arched like a bow.