Prelude to the Celestine Incident (3)
Seti’s neck snapped sideways from the impact of the caliper. At the same moment, an indescribable wave of violent force slammed through Popurus’s black hole. The Outer God’s true body twisted and writhed in agony.
“Kuhk!”
His mind went blank. How? There was no rule that said damage to an avatar had to transfer to the main body. He had never heard of such a thing.
To allow a hit. Rage twisted every joint in his body. But there was no time to think. The next blow came immediately.
Thud!
“Guhk!”
A burning sensation flared in the frontal lobe that governed thought. As Seti’s temple was struck, something like muddy water burst from Popurus’s head like a ruptured artery.
Thud!
The third strike. Popurus tumbled helplessly inside the black hole. His form flew across the event horizon and slammed into the boundary. It hurt. But more than the pain, the humiliation was unbearable.
This me, taking a clean hit from a mere inferior life-form? It was impossible.
Footsteps. Tap.
Tap. Tap.
The eerie sound echoed through the avatar’s ears. The very prey he had chosen to hunt was now staring down at him from beyond the screen with cold, murderous eyes.
The boy opened his mouth.
“You fucking bitch.”
A single, blunt phrase. Popurus doubted his own auditory organs for a moment.
“You just won’t stop getting in the way.”
“Just die already.”
Idel gripped the caliper with both hands and raised it high. The instantaneous terror that followed made Popurus instinctively rewind time.
— Time has been rewound. —
Second attempt. One try was never enough. He needed to replicate the same conditions again.
1. He seized the girl’s body.
2. He moved to the narrow captain’s quarters to take advantage of the terrain.
So far, everything was identical to the first attempt. While waiting for the two to arrive, he organized his thoughts.
— Young Master, this is the captain’s quarters. They seem to have arrived already.
Popurus left the avatar in the same position and reviewed the plan once more.
Boom!
The door burst open. Two people entered. No—two people and one robot.
“Miss Seti, are you all right?”
“……I see.”
The android with navy-blue hair frowned the moment she saw the avatar. Everything else was the same. The only difference was that things had become more annoying. This time he would have to be more careful with his attack—
Clang!
— Third loop. —
The situation was fucking awful. First of all, the physical abilities of the avatar known as Seti von Rheinland were pathetically weak. Her intelligence was excellent, especially the parts of her brain suited for handling wealth, but that was meaningless after possession. In any case, it was a poor vessel for varied attacks.
Therefore, he asked his subordinate Oligos to find him a new body. The goal was to confuse Idel and create a mental fracture. If he could slip in during that gap and seize control, he could defeat even the Outer God currently suppressing him.
But after only two attempts, he realized the boy was no ordinary opponent. He showed no mercy even to his own blood sister. Then who should he possess?
Before causing the incident, Popurus swallowed his groans and pondered carefully. The blonde-ponytailed girl was close to Idel, but she had a Constellation and could not be possessed. The silver-haired girl with azure eyes seemed to be in a completely hostile relationship, so there was no point. The so-called teacher?
If he could beat his own flesh and blood like a dog on a summer day, there was no reason he would hesitate with anyone else. No matter how he thought about it, the original plan seemed to offer the highest chance of success. There was that android he seemed to be close with; perhaps if he possessed her—
So, how many attempts had this been? Probably over a hundred. Returning to the beginning, he decided to focus solely on Idel’s younger sister.
“You fucking bitch.”
The future unfolded exactly the same. He was already used to it. Popurus had thoroughly explored the depths of the girl’s mind. Their relationship was good now, but this avatar had once suffered severe bullying. Perhaps Idel’s recent kindness toward her was out of guilt for what he had done before.
…Of course, seeing how he had beaten her without hesitation so far, maybe that wasn’t the case. Still, there had to be at least a shred of conscience left. It was worth trying.
“Hic… sob… Brother…”
The possessed body collapsed after a single blow, landing hard on her rear. Good. That state. Stay in that state and start scooting backward.
“It hurts, it hurts, it hurts…! Stop!”
Begging. Pleading.
Tap.
The moment Idel stepped forward, Seti began to wail even more desperately.
“Please, stop hitting me…! Brother, it hurts…! I hate pain! Don’t do it…!”
This much should cause at least some agitation. Well? Isn’t it pitiful? So show mercy. Feel pity. Hesitate. The instant a crack forms in that mind, I will devour you.
Crack!
— One thousand loops? Ten thousand? —
It no longer mattered. He was tired of counting. He simply kept overwriting the displeasing outcomes in silence until a victorious future appeared.
“Student, that’s still your sister! What the hell are you doing!”
Occasionally, Nayer would try to stop Idel. He rather liked these irregular patterns. Around the two-millionth attempt, the jackpot finally hit.
There was no Sonia or whatever her name was to interfere. Nayer, who could slice the avatar’s tentacles in a single stroke, had sprained her ankle on the way here. And she was actively restraining Idel.
“Your sister can still speak. That means her will remains! I’ll subdue her myself, so stay back and don’t do anything strange, student!”
“I refuse.”
“Idel!”
“This is a matter of the Rheinland family. Do not interfere.”
“Just listen to me! If the Fron value is below 800, we can take her to the Holy Spirit Sanctuary and save her!”
