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

The threads writhed like vipers, lashing at Silvy from every direction.

She rolled across the polished white floor, loosing two arrows in quick succession.

The first sliced through a bundle of threads, scattering them apart, but the second was caught midair as Kora snapped her fingers, the strands tightening around the shaft until it shattered into glittering fragments.

"Not bad. But you'll run out of arrows before I run out of threads."

Kora said, her grin widening as she pulled the threads taut, weaving them into a net that spread across the chamber.

Silvy landed in a crouch, sweat trickling down her brow. Her bow pulsed faintly with mana as she strung another arrow, this one glowing brighter, sharper.

"You underestimate me. I'm not the type to give up."

She shot back, her tone steady despite her racing heartbeat.

The arrow flew with a snap, cutting through the air like lightning.

Kora flicked her wrist, the threads curling into a shield, but Silvy's arrow tore straight through it and grazed Kora's cheek, leaving a crimson line.

For the first time, the gladiator's grin faltered.

"Good. A fight worth remembering."

Kora muttered, touching the blood on her cheek and licking it with the edge of her tongue.

She launched herself forward, her armored boots cracking the floor as the threads hardened into jagged spears around her.

They stabbed down like iron fangs, forcing Silvy to dodge desperately, rolling under one, ducking another, her dagger flashing in her free hand to slice through those that came too close.

Sparks flew as steel kissed steel, her dagger barely managing to cut through the living threads before they wrapped around her limbs.

But Kora was relentless.

The threads coiled again, this time tangling together into a massive whip. With a snap, it crashed toward Silvy like a falling tree.

She braced herself, twisting aside, but the impact still sent her flying into the chamber wall.

The breath rushed out of her lungs as she slammed against the cold white stone.

"Stay down. The more you fight, the more you'll suffer. Let me claim your life, and my wish will be fulfilled."

Kora barked, her whip unraveling into countless tendrils that spread like a spider's web.

Silvy coughed, dragging herself upright, her bow trembling in her hands.

"You'll have to tear it from me."

She whispered. Her eyes hardened, her mana flaring.

The threads surged forward again, but this time Silvy didn't retreat. Instead, she leapt into the storm of tendrils, her dagger spinning in a blur.

She cut, slashed, stabbed, each movement fueled by sheer determination. The threads hissed and shrieked as they were sliced apart, but more kept coming.

Kora laughed, the sound fierce and wild.

"That's it! Show me your fire!"

Silvy's arm burned with strain as she deflected another wave.

Her bow pulsed, hungry for mana, so she nocked three arrows at once and released.

They burst into a rain of glowing shards, cutting apart the whip that had been descending toward her head.

The light flared across the chamber, dazzling Kora for a split second.

That was the opening Silvy needed. She dashed forward, dagger in hand, closing the distance.

Kora reacted instantly, her threads collapsing into a protective cocoon around her.

But Silvy thrust her dagger into the gaps, forcing it deep until sparks flew as the enchanted steel ground against the hardened threads.

Kora snarled and shoved her back, the cocoon exploding outward in a storm of shards. Silvy tumbled across the floor, her arm bleeding from the cuts.

Her breathing came in ragged bursts, her vision swimming, but she refused to stop.

"You're stubborn. I like that. But stubbornness won't win you this fight."

Kora said, brushing a smear of blood from her jaw.

Silvy forced herself to her feet, gripping her bow with one hand, her dagger with the other.

"Then I'll need more than stubbornness."

Her mana surged, flooding into her weapons until both glowed with blinding white light. She fired another arrow, this one burning like a falling star.

It crashed into Kora's shield of threads and blew a hole straight through it, shaking the chamber.

For the first time, Kora staggered back, eyes widening.

"What—?"

Silvy didn't give her time to recover. She charged in, her dagger blazing.

She slashed at the threads as they tried to reform, burning them away with the sheer force of her mana.

Kora retaliated desperately, weaving her threads into sharp claws that lashed at Silvy's arm.

The claws sank deep into Silvy's left arm, ripping flesh and blood. Pain exploded, but Silvy didn't scream.

She gritted her teeth, shoving herself closer, letting the claws dig in deeper. Her arm might be gone, but she had only one chance.

"Got you."

She hissed.

With her bleeding arm still pinned, she raised her dagger with the other and plunged it straight toward Kora's chest.

The gladiator's eyes widened as the glowing blade pierced through her armor and into her heart.

There was silence for a heartbeat. Then a shockwave of mana burst outward, rattling the walls of the chamber.

The threads unraveled instantly, collapsing into useless strands that scattered across the floor.

Kora coughed, blood trickling down her lips. She looked at Silvy with something that wasn't anger, but respect.

"…You… won. Don't waste that strength."

Her voice was faint, almost admiring.

Her body dissolved into motes of light, vanishing as though she had never existed.

The chamber grew quiet once more, save for Silvy's ragged breathing.

She fell to one knee, clutching her ruined arm. Blood dripped down her fingertips, staining the pristine white floor.

Her entire body trembled, but her eyes remained sharp, unyielding.

"I won…"

She whispered, though there was no joy in her voice—only grim resolve.

The cost was heavy, but she had survived. And survival meant she could keep moving forward, toward Kyle, toward the mission that awaited them all.

Silvy staggered forward, clutching her ruined arm, every step feeling heavier than the last.

The chamber's silence pressed down on her, broken only by the faint hum of the altar at the far end.

She could feel it—a wellspring of divine energy, a heartbeat that wasn't her own, pulsing, calling.

Her vision blurred, her knees buckled, but still she tried to push on.

"I… have to… reach it."

She whispered, dragging her body forward. Yet her strength had run dry; her limbs refused to obey. She collapsed, her cheek pressing against the cold white floor.

[You will not stop here.]

The system's voice rang in her mind, calm yet firm.

"I can't move. My body won't—"

Silvy rasped.

[Then I will move you.]

A surge of invisible force wrapped around her. Silvy gasped as her body was lifted, weightless, drawn across the floor toward the altar.

Her blood left a faint trail behind her, but she no longer had the strength to care. The altar's glow grew brighter, blinding, until it swallowed her entire vision.

[You have fought, bled, and endured. In this generation, you are the first who has earned it, the system declared. I grant you my authority.]

The divine energy crashed into her like a tidal wave. Pain and ecstasy mingled as her broken body mended, her shattered arm dissolving into radiant light.

Her veins burned with power, her soul expanding beyond mortal limits. She screamed, but her voice was drowned by the roar of divinity.

When the light dimmed, Silvy knelt before the altar, trembling. Her arm was gone, yet she felt whole—remade, overflowing with a power that was no longer human.

She was no longer just Silvy.

She was the first god of the new age.