How to Survive as an Extra

Chapter 9

One of the contradictions that arose from Lee Eunho not regressing was the existence of allies like Yun Jeongseop.

In other words, they were characters who had lost their purpose because their focal point, the protagonist, had disappeared.

My role in the episodes was to keep them attached to Lee Eunho.

If I just pretended not to know, it could lead to an awkward situation.

Like Yun Jeongseop, who was in front of my eyes right now.

“Why didn’t you go to the library?”

In the original work, Yun Jeongseop had also clung to Lee Eunho’s suspicious behavior.

Although Lee Eunho had solved cases through the Mystery Club and eventually won Yun Jeongseop’s support…….

That was only in the case of the original work.

The problem was that now, I had to persuade Yun Jeongseop in place of Lee Eunho.

I opened my mouth calmly.

“Because there was no reason to go.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Let me ask you first. Why did you put me in the Mystery Club?”

“Answer first.”

“Because you weren’t sure, right? It’s hard to say I’m an accomplice who infiltrated with Park Oseok when I actually helped.”

Yun Jeongseop did not react.

As if telling me to say more.

“It’s clear that I moved with prior knowledge of Park Oseok’s movements, but since you can’t figure out my clear purpose, isn’t your intention to keep me on hand and watch me?”

“……”

“Keeping me on hand and watching me means you’re considering me in two ways. One is that I’m a hostile force related to Park Oseok’s backer. The other is…… the possibility of being a Demonic Being.”

Demonic Being.

A being from beyond the fissure that consumes mana tainted with human desires.

Simply put, a vampire that craves mana, not blood.

The undeniable greatest archenemy of mankind.

When I looked at Yun Jeongseop as if I was interrogating him, he finally nodded his head.

“Right, but the suspicion of you being a Demonic Being was quickly resolved. After all, we fed you a healing potion, which is a Demonic Being’s weakness, while you were in a state of mana depletion. That’s not to say I’ve completely dropped my suspicions. Not until you can prove your suspicious behavior at the firing range.”

“The firing range?”

“Are you feigning ignorance? The Special Affairs Division believes you did something to Park Oseok.”

“……”

It was clear.

Baek Dojun of the Special Affairs Division had seen through the fact that I had cast a status effect on Park Oseok.

Without even the prejudice of me being powerless.

A troublesome human…….

The formation of the Mystery Club was also at the order of the Special Affairs Division Chief, Baek Dojun.

In the original work, it was for the purpose of clearly observing Lee Eunho, but in the current plot, there was a high possibility that the target was me.

“Now, it would be best for you to spit out something convincing.”

It was a crossroads of choice.

Do I reveal that I, known as a powerless person, had used an ability?

Or do I deny it until the end with a plausible excuse?

The easiest way was to make an excuse, but if I did that, I would not be able to continue my relationship with Yun Jeongseop.

On the other hand, if I revealed the fact that I possessed an ability, I would be taken into custody by Dispel for the reason of an omission in the update of my superpower information.

Therefore, I had to convince him by giving a reason why I had no choice but to pretend to be powerless.

“Silence won’t be a very good choice.”

“……”

Yun Jeongseop, pressing me with a heavy tone, as expected of a former investigator from Dispel.

I gathered my thoughts once and then opened my mouth.

“I’ll give you an answer. I……”

Then I consciously closed my eyes, and with a change in the color of my pupils, I opened my eyes again.

“I have opened my Demonic Eye.”

“……What!”

Yun Jeongseop, showing a rare sign of surprise.

It was the reaction I had expected.

“I opened it the day before enrolling in Hero Prep. Therefore, I didn’t have the time to report it to the bureau.”

“So you weren’t powerless after all……. More than that, what an absurd ability, a Demonic Eye……”

The Demonic Eye was a mysterious ability that had been reported less than 50 times since the Great Fissure.

An ability that was said to be granted only to those with the highest mana sensitivity, regardless of attribute.

