Reborn as a Useless Noble with my SSS-Class Innate Talent

The puppet's joints creaked and twitched as it knelt before Kyle, its porcelain face cracked in several places, one glass eye missing.

Its movements were slow, each word dragged out as if the very act of speaking drained the last remnants of life from its frame.

"My… mistress… Lucia…She… sends this… message…"

It rasped, voice hollow and metallic.

Kyle placed the crystal it had given him earlier against its chest, allowing the faint mana thread to activate.

The puppet's body jerked violently before the projection began—Lucia's voice, soft yet strained, filled the air.

"Kyle… I'm sorry I can't meet you in person. I'm sorry for abandoning you, but time is short. The Chief God Arkenas has begun a plan—nine empty seats on the divine council, and he's inviting mortals and immortals alike to fight for them. The one who fulfills the conditions will ascend to godhood. If… the wrong people succeed, our world will fall."

The puppet shuddered, sparks leaking from its joints, but continued speaking.

"She… hopes… you can… stop… them. Even if… you cannot… save her… end her suffering."

The voice faded, and the puppet's own tone returned, weaker than before.

"Chief God's… game… is… already… in motion… find… the spring…"

Its body froze, head bowing, before the entire frame collapsed into the sand in pieces.

Bruce stood in silence for a moment before stepping forward.

"Young master… how much of that do you actually trust? It's just a puppet's words—could be a trap. Could be misdirection."

Kyle's gaze remained on the scattered porcelain fragments, his expression unreadable.

"Even if there's only a sliver of truth, we can't ignore it. This… is an opportunity."

Bruce narrowed his eyes.

"Opportunity? You mean… to take one of those divine seats?"

Kyle finally looked at him, the faintest smirk forming.

"Not just one seat. All of them. If the Chief God wants to fill the council with new gods, then we'll make sure they're ours. Humans, not pawns bound to divine will."

Melissa's eyes widened.

"You… intend to overthrow the divine authority itself?"

"Exactly. If we take the seats, we dismantle Arkenas' control over this world. No more divine leash. No more 'greater good' dictated from above. But to get there, I'll need all of you."

Kyle said, his tone calm but carrying an edge.

Silvy stepped closer, crossing her arms.

"Even if we help, how do you plan for any of us to actually ascend? The Chief God won't make it easy."

Amana added.

"And even if we reach the trials, they'll be designed for his chosen candidates. We'll be walking into a battlefield stacked against us."

Kyle's eyes gleamed.

"At the Spring of Rebirth, each of you will be given a choice—your destiny. I'll make sure you can choose divinity. Once you do, I'll open the gate for you to ascend. This will be our first and likely last chance to break free from the divine prison this world has become."

Melissa's fists tightened, her voice steady despite the tension in her eyes.

"If this is for freedom, then I'm with you."

Bruce gave a sharp nod.

"I've followed you into worse."

Silvy smirked faintly.

"Guess I'll have to make sure I'm the one who ascends first, then."

Amana tilted her head, watching Kyle with a faint smile.

"You really do aim for impossible things, don't you? Fine. I'll play along."

Kyle glanced over each of them, the faint wind of the desert shifting the sand at their feet.

"Then it's settled. The path to godhood starts at the spring. From there, we change the world."

Somewhere, far above them in the divine realm, Arkenas' lips curved into a smile, as if sensing that the first real piece in his game had just moved into place.

______

The journey toward the Spring of Rebirth was relentless.

Days bled into nights as Kyle's group pushed forward, crossing winding dirt roads, forests thick with shadow, and scattered villages that dotted the landscape like faint memories of civilization.

Farmers called out greetings, traders offered warm bread, and children waved from worn fences, but the group never stopped.

Their goal was too close, their time too thin. Every moment spent lingering was another moment Arkenas and his divine hounds could gain on them.

The air grew colder the farther they went, the land slowly changing from gentle hills to jagged ridges.

The old maps said that beyond these mountains lay the ruins of Asvelgar—and under those ruins, the spring they sought.

By the time the sun dipped low on their final day of travel, the group found a sheltered grove near a ridge where the wind didn't cut so sharply.

It wasn't much—just a circle of old trees and a trickle of water from a nearby stream—but it was enough.

"We'll rest here."

Kyle said, glancing at the tired faces of his companions. Amana was the first to set down her pack, followed quickly by Bruce and Silvy.

Within the hour, a small campfire flickered in the center, and the sound of quiet breathing began to replace the chatter as exhaustion took hold.

Kyle, however, remained awake.

He sat cross-legged near the fire, his sword resting at his side, the flames casting faint shadows over his face.

He didn't bother closing his eyes fully—his senses were sharp enough to feel every shift of wind, every distant crack of branches.

It was in one of those still moments that he felt it: a quiet presence settling beside him.

He cracked his eyes open.

Melissa sat there, her knees drawn up slightly, eyes fixed on the fire. She looked almost casual at first glance, but her hands were clasped too tightly, her knuckles pale.

"Couldn't sleep?"

Kyle asked.

Her lips curved faintly, though it wasn't quite a smile.

"Something like that."

He studied her for a moment.

"You're worried."

Melissa let out a soft, humorless laugh.

"You can read me too easily, young master."

Kyle leaned back slightly, his gaze still fixed on her.

"Everything will be fine."

"That's not what worries me. It's the future. What comes after we reach the spring. What you expect from me."

She admitted, her voice lower now.

She hesitated, then continued.

"I'm not afraid of fighting, Kyle. I'm afraid of… failing you. Of not being able to do what you need me to do."

Kyle didn't answer immediately. His eyes were steady, the firelight catching faint glints of gold in them.

"For me. I'll try my best. No matter how impossible it seems. I won't run, and I won't waver."

Melissa said quietly,

Her voice trembled slightly, but the conviction beneath it was solid.

"Even if I have to die, I'll see this through."

Kyle's expression softened just a fraction.

"I know. I've never doubted your loyalty, Melissa. Not once. If I thought for a second you couldn't handle what's coming, I wouldn't have brought you this far."

He said finally, his tone calm but firm.

She looked at him then, her eyes reflecting the fire.

"You're not here because I need someone to follow orders. You're here because I trust you to make decisions when I'm not there. You're here because when everything falls apart—and it will—you'll still be standing."

He continued.

Melissa swallowed, the tension in her shoulders easing slightly.

"Then I'll make sure you're right about me."

Kyle's gaze returned to the fire, but his words carried no doubt.

"You already have."

For a while, they sat in silence, the fire's glow warming the cold night. Somewhere in the dark, an owl called, and the sound of the stream whispered over the stones.

Neither of them moved until the first hint of dawn touched the horizon.

By then, Melissa's worry had quieted, and Kyle's watch had ended. Tomorrow, they would face the ruins—and whatever waited beyond.