Internal conflict had finally broken out. It was a delightfully exciting development. He had no idea how he had seized this opportunity. He absolutely, positively could not fail.
“Hic… Brother… Brother…”
The avatar wailed more miserably than in any previous loop, writhing on the floor. After squeezing out enough fake tears to dry her tear ducts, she looked up at the approaching Idel and spoke.
“Don’t hit me…”
“……”
“It hurts when you hit me…”
“……”
“……Are you going to hit me?”
“Yeah.”
Clang!
— One hundred million loops. —
Even after all this, Idel’s attitude never changed. No matter who he possessed, no matter where, no matter how he acted, the boy tried to execute the avatar without a shred of blood or tears. The moment Idel showed no agitation, that loop had already become meaningless.
Still, the overall scheme had not collapsed. Once he moved to the next timeline, causality would make returning difficult, but it was time to let go.
If he didn’t like the result, he could simply kill them all in a short, decisive battle. In other words, a full-scale declaration of war against the Outer Gods who ruled this galaxy. It needed to end quickly. He also had to keep an eye on the hostile Outer Gods near his stronghold. That was precisely why he had sent the avatars here in advance.
“Children, move out.”
At Popurus’s command, time began to flow forward once more.
— Escaped the hostile Outer God’s ‘Section Repeat’. —
— ‘Orchestra of Mud and Flesh’ has abandoned the avatar and fled the scene. —
— Received 10,000 Fron as a reward for dismantling the scheme! —
Bella held the foaming, unconscious Seti in her arms.
“Hic… sob… I’m sorry, Miss… I’m truly sorry…”
The Outer God had already withdrawn after possessing her. It seemed the creature had tried to take a hostage, then fled in panic after watching me beat her a few times. But this was hardly the end. It was only a preliminary skirmish—a probe. Since the best plan had failed, it would now bring out the middle-tier strategy. While wondering what that might be, Nayer and Sonia approached.
Sonia spoke first.
“Evacuation of all students except the young master is complete.”
“Casualties?”
“Twelve seriously injured, thirty-eight lightly injured, zero fatalities.”
“Good.”
So far, so good. For now.
After exchanging a few brief words with Sonia, I met Instructor Nayer’s eyes. She looked like she was demanding an explanation for the bizarre behavior I had just displayed. There was no time for long speeches.
“……Outer Gods,” I said, keeping only the core points, “become flustered when they encounter patterns they cannot understand.”
“……”
“Strike that opening, and they can be repelled without much difficulty.”
“But why?”
Nayer frowned and asked, her eyes demanding further explanation. Her face asked how I could possibly know such a thing.
“The only known method to drive away an Outer God is to receive the protection of the stars and burn them with Ether…”
“…or so it is said. But that is not the only way.”
“That explanation is still lacking.”
“Just remember this for now. Outer Gods are, after all, living beings.”
Nayer let out a short laugh.
“You mean even cancer cells are alive, right?”
I shrugged and checked the pulse of Seti, whom Bella was holding.
A Fron value of 990. She was on the verge of death. When the avatar died, the possession would automatically end. If the Outer God tried to possess her again, she would truly die, so it probably wouldn’t attempt it.
“……Student Idel, it would be best to take your sister to the Holy Spirit Sanctuary.”
“You mean the place where one formally receives a descent from a Constellation?”
“Yes.”
Nayer continued calmly.
“If the Fron received from an Outer God stops at a moderate level, a contract with a Constellation alone can restore her. Of course, it will cost an enormous amount of money, and if she develops mania, it may restrict her future employment…”
I sighed at her words. According to the novel, the threshold had been around 800. In other words, at roughly 900, even the help of a Constellation was meaningless.
The silver lining was that while unconscious, the Fron value did not change. As long as she did not wake up, Seti would remain in a state that was neither alive nor dead.
In any case, a problem had arisen. How could the Fron value be lowered?
“Bella.”
I gave the order.
“Take my sister to a hospital in the Rheinland domain. Preferably the one closest to the Holy Spirit Sanctuary.”
“Ah, yes!”
“Be sure to contact Father and Mother.”
For now, she needed to be moved to a safe location. What remained was to read the next card the Outer God would play and prepare a countermeasure.
The moment that thought crossed my mind, the mission window updated before my eyes.
Cartesia’s New Assignment
1. Eliminate Avatar ‘Luzlaktia’ (0/1)
2. Eliminate Avatar ‘Yodel’ (0/1)
3. Eliminate Avatar ‘Mayrem’ (0/1)
4. Eliminate Avatar ‘Oligos’ (0/1)
Since she was the type to use both carrot and whip, the rewards for success and failure were equally dramatic.
On Success: Gravity Package filled with Cartesia’s love (>∇<)
On Failure: You’d better look forward to it :)
“What the hell is this.”
— Alert: Sudden drastic change in Fron value detected! —
“And what is this now.”
“Young Master, in any case you should come with me to a safe—”
Rumble!
The hull began to shake. Before Sonia could finish speaking, my body floated upward.
“Wh-what?”
“Damn it. It’s the Outer God’s doing.”
Without any manual operation, the ship was launching. It broke free of the planet’s gravitational domain and drifted into open, weightless space.
Crash!
The glass of the captain’s quarters shattered.