How to Survive as an Extra

Chapter 7

Thursday afternoon.

I headed to the Hall of Justice to attend a Criminal Psychology lecture.

The lecture hall still looked quiet.

From what I could see from the hallway, there were about 20 people.

When I finally set foot in the lecture hall, the students who had been sitting blankly and waiting for the lecture poured their gazes on me.

It seemed like they were watching to see where I was going to sit, but sorry, I was also currently deliberating.

Considering it had only been three days, the atmosphere in the Investigation Division had been divided quite distinctly.

A minority with family backgrounds, including Gwon Chihun, who were third-generation Awakeners or older.

The second-generation Awakeners, represented by Park Jeongchan.

The dropouts from the Combat and Support Divisions, gathered under the leadership of Kim Muung.

And the social consideration students, gathered around Choi Jaejin.

They were all the same age, but one could not expect the friendly atmosphere of school days.

Hero Prep was also a university, and since the most talented of the talented were gathered there, a competitive mentality was fundamentally at the forefront.

Above all, most were second-generation Awakeners or older, and many were tied to their family circumstances.

The disputes between guilds to which their blood relatives belonged had been passed down directly to the children.

In such factions, I, being two days behind, was in an ambiguous position to join anywhere.

Therefore, aiming for the advantage, or non-advantage, of being a social consideration student, I approached Choi Jaejin, but…….

“Sorry, but could you sit somewhere else? It’s uncomfortable to be associated with you……”

I was ostracized with those words, and when I went near Park Jeongchan’s group, they openly ignored me and whispered among themselves.

There was no room to even consider Gwon Chihun’s and Kim Muung’s groups, who had not even shown their shadows 10 minutes before the lecture started.

In the end, I sat in the very front, just like in the morning lecture.

“Hah……”

What was a social consideration student who was ostracized by other social consideration students supposed to do?

I had not even thought about this while writing the novel…….

Just like that, 1 minute before the lecture began, the investigation instructor Jeong Harin and Do Minyeong entered the lecture hall together.

It did not seem like they had come together, and judging from the character setting of Do Minyeong, it was clear that she had arbitrarily arrived on time.

After all, she was a loner like me.

Do Minyeong came in looking for an empty seat and eventually approached the seat next to mine.

There were many other empty seats, but there was no comfortable place due to the useless factions.

“You can sit.”

“……Don’t copy me.”

“Okay.”

The lecture began.

Since it was Week 0, everyone thought it would end quickly, but that investigation instructor, Jeong Harin, was a person with a personality completely opposite to Yun Jeongseop’s.

“Well then, since it’s the first day, instead of just lecturing, let’s have a discussion on a simple topic. I’m curious about what kind of thoughts you all have.”

At those words, the lecture hall stirred gently.

But that was all.

They were not high school students, so no one complained about having a lecture in a lecture hall.

“A few days ago, a place presumed to be the Phantom Thief’s hideout was discovered, which became a hot topic. In the end, it turned out to be false. Likewise, it’s impossible to talk about the history of the Awakener world without discussing the Phantom Thief. Today, let’s talk about the character of the Phantom Thief. The topic of discussion is ‘Who is the Phantom Thief’.”

As the original author, it was a very interesting topic.

Perhaps because Jeong Harin spoke so clearly, I naturally became focused on the lecture.

“If I ask for voluntary opinions, no one will raise their hand, right? Let’s have one person present and then nominate the next student. The first student to give their opinion is……. There’s a face I’m personally glad to see. Student Gwon Chihun?”

Gwon Chihun stood up reluctantly.

He did not forget to snicker once with the group sitting nearby, but…….

But that expression, could it be that he was boasting because the instructor recognized him?

“Ahem, based on the many stories about the Phantom Thief over the past half-century, there’s a high probability that the Phantom Thief is from the slums on the outskirts of Seoul.”

“……Is that all?”

“Yes. Ah! Additionally, there’s a high probability that he’s a man. He robbed the safes of famous people back then to provide for his family.”

“Alright, then could you nominate the next student?”

Bravo.

I think this was a passage that clearly showed the character of Gwon Chihun that I had set.

Just because he was from one of the families rooted in Dispel, he was the worst of the worst, with all his relatives having a foot in Dispel.

One might wonder how such a foolish fellow got into Hero Prep, but his shooting skills at least followed at the heels of Cha Yeri’s.

Not only that, but the ability he possessed was also quite useful.

