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

The white void unfolded around Bruce and Melissa like an endless horizon of calm, erasing the suffocating shadows of Julius's world.

Their heavy breaths echoed against the silence, and for the first time since being dragged into that illusion, both of them felt their shoulders ease.

A voice resonated—gentle yet firm, weaving through the emptiness.

[System Notice: You are no longer bound by Emperor Julius's false authority. You are under the protection of the system. Guidance shall be granted under the authority of Goddess Silvy.]

Melissa's heart skipped.

"Goddess… Silvy? So she did it… she really managed to win."

She whispered, a rare smile tugging at her lips.

Relief flooded her chest.

For a moment, she had feared that Silvy's fight had consumed her completely. Now she knew Silvy had survived—and gained something far greater.

Bruce exhaled slowly, his posture straightening.

"That's our cue. She bought us this chance. It's on us to finish the job."

The system's light swirled around them, untangling the threads of Emperor Julius's spell that had clung stubbornly to their minds.

They felt clarity return, the weight of forced obedience shattering. Strength surged through their veins like a new current, lifting their spirits.

Then, the whiteness shattered like glass.

Emperor Julius stood before them once again—radiant, proud, his golden robes fluttering in a wind that did not exist.

His presence was still overwhelming, the kind of divinity that demanded submission. Yet for Bruce and Melissa, the suffocating pull had lost its grip.

Julius's eyes narrowed.

"Impossible…"

His voice, once smooth with condescension, cracked with genuine irritation.

"No one resists my authority. You should be kneeling. Begging. Worshipping." He clenched his fists, his majestic aura shaking the space. "And yet… you stand."

Melissa stepped forward, sword raised despite her trembling arms.

"We stand because of our companion. She gave us a path you'll never understand."

Bruce mirrored her stance, planting himself firmly by her side.

"You call yourself majestic, but what's so great about bending people's lives until they break? We'll fight you—and this time, we're not alone."

His eyes hardened.

Julius's anger cooled into something more dangerous. A smile, sharp as a blade, curved across his lips.

"How pitiful. You had your chance to embrace perfection. Now you'll be crushed."

The air twisted, and Julius moved. His hand lashed out faster than sight, a strike that could shatter mountains.

Melissa barely managed to deflect with her blade, the shockwave sending her skidding back.

Bruce intercepted the follow-up, his own weapon clashing with Julius's arm, but the impact snapped his blade in two.

"Still so fragile. Still so human."

Julius taunted, stepping forward.

Melissa's teeth grit. She darted in, her sword slicing across Julius's torso. The blade connected, but when she pulled back—nothing. Not a scratch.

"Futile. Your hands cannot touch divinity."

Julius said with a lazy smirk.

Bruce spat to the side, gripping the broken hilt of his sword.

"Then we'll find a way."

The system's voice chimed once again, faint yet resolute.

[Assistance granted. Authority synchronization commencing.]

Light coiled around their weapons—Melissa's blade shimmered, reforged with radiant steel, while Bruce's broken sword reshaped itself into a spear pulsing with divine energy.

Both gasped as strength unlike anything they had felt before poured into their bodies.

Melissa tested her sword, and the air itself split where she swung. Bruce twirled the spear, its weight perfect in his grip.

"Now we're talking."

Bruce muttered, eyes blazing.

They lunged together. Melissa's strike slashed across Julius's chest—this time, golden sparks scattered, and Julius actually staggered back a step.

He looked down at the mark, shock flickering across his features.

"You… hurt me?"

Bruce followed up, thrusting his spear with a roar. The tip pierced Julius's shoulder, divine ichor spilling into the void like molten light.

Julius's eyes widened, fury overtaking his expression. His majestic composure cracked.

"You dare—"

Melissa pressed forward, her strikes relentless now that she knew he could bleed.

"We dare because we have to!"

Julius roared, slamming his hand down. The ground beneath them erupted, pillars of golden energy surging upward to crush them.

Melissa rolled clear, Bruce barely deflecting one with his spear. The clash rattled his bones, but he held firm.

"You think this changes anything? You rely on borrowed strength! Without the system, you are nothing!"

Julius spat, his voice shaking the void.

Melissa's eyes burned with defiance.

"Even borrowed strength is ours now—because Silvy gave it to us. And we'll never waste what she sacrificed."

Bruce added, his tone calm but sharp.

"We're not fighting alone anymore. That's something you'll never understand, Emperor."

Their words seemed to ignite Julius's rage further.

His aura flared, golden wings unfurling from his back as the air around him ignited in divine fire. He looked every bit the god he proclaimed himself to be.

"Then I will erase you utterly. And your so-called goddess will watch as her pawns are crushed!"

Julius thundered.

Melissa and Bruce exchanged a glance. Their bodies ached, their spirits strained, but the system's light thrummed inside them, steady and warm.

Melissa lifted her sword, her voice unwavering.

"Then come and try."

The battle ignited again, fiercer than before. Melissa darted in close, her blade sparking against Julius's golden defenses, while Bruce's spear lashed from behind, forcing the emperor to divide his attention.

Each strike, though barely carving into his form, proved that Julius was no longer untouchable.

The system's voice echoed in their minds, calm yet urgent.

[Continue. Do not falter. Every wound weakens him. Every step brings you closer.]

Julius snarled, his counterattacks a blur of devastation. Melissa's arm shook as she blocked a blow that could have shattered mountains.

Bruce caught a divine kick on his spear, the impact throwing him across the void, yet he rose again, refusing to stay down.

The rhythm of battle shifted. For the first time, Emperor Julius was not untouchable. For the first time, he bled.

And Bruce and Melissa knew—they could win.

The fight pressed on, their weapons clashing against his divine form, their breaths ragged but their wills unbroken.

Each cut, each thrust, each moment of defiance was proof that they were no longer pawns but warriors standing on equal ground with a god-candidate.

Julius's roars filled the void, divine fury crashing down like thunder. Yet through the chaos, Melissa and Bruce's voices rang louder.

"Silvy—we'll carry this fight for you!"

And they dove in again, blades flashing, as the battle raged on.

Julius staggered back, one hand clutching his side where Bruce's blade had finally drawn blood. His perfect expression cracked, twisting with disbelief.

"Impossible. No mortals should be able to harm me!"

He hissed, divine energy rippling violently around him.

Melissa didn't let him recover. She lunged forward, her sword blazing with the system's borrowed radiance.

"You're not a god yet."

She shouted, slashing across his chest. The blow forced Julius to stumble further, golden ichor dripping onto the pristine floor.

Bruce followed, pressing the assault.

"Your illusion was strong, but Silvy gave us clarity. That's something you'll never have—because you only want to control, not protect."

The god-candidate roared, striking his hands together. The air itself shook, sending waves of destructive force outward.

Bruce blocked one with his shield, gritting his teeth as cracks spread through the metal.

Melissa leapt aside, rolling to her feet just as a column of energy scorched where she had been standing.

But even through the chaos, they could feel it—Julius's power was no longer absolute.

The system's blessing gave them openings, small cracks in his defense that hadn't been there before.

For the first time since the battle began, victory didn't feel impossible. It felt close.