Extra in a Romance Fantasy

13 – Choice

Cedric was attending a lecture as usual.

And in the midst of a rather uninteresting general education lecture, the unexpected began.

At first, what he felt was a sense of unfamiliarity.

Something had happened. It was nothing more than a feeling, but it was a clear sense of strangeness.

Before he could set out to find the cause of this strangeness, the incident began.

Thud─

A strange sensation suddenly enveloped him, and the interior of the building began to transform.

And when he realized it, he was already in a completely different space.

“Where is this… what in the world…?”

With a girl named Mary Blunoa.

It was a sudden and confusing situation, but they were not given time to slowly savor the confusion.

Clang─

Self-moving armor, Living Armor.

A creature that was difficult to see at a glance made noise as it appeared.

Before fully understanding the situation, Cedric drew his sword and charged towards the Living Armor.

Due to the nature of the armor, it was difficult for low-level swordsmen to deal with such creatures, but that did not apply to Cedric.

Indeed, Cedric swiftly dealt with the Living Armor without spending much time.

Cedric and Mary began to understand the situation only after that.

“It seems like the lecture hall has turned into a dungeon.”

The opinion of the girl who was with him, Mary Blunoa.

Mary carefully examined the walls and floor.

“Moreover, it seems to be a closed dungeon. We probably can’t just walk out.”

“How do we lift the dungeon transformation?”

“You either remove the central core or deal with the creatures.”

Cedric set his sights on unlocking the dungeon as per her advice and began advancing toward it. It was as obvious as fire that living armors would block their path in the process. Sure enough, just as he anticipated, a significant number of living armors appeared before them.

There was only one thing that deviated from his expectations: Mary Blunoa’s abilities. Frankly, he had thought she’d be a burden. He had agreed to accompany her because it seemed apparent if he left her behind, she’d be a liability, not a help.

However, it didn’t take long for him to realize he was wrong. Mary wasn’t a burden. On the contrary, she proved to be quite helpful. Despite her seemingly fragile appearance, she possessed remarkable magical skills. Even when faced with monsters, she exhibited no signs of faltering and displayed a magician’s composure.

There were even occasions when Cedric sought her assistance. Despite looking incredibly fragile on the surface, she was surprisingly composed and possessed exceptional abilities beyond what he had thought.

Gradually, Cedric found himself becoming interested in the girl named Mary Blunoa. Together, they continued to progress through the dungeon, combining their strengths. However, as time passed, their pace slowed. Their stamina and magical reserves had limits. Nonetheless, they didn’t stop and eventually reached a room that seemed to mark the end of the dungeon.

There, they encountered an unexpected individual: Aira Livriyon. Cedric instinctively noticed something different about Aira from usual—the eerie sword in her hand. Mary mentioned that the sword was a parasitic-type artifact, and it seemed like Aira had been consumed by it.

They immediately engaged in a battle to subdue Aira. Cedric was confident. After all, he had defeated her twice before. He didn’t think he’d lose, even with the intervention of the cursed sword.

However, in the end, that was a hasty judgment.

“Grr…!”

Cedric had to step back with a fairly deep wound on his side.

“…I didn’t expect it to be this intense.”

This wasn’t the same child as before.

Whether it was due to the cursed sword or not, the level of strength, speed, and magic power had all changed from before.

Although his skills hadn’t improved, powerful strength alone could overwhelm skills.

Moreover, facing Cedric, who had depleted his stamina and magic power while conquering the dungeon, the current child was a formidable opponent. Even with Mary’s assistance.

Despite the challenging situation, Cedric hadn’t given up.

Just because he faced a formidable opponent didn’t mean his spirit would break.

“Ugh…!”

Taking a rare deep breath, Cedric rushed towards the child.

Even the child wielding the cursed sword reacted promptly.

Whoosh!

The cursed sword made a fearsome sound as it swung towards Cedric.

Instead of retreating, Cedric moved one step to the side, avoiding the cursed sword falling like a guillotine.

At the same time, he prepared for his counterattack.

Humming—

The sword, imbued with magic, echoed a cry.

The target was clear.

The child’s arm.

The plan was to completely separate the cursed sword from the child by cutting off the arm.

Originally, it would have been an option he wouldn’t have taken, but the situation was urgent.

The corrosion of the cursed sword was progressing in real-time.

“If I cut off the arm, I can reattach it.”