Even with that level of thinking, it meant he was sufficient to enter Hero Prep.

Entrance was talent.

But graduation was effort.

Because that was the identity of Hero Prep.

Gwon Chihun, who was sitting in the very back row, looked down at the lecture hall once, then said with a wide grin.

“I’d like to hear the thoughts of the 1st place in the written section. Since he’s from the outskirts, I think he’d know better. Heh heh.”

Gwon Chihun nominated me with a sneer.

Naturally, the surrounding group laughed along.

Those bastards…….

When Jeong Harin shifted her gaze to me in the front row, I stood up reflexively.

“Anything is fine. It’s fine to talk about gender, or to guess at height. Please feel free to share the thoughts you have as a student.”

Was it because her expectations had dropped due to Gwon Chihun? Jeong Harin feigned a smile and made a half-resigned expression.

Well, it was nice that there was no pressure.

“I’d like to discuss an item that the Phantom Thief possessed. Specifically, the MA6, which was sold in a limited edition of ten 70 years ago.”

“Hmm, a famous firearm. Leaving aside the premium of being the Phantom Thief’s, the design is also excellent.”

“Yes, and the price is excellent too. If you think about the circumstances of that era even a little, the claim that the Phantom Thief was from the slums is absurd. Moreover, firearms use bullets infused with mana. .32 caliber bullets were expensive enough to form a considerable price range even after the MA6 was released. To make matters worse, they were discontinued after just a few years. However, the Phantom Thief consistently used the MA6 even after the .32 caliber was discontinued. From this, we can infer that the Phantom Thief was a top 3% expert who could handle magic bullets. ……Or perhaps he was a wealthy person who bought them in large quantities before the bullets were discontinued.”

At that moment, Gwon Chihun pushed his chair back forcefully and shot up from his seat.

“Do you not know what a phantom thief means? There’s no need to discuss the value of the items. He would have stolen them anyway. Both the gun and the bullets!”

I turned to look at him and replied.

“70 years ago, the MA6 was more famous than the Phantom Thief. If the Phantom Thief had stolen it, there would have been a huge uproar. But even after that, there were no reports of an MA6 being stolen.”

“Then the one who bought one of those ten must be the Phantom Thief!”

That is correct.

If Mystic Arrow had recorded the buyers’ identities in 1969, the whole world would have known that Cha Jaehee was the Phantom Thief.

I opened my mouth to answer, but Jeong Harin’s intervention was faster.

“Student Gwon Chihun, your enthusiasm for the discussion is good, but please lower your voice a little. And Student Ji Seokhyeon’s opinion is the established theory concluded by the actual Dispel. However, it became a problem because Mystic Arrow did not record the buyers’ identities.”

“……Th, that’s.”

“Moreover, at that time……”

Jeong Harin stopped without finishing her sentence.

She seemed to hesitate for a moment, wondering whether to say that the investigator in charge of the Phantom Thief at the time was Gwon Chihun’s grandfather.

Though there was a high probability that he also knew.

“Never mind. Please sit down, Student Gwon Chihun.”

“Tch.”

As Gwon Chihun sat down sullenly, Jeong Harin looked back at me again.

“Student Ji Seokhyeon, your opinion is an excellent approach to making inferences. I will add 1 point as a bonus. Of course, you probably have more opinions, but let’s give other students a chance too.”

Jeong Harin manipulated her smartwatch.

At the same time, a short vibration rang on my wrist, and a point was added.

I scanned the lecture hall.

I thought about nominating Choi Jaejin, who still held a grudge, but Do Minyeong in the seat next to me was looking up at me earnestly with her big eyes.

“……”

Well, I had expected as much.

If there was one person among the students who coveted points the most, it was naturally Do Minyeong.

After all, she was…….

“I’ll go with Student Do Minyeong.”

She was planning to doggedly collect points and transfer to the Combat Division.

***

After all the afternoon lectures were over and I came out of the Hall of Justice, the ashen clouds were tinged with color.

The magnificent view of the ashen city, where light only reached the ground at sunset and sunrise.

Because I had borrowed the background of a steampunk worldview to describe it, a strange feeling always came first, but seeing the clouds like crimson flames, I finally realized I was in a fantasy and was thrilled.

“This is really ridiculous.”

I had dinner at the Grand Pistachio and headed for the dormitory.

