CHAPTER 815: 815: DIVINE GAME- CARD SWAP 64

The solo match rankings were based on kill count, but the top of the screen also displayed how many hints each contestant had gathered.

Less than a minute after the game began—right when Rita blew up the bar—her name shot to the front of the leaderboard.

[Moonlight Marsh, Rita | Kills: 251; Hints: 3]

Her screen also displayed the hints she’d collected.

Second place was Pine Bloom from Puppy Ranch, with 2 kills and 0 hints.

Even though Rita was currently in first place, Mistblade, Maple Syrup, and Fat Goose—watching from the stands and snacking—didn’t cheer.

They were too busy sharing their treats.

The black cat sitting next to Maple Syrup asked, "Why aren’t you excited? Moonlight Marsh is in first place!"

Mistblade shook her head, speaking like a seasoned veteran. "It’s just starting. No rush."

Maple Syrup nodded. "Save your energy."

Fat Goose glanced sideways at the blood elf next to her. The elf hadn’t brought her bow today, but there was a gun at her hip. Fat Goose quietly shuffled away and stayed silent.

A few minutes later, when Rita was being sent flying through the air, all three stopped chewing.

"She’s flying pretty high."

"Good thing we didn’t get worked up."

"Moonlight Marsh still has seven revive slots. Dying now is fine. No panic."

"Exactly. No panic."

"...Wait, what is she even doing?"

"No idea."

...

"...Wait!! I have something to say!"

Rita shouted as the Death Eater’s hand moved without pause. Before she could finish, she was airborne again.

At least this time her trajectory was identical to before—the walls she’d smashed through were already gone—so she didn’t lose any HP.

Problem was, she couldn’t control her body mid-flight, which meant she couldn’t run even if she wanted to.

From her shopping cart view, she could see the skill responsible: [Telekinetic Control], SSS rank.

Two copies of it, in fact—not bad as a haul.

Her plan was simple: as soon as she hit the ground and regained control, she’d use [Absolute Freedom] to escape.

But the white bear was already waiting in the courtyard. It took a few light steps back to find the landing point, then planted a paw squarely on her backside and kicked.

"Amusing~"

Rita, still airborne: "..."

So everything she’d said during time-stop had been heard after all.

If the Death Eater’s skill had locked her in place, then the bear’s method was pure technique—similar to GodDraw77’s—forcing loss of bodily control at the instant of impact.

She’d been studying that style with GodDraw77 for a while.

GodDraw77’s method was to hammer an opponent’s joints, then launch them spinning at high speed, completely robbing them of control—like a fly caught in a web.

That kind of force was hard to counter. Without [Mystic Force], she’d have been one-shot in class long ago.

She’d always thought her inability to replicate it came from a lack of raw strength.

Now, she wasn’t so sure.

The white bear’s throws and kicks weren’t particularly strong. With her strength over 300, Rita could match the power easily.

Yet she still couldn’t break free.

Why?

Landing again, she stayed prone, waiting for the Death Eater to send her back.

When nothing happened after a few seconds, she had to look up. "Why aren’t you hitting me?"

The Death Eater spoke for the first time, their voice rich and expensive, like Scarlett’s Harman Kardon speaker. "You want me to send you back."

She caught the unspoken meaning: You want it, so I won’t.

Petty.

Rita immediately pulled out her snowman and rewound her state to one minute earlier, back to 1% HP.

Without wasting time arguing, she scrambled up, took a running start, and hurled herself through the wall-holes back toward the bear.

The Death Eater just sat there, watching her get launched over and over.

Sometimes she’d lie on the ground, chin propped in thought. Sometimes she’d roll over and stare at the sky. Sometimes she’d dash off the instant she landed.

After more than a dozen cycles, the Death Eater finally asked, "What did you say to that bear to make it keep sending you back?"

Rita answered, "I told it I’m keeping score for you. You’ve missed seventeen shots already. It’s 17–0 now."

"...Drummer."

Rita was already dusting herself off and heading back again.

...

"What is she even doing?"

Even though she’d lost first place, much of the audience still watched her. She was clearly pursuing some goal.

"Does she have a skill for this? Maybe taking hits gives her intel or stats?"

"Ugh, can’t she do something useful? She’s throwing away her lead!"

"Didn’t the forums say she had time-stop? Maybe when she uses it again, she’ll shoot back up the ranks."

"Time-stop’s unfair to the other students..."

"By that logic, Pine Bloom’s skill to copy other divine gifts, Windrush’s self-slowed time, and Mojie’s ability to erase six hours of someone’s progress are all unfair. Might as well not play."

"Exactly. I heard a second-year even has theft, stealing other players’ stats."

"Disgraceful."

"That’s your Twilight Library second-year, Crab."

"A prodigy!!"

"...."

...

The bear asked her too. Just as Rita was about to land, it called out, "Don’t you have your own business to handle?"

"Of course I do. I’m on my way now."

As she spoke, she twisted midair, one wing bone bending forward to meet the bear’s paw head-on.

At the tip of the bone, a magic sigil identical to the one on the bear’s paw—"∝"—flared into view.

A burst of liquor mist exploded, tracing the lines of the sigil into the bear’s body. In an instant, that arm wobbled as if its owner had downed a barrel of strong drink.

Lightchaser had always preferred to give her notes instead of scrolls when teaching skills, telling her to practice and discover the details herself. Only a few times had she handed over actual skill books.

Rita had grumbled about it plenty in her mind.

Why not just give her the scrolls? The library even had tools to safely distill skills into scroll form—Lightchaser surely had access to them.

If she could learn instantly, she could put all her time into combat drills and be way stronger by now.

But she’d never voiced it. She always told herself Lightchaser was that strong for a reason, and must have a good one for teaching this way.

And just now, after being batted around the Old District, analyzing the bear’s combat technique over and over—

She’d finally found the answer.