High-ranking clerics could reattach severed limbs.

With the power of the academy, summoning such a cleric would also be possible.

Having made this decision, Cedric swung his sword down.

The opponent was in a vulnerable state.

If he continued like this, cutting off the child’s arm would become a reality.

However.

Clang!

The blade that must have grazed the flesh emitted a metallic clang as it ricocheted away.

“…!”

Even though astonished by this fact, Cedric attempted to swiftly withdraw, yet the movement of the dark blade was faster than his own.

Whoosh!

The dark blade surged towards Cedric, emitting a sharp sound.

Despite Cedric contorting his entire body, evading the dark blade seemed a formidable task.

“It’s dangerous!”

Crash!

At that moment, a flying ember struck the dark blade, creating an opening.

Though the gap wasn’t sizable, Cedric managed to readjust his stance.

In that fleeting moment, Cedric managed to wield his sword, deflecting the path of the dark blade.

Thud!

“Guh…!”

Although he barely defended with his sword, he couldn’t mitigate the entire impact, inevitably causing his stance to falter.

And that acted as a fatal element.

Crash! Crash!

A relentless onslaught, using power and speed, an inescapable series of attacks.

Cedric found himself solely focused on blocking the attacks, growing increasingly disadvantaged.

“Cedric!”

Mary attempted to cast spell after spell in an effort to aid Cedric, yet it provided little assistance. Whether by instinctively evading Mary’s magic or directly absorbing it, Cedric faced mounting pressure.

Metal protruding where his skin should naturally be, a sign of the dark metal’s encroachment.

Cedric realized this was due to the corruption of the dark blade. Even the earlier blockage was likely due to that.

Amidst this, the corruption continued to progress, and the dark influence strengthened.

Cedric gritted his teeth and attempted to counteract it, but he couldn’t deflect every forceful strike with brute strength alone, eventually leaving a substantial opening.

Crash!

“Guh…!”

Cedric was forcefully thrown backward with tremendous force, narrowly avoiding a direct hit from the dark blade.

However, in exchange, his left arm was broken, and his internal organs were jolted.

Even amidst the mental turmoil caused by the pain, Cedric immediately tried to regain his composure.

In this kind of battle, he knew that a momentary lapse could lead directly to death.

However.

The moment he struggled to stand, a child was already before him.

Brandishing a dark magic sword.

“Cedric-nim…!!”

Mary’s desperate voice echoed.

And Cedric faced the approaching shadow of death.

That’s when.

Suddenly, a single shadow wedged itself between him and the child.

—

Clang!

Feeling the rebounding force in my hands, I inwardly sighed in relief.

‘…That was a close call.’

If I had been just a little later, Cedric would have been on the brink of death.

It was worth running with all my might, disregarding stamina or magic power.

Looking at how surprised everyone was in this situation, it felt like my lifespan had shortened.

Or maybe it really had.

About three years.

“Wade!”

I heard a familiar voice calling me.

Naturally, it was Mary.

Turning my head slightly to look in her direction, thankfully, aside from looking somewhat tired, Mary seemed fine.

Feeling a sense of relief at that fact, I turned my gaze towards Cedric.

“You…”

Cedric was looking at me with unusually shaky eyes.

He probably didn’t recognize me, so this situation must be bewildering for him.

Even if he knew, it would likely be confusing in its own way.

But there was no time to kindly explain the situation.

It was an urgent moment.

I quickly assessed Ira’s condition.

A glimpse of black metal visible through the clothes.

Evidence that corrosion had progressed significantly.

Whoosh!

Clang!

As if not allowing any room for thought, I deflected the swinging dark blade and turned my head.

“…Be careful. I aimed to strike your arm but didn’t cut through,” Cedric said.

Leaving doubts aside, he shared necessary information.

He’s certainly pragmatic.

Without offering any particular response, I focused on Ira in front of me.

There might be a way out. So, I decided to try what I could for now.

I shifted from a defensive stance and swung my own blade towards the opposing one.

Striking with all the magic I could muster.

Thud!

However, the clash of the blades echoed grander than expected.

The dark blade shattered into pieces.

“…!”

Behind me, I felt Cedric’s sharp inhale.

He must have been quite surprised.

Normally, with a regular sword, he might not know, but having collided with the dark blade, Cedric understands it’s harder than a conventional one.

However, Cedric found himself surprised once again.