The only thing that had been revealed about this ability was that it could see mana.

Other than that, there was almost no known information, so countless excuses could be made.

That was exactly what I was aiming for.

“……You didn’t go to the library because you observed the mana.”

“Yes, because it was within a discernible distance.”

“What else can your eye do?”

“That is……”

I took a deep breath for a moment and then used Bind on Yun Jeongseop.

At the same time, Yun Jeongseop showed an unnatural posture and stopped moving.

“……!”

“I can fix the movements of the opponent reflected in my eye. This is the suspicious act I performed on Park Oseok. The risk is high, so I quickly fall into a state of depletion.”

Perhaps because I was using it along with the Demonic Eye, the speed at which my mana was draining was considerable.

Still, it was much easier than binding Park Oseok, who had used the shard.

“I’m asking you, but could you please release this disgusting status effect.”

“Ah, yes.”

As soon as the Bind was released, he immediately got up from his chair and moved his body here and there.

It was a short time, but it seemed to have been quite suffocating.

I deactivated the Demonic Eye and asked.

“It seems your question has been answered.”

“Well, to some extent. But when are you planning to report to the bureau?”

“If you just help me, Instructor, I plan to keep it a secret until I can take care of myself. As you know, it’s an ability that’s hard to handle alone.”

“……Interesting. Do you think the Demonic Eye won’t be revealed just because I keep my mouth shut?”

Yun Jeongseop’s tone was steady.

However, despite his cynical behavior, there was one peculiar point.

That was, when he faced a topic he was pursuing, he would not take his eyes off the subject.

“Yes, if you just keep silent, Instructor. Because……”

“Because?”

“I am a person who can give you what you want.”

“What I want?”

“Yes, as I said, I can see mana. That means, ……I can distinguish those with Mana Insensitivity.”

“……”

Mana Insensitivity.

A phenomenon among Awakeners where they cannot sense mana for acquired reasons.

Yun Jeongseop belonged to a type of Mana Insensitivity.

A side effect from a certain incident he experienced while he was an investigator for Dispel.

Therefore, although he retained the superhuman physical abilities of an Awakener, he could not feel, release, or use mana.

Naturally, he was treated worse than a powerless person, and was in a position of being implicitly ostracized even in Awakener society.

I slowly curled the corner of my mouth.

“I’ll help you escape from that curse in exchange for you keeping quiet about my Demonic Eye.”

Yun Jeongseop’s tone sank heavily.

“That sounds like you want a hole in your head.”

“Even if I get a hole, isn’t there a potion that can heal it? An Elixir.”

“……”

Elixir.

In the original work’s setting, a potion that completely healed all status effects and damage.

I could see the item’s information window, but other characters traded based on mutual trust.

Simply put, it was an item very suitable for scamming with fake products.

“An Elixir that came on the market for the first time in several years was sold for billions recently. But it turned out to be a fake with no effect whatsoever……. They belatedly chased after the seller, but they had already fled overseas, I believe?”

“……”

“I see mana. Therefore, I can also easily distinguish a genuine Elixir that heals all status effects.”

Yun Jeongseep fell silent.

I soon realized that he was so lost in thought that he could not continue speaking.

“Am I wrong? The words that I am a person who can give you what you want.”

I could not be sure that I could completely persuade him.

Because he was a person who was very suspicious and thought a lot like this.

However, it was undoubtedly a very effective condition for restricting his actions.

For him, who was collecting information on Mana Insensitivity through the school library, it was an irresistibly fatal condition.

It could also bind Vice Principal Park Cheolyeong, who had hired someone with Mana Insensitivity as an instructor at Hero Prep.

If that fact were to be revealed to the prestigious families and influential guilds, they would both be finished without any doubt.

I watched his silence and slowly got up from my seat.

“Then, I’ll be waiting for a good answer. ……Ah! Please keep this a secret from the vice principal.”

“……”

“If someone too high up pressures me, I might just blow everything up.”