It would have been nice to stop by when there were no lectures, but according to school rules, entry to the dormitory was prohibited until all lectures were over.

The dormitory building did not have a separate name.

Just the male student dormitory, and the female student dormitory.

Not only that, but the size and facilities of the rooms were all the same.

The room assigned to me was on the 13th floor.

When I tagged my smartwatch on the entrance terminal and opened the door, a 30-pyeong room with a modern interior came into view.

I took off my jacket right from the entrance and went straight to the sofa in the unlit living room.

“……It’s plush.”

Other students would do personal training or participate in club activities from next week even after all the lectures were over, but for me, adapting to the time difference of this world came first.

“There’s no more effective way to adapt to a time difference than laziness……”

A little later, I took a shower and put on a gown that I did not usually wear.

Just as I was about to throw myself onto the bed this time…….

BZZZT-.

A vibration came from my wrist.

When I lightly touched my smartwatch, a message sent by Yun Jeongseop was projected as a hologram.

-Investigation Instructor Yun Jeongseop: Come to the main building within 10 minutes.

“Ah, please……”

***

The main building was where the principal and vice principal worked, and it was impossible to get from the dormitory to the main building within 10 minutes.

Naturally, with my inferior stats, even running for the full 10 minutes would not be enough.

Hero Prep was a huge academy that boasted a large scale even within the 4th Scholastic District.

I decided to think of it as just a figure of speech to come as quickly as possible.

I put on my student casual wear and left the dormitory.

But perhaps because it was right after a shower, I felt thirsty, so I went to a nearby vending machine and tagged my smartwatch.

-28 uses left.

A vending machine that could be used 30 times for 1 point.

They were all drinks I did not know, so I was in the middle of a small challenge of trying them one by one.

I smelled the fizzing scent of carbonation and coolly quenched my throat.

While moving, of course.

Just like that, as I was passing by the Hall of Justice, I discovered Gwon Chihun’s group and Choi Jaejin behind a building.

To be precise, Choi Jaejin, who was cornered against a wall and having a hard time.

I instinctively used Stealth and watched the situation.

“Where does a social consideration bastard get off talking back.”

“Th, that’s not it……”

“I’m sure I told you. If you social consideration bastards keep your mouths shut, eyes shut, and ears shut, and go about quietly, I have no intention of bothering you. Right, am I not right? Huh?”

A magnificent view of a different kind was unfolding.

My novel mainly consisted of narratives centered on the Combat Division.

Although Gwon Chihun was supporting character A who was repeatedly broken, my setting that he was no different from Lu Bu within the Investigation Division was being properly realized.

“But why is that suspenders bastard acting up without knowing his place?”

“……You, you saw it too. When he was in the infirmary, Lee Eunho visited him several times……”

“Ah, so I’m worse than Lee Eunho? That tasteless head student bastard is scarier than me?”

“S, sorry! That’s not what I meant……”

Choi Jaejin.

A character with no influence whatsoever in the original work.

I had no intention of rashly stepping forward and intensifying the conflict with Gwon Chihun.

Because characters had their own roles in a novel.

However…….

There was nothing difficult about lightly throwing the empty can I was holding into a nearby metal trash can.

CLANG!

CLATTER-.

A loud friction sound.

At the same time, one of Gwon Chihun’s group quickly looked around.

“Chihun, let’s stop here. What more is there to say. They’re rootless bastards, they’ll probably drop out before even finishing the first semester anyway.”

“That’s right, Chihun. It could get annoying if we get noticed by the instructors. ……You too, bastard! If your ears are open, don’t make me say it twice. Do you think you’ll become something by sticking around here like a leech? In this business, burying a bastard like you is no big deal.”

“S, sorry……”

“Hah……. Damn, anyway, be careful, you bastard.”

“……Okay.”

“Get lost, quickly.”

Choi Jaejin got hit on the back of the head by Gwon Chihun and quickly left the place.

Next, Gwon Chihun’s group began to pass by my stealthed self.

“……”

Without a hint of hesitation, I slyly tripped Gwon Chihun’s foot.

“Ugh!”

Then, the fellow fell over clumsily.

“What’s wrong, Chihun!”

“Damn it! ……What! Something caught my foot!”

“This is why you shouldn’t get involved with social consideration bastards. It just brings bad luck.”

“Damn, it’s fine, I can get up by myself.”

Leaving the fellow’s dumbfounded expression behind, I calmly walked towards the main building.