The shattered dark blade, initially disintegrated, then reconstructed itself unharmed in a cloud of black smoke.

Frowning, I watched the scene unfold.

If the corrosion hadn’t advanced much, merely breaking the dark blade might have ended it all.

However, at this moment, with the corrosion so deeply progressed, that would not suffice to conclude the situation.

Then, a presence approached from behind.

“…If breaking it doesn’t work, there’s no way,” Cedric, his expression strained with pain, uttered calmly as he moved closer, looking at Ira.

“Only death remains.”

To describe it as putting death on one’s lips, it was an infinitely composed voice.

Some might call him a cold-hearted individual, but objectively speaking, Cedric’s words were not entirely wrong.

If breaking the dark magic is futile, there’s a high probability that dropping the dark magic with Ayra won’t be effective either.

Especially in a situation without priests, it might be the right decision to make under these circumstances.

As time passes, the dark magic will become stronger, and those trapped in this dungeon will become more dangerous.

So, Ayra must be killed while there’s still time.

That’s Cedric’s judgment.

“….”

I, hesitating for a moment, once again caught sight of Ayra.

A hazy gaze with unfocused eyes.

Given the current state of corrosion, her identity might be completely devoured by the dark magic after a little more time.

Her body may survive, but the human called Ayra Librion will be completely dead.

Reflecting on this fact once again.

I finally made a decision.

Reluctant, but inevitable given the circumstances.

***

You’ve made up your mind.

Looking at Wade’s expression, I realized.

That he has finally made a decision.

Given the situation, they had only one choice.

To kill her.

Of course, the process wouldn’t be as simple as it sounds, but with the man in front of them, it seemed possible.

Wade Heblon.

A strange guy.

That’s how he assessed Ayra as an opponent.

The first proper conversation we had was during a group project not too long ago, but even before that, I knew of his existence. We were both students in the Combat Arts department.

What should I say? He always seemed like a person exhausted.

Far from having an energetic personality, he was not the type to initiate conversation proactively.

Always approaching classes with a bored expression that rarely revealed his emotions.

The grades were average. There might be some variation, but it didn’t deviate significantly from the average range.

Combined with these factors, in the bustling battlefield full of unique individuals, she wasn’t particularly noticeable, but surprisingly, she was quite well-known among the men.

It was due to an incident during a dungeon practical training session some time ago.

Rumors had it that she had ventured back into the dungeon on her own to recruit someone.

Attempting such a crazy feat and, astonishingly, succeeding spread like wildfire.

I was quite surprised when I first heard that rumor.

She didn’t seem to have that kind of passionate personality at all.

But that was about it.

Just a person who appeared different from what met the eye, to some extent.

The perception of her truly began to change after the start of the group project.

As expected, her social skills weren’t great, but she turned out to be more polite and kind than I had thought.

I began to see her as a kind person, contrary to my expectations.

Her perception changed again after the first sparring session with Cedric.

Although she tried to hide it in her own way, it seemed that her gloominess was apparent to the men.

The man began to console her with somewhat awkward, blunt, and conventional words, but she noticed that he wasn’t just using superficial gestures to comfort her.

Of course, that didn’t make her heavy heart any lighter, but she felt a hint of gratitude.

She began to think that the man named Aye was a better person than she initially thought.

And finally, up to this point, her impression of him changed once again.

His sudden appearance in a dramatic situation revealed a skill level far beyond anything she had seen before.

Even Cedric was overwhelmed by her current abilities.

Yet, the man effortlessly blocked her attacks and even shattered her dark sword.

He had been hiding his abilities until now.

How did he acquire such skills?

And why did he hide them?

Doubts about the man surfaced.

But those doubts were unlikely to be resolved.

Her life would end here.

She herself was beginning to feel it – her identity fading away.

Before long, she would be completely consumed by the dark sword.

If someone were to ask if I want to die, of course I would answer that I don’t, but still, it would be better for me to die than to kill someone innocent.

Looking into the determined eyes of the man, I accepted my own death.

And then, the man moved.

Eventually, my body moved on its own and thrust the sword towards the man.

It was a fierce stab, but I knew it was futile.

Because I knew the man would easily dodge and end my life with a swing of his sword.

That’s why I let my guard down.

However.

Thunk!

The man did not dodge the sword.

The cursed sword mercilessly pierced through the man’s body.