***

Indoor Firing Range 1.

Cha Yeri picked up a revolver from the pistol rack.

‘The Mystic Arrow guild’s MA33, weight 922.7g, muzzle velocity 320m/s, .43 caliber 6 rounds, effective range 90m…….’

The current time was 8:30 p.m.

During the semester, especially the day before a practical skills evaluation, it was a time when the sound of gunshots would have been heard without a second’s pause, but now, Cha Yeri occupied the central lane alone amidst the silence.

Cha Yeri aimed the revolver at a small target.

BANG-.

A rather light gunshot sound.

‘……An expensive hammer with a cylinder attached.’

It was a generous evaluation, at least because it was a revolver she usually preferred.

If it had been an automatic pistol that did not even know a shooter’s sentiment, she would have already thrown it onto a stone tower on a walking path.

Cha Yeri removed the clip from the cylinder and approached the bullet vending machine outside the lane.

After quickly scanning the sales list, she selected a bullet imbued with the fire attribute and, without hesitation, tagged her smartwatch.

─1 point will be deducted.

─1 point deducted…….

─1 point…….

Ten times.

If you just counted the number, it was a total of 600 rounds, 100 clips.

Basically, the training bullets at the firing range were close to free.

To be precise, they were distributed to users without limit by paying 1 point for each lane.

On the other hand, the attribute bullets handled by the vending machine were sold in limited quantities and were usually used for tactical training or situational evaluations that were equivalent to real combat.

That is to say, no one used them like water, as Cha Yeri did.

Cha Yeri returned to the lane, inserted the clip, and aimed the muzzle at the target.

BANG!

A clear difference.

The bullet was fired again.

BANG!

“……”

Cha Yeri was angry.

Her expression and posture towards the target were the picture of composure, but in reality, she was suppressing her anger by pulling the trigger.

The target of the merciless gunshots was none other than the investigation student Ji Seokhyeon.

She had even put down her pride and mentioned the vending machine, but Ji Seokhyeon had refused her offer until the very end.

‘……Arrogant bastard.’

BANG!

There was another fact that bothered her more.

The personal information of Ji Seokhyeon that she had received from her attendant older sister two days ago.

Most of it was blank, except for the minimally entered information.

It was to the point where she, who was watching him on campus, knew more information.

On the one hand, a curiosity arose as to what kind of upbringing he had gone through.

‘Even so, he probably just made a living by pickpocketing on the outskirts.’

BANG!

Cha Yeri only left the firing range after emptying all 100 clips.

Cha Yeri’s expression as she left the firing range was as calm as usual, but a hint of relief could be seen.

She returned to her dormitory, took a neat shower, changed into her pajamas, then grabbed two fat cans of soda from the refrigerator with one hand and sat upright on the living room sofa.

CLICK, FIZZZ…….

The soda that stung her throat.

Next, when she put on the headset with the Hyeonseong name on her still-damp hair, a hologram screen was projected in front of the sofa, and the headset’s microphone modulated Cha Yeri’s voice to be androgynous.

“Ah, ah……. Ahem, ah……”

The game that soon ran on the screen was a popular FPS that was monopolizing the market.

Cha Yeri pulled the mouse and keyboard, which were projected by light, and got into a comfortable position.

[System] Player ‘4th Scholastic District Sheriff’ has entered the session.

Tomorrow was Friday, which meant a school-sanctioned holiday.

No one would bother her for three days, including Saturday and Sunday.

‘Father and Mother said they have an overseas schedule…….’

There were no annoying attendants who were always on campus.

‘There is a tea party promise with the female students of the Combat Division at noon tomorrow, but…….’

If it was before dawn, it would not be a problem.

[System] The City Scramble will begin shortly.

(Clan members ready: 7,041/8,839)

The game session that activated a moment later.

At the same time as it started, the clan master’s command was given.

“Any bastard who deserts the clan war today is dead.”