How to Survive as an Extra

Chapter 115

The departure time of the rescue team drew near.

The smell of alcohol had completely vanished from the Hunters, replaced everywhere by the resolve and tension of those about to face an unknown monster that had already claimed dozens of lives.

Watching the freelance mercenaries—men with careers ranging from a few months to several decades—Cha Yeri’s words came back to me.

People who had crossed far more lines between life and death than a probationary investigator from the Special Affairs Division ever could.

“So this is what they call the dignity of veterans.”

Of course, there was one Hunter here who had not been a freelance mercenary for very long.

Choi Suhyuk.

He approached me, who was standing slightly apart from the others, and greeted me.

“I do not think I ever properly thanked you back then.”

He was referring to the time of the Broadcasting Club incident, when I had not exposed the truth.

I had been crouched in a corner, downing a can of carbonated coffee. Only after finishing it completely did I respond.

“I have no idea what you are talking about.”

“Hm. That sort of answer, huh. I like it more than I expected.”

“If you are going to say creepy things, would it not be better to go make yourself known to those veterans instead? I hear that even without forming a guild, there are practically several factions here.”

“Sorry, but I am already beyond saving. Apparently, I need to grow a beard. They call me a pretty boy.”

Well, Choi Suhyuk was not exactly the type who blended in with freelance mercenaries.

“At least they could call you macho when it comes to marksmanship.”

“I am not sure. In this line of work, survival ability is valued more than combat ability.”

“So the one who survives is the strong one.”

“That is one way to put it.”

“But do you not need skill to survive?”

“That is not wrong either.”

Our conversation paused for a moment.

As if by unspoken agreement, both Choi Suhyuk and I turned our attention to Cha Yeri, who was moving briskly about.

After a moment, Choi Suhyuk spoke again, as if something had just occurred to him.

“By the way, have you learned anything more about that guy?”

That guy.

He was clearly talking about Lee Eunho.

It was only natural for someone like Choi Suhyuk to be curious—Eunho had been famous across the entire 4th Scholastic District, not to mention among the third-years of Hero Prep.

I tried to feign ignorance, but Choi Suhyuk looked down at me as if pressing the issue, leaving me no choice but to answer.

“I do not know. He went into hiding with real intent.”

“I see. That is a shame. I thought he was a pretty decent guy.”

“Calling a traitor to humanity—someone likely allied with Demonic Beings—a shameful loss… That is a very freelance-mercenary take.”

“Sorry, but you are not the one I want to hear that from. You are with the Special Affairs Division. If anyone has personal feelings about him, it is you.”

“……I do not know what kind of feelings you mean, but I would not mind dragging him back even if I had to break his legs.”

Choi Suhyuk let out a short scoff.

“That is what most people call friendship.”

Friendship…

I sneered at his scoff.

“Looks like friendship has nothing better to do.”

I stood up and continued.

“Anyway, it looks like Cha Yeri is done preparing. Shall we gather? Even if you do not bother making an impression on the Hunters, you should at least show diligence to a client who pays well.”

“And what about you?”

“Me? I am in a mutually equal relationship.”

“No, I am asking what position you are here in.”

“……What?”

Choi Suhyuk narrowed his eyes and repeated the question.

“Are you here as Cha Yeri’s friend, or as a Special Affairs Division investigator?”

“Does that matter?”

“It does. If you are here as a member of the Special Affairs Division, then you should probably leave a message for your family.”

“…….”

So Choi Suhyuk felt the same way about facing real combat as Cha Yeri did.

I pulled my hood down deeper and replied.

“Let us just do the work we are being paid for.”

***

The rescue team, numbering over thirty, entered the tunnel.

Cha Yeri took the initiative and led from the front.

Naturally, with the survivor—securely bound—placed at the very front.

“Damn it, maybe because we are underground, but I cannot see a thing properly.”

“Seriously. Even torches are useless. I never thought I would miss LEDs this much.”

“Hmph. Is this your first time in Gangwon-do after sunset? At night, environmental mana thickens severely due to moonlight. No matter how magically lit the torch is, if the caster’s skill is lacking, it cannot perform at full capacity.”

“Moonlight affects even underground?”

“Of course. Less than on the surface, but still.”

The tunnel was so narrow that calling it a mine shaft would have been more accurate.

Near the entrance, some basic construction had been completed, but once the exit was no longer visible, it became hard to tell whether we were walking through earth or through the belly of some massive beast.

Since excavation equipment could not be used, the dirt had been dug out entirely by hand.

As a result, the passage was barely wide enough to allow people through.

After a while, Cha Yeri—who was leading the group—signaled for everyone to stop.

In truth, I had already halted before she gave the signal.

There was a strange current flowing from ahead.

I moved past the group and approached Cha Yeri.

What lay beyond was an utterly unexpected space connected to the tunnel.

“What is this place…?”

“Since there were no other paths along the way, it looks like everyone entered here.”

“Most likely.”

Cha Yeri turned her head to look at the survivor.

For some reason, he was muttering to himself nonstop.

He looked as if fear had completely consumed him.

“I-It is over now! We are all going to die! The monster will jump out and kill everyone…!”

His anxiety was even worse than when we were outside the barrier.

Choi Suhyuk, who had blended into the group at some point, stepped forward.

“Standing around will not get us anywhere. If necessary, I will take the lead.”

“No. I will lead. Senior, please guard the rear.”

Following Cha Yeri, the rescue team entered the bizarre space connected to the tunnel.

It was a vast area, with a ceiling as high as a historic ruin and a floor space as wide as a sports field.

At a glance, it carried the solemn atmosphere of a medieval cathedral.

Judging by the location, this had to be inside the mountain where the forward base was to be built.

“Wait, look over there! What are those statues?”

One Hunter pointed.

As he said, dozens of unnaturally shaped statues stood throughout the space.

At first glance, one might think they were sculpted by someone, but the entire rescue team quickly realized the truth.

Judging by the equipment they wore and their appearances, these were clearly the people who had entered the tunnel before—turned to stone.

“T-This is impossible!”

“P-Petrification? How could this happen?”

“Damn it! There really is not a dragon here, is there?”

The Hunters turned uneasy eyes toward the survivor, but no one raised their voice.

Instinctively, they understood this was enemy territory, where making noise would be fatal.

Keeping my Demonic Eye active, I calmly surveyed the surroundings.

Aside from the statues, what stood out most were the various engravings carved into the walls of this space.

Like the drawings early humans left on cave walls, countless images had been engraved, covering nearly the entire surface with painstaking care.

“Looks like it depicts some kind of chronicle. What do you think?”

Choi Suhyuk had approached at some point, speaking while examining the wall.

I replied with feigned indifference.

“Hard to say. In a modern civilization that communicates efficiently through writing, there must have been a reason to leave records as drawings instead.”

“With those eyes of yours, do you see anything distinctive?”

“If anything stands out, it is that whoever carved these was a highly trained master. The mana distribution across the wall is perfectly uniform. Like it was printed.”

“That means…?”

“Yes. It might not be the work of humans. And besides, the only exits from this grand space are the forcibly dug tunnel and…”

I cast my gaze toward the massive hole at the center of the chamber.

“That absurdly large sinkhole. In other words, this place was likely preserved to prevent outside intrusion.”

“Hearing that just makes me want to leave even more.”

My deduction was not wrong.

No—truthfully, the moment I saw these murals, I knew exactly what they depicted.

They recorded historical events from beyond the rift that I myself had described in the original work.

Which meant the one who created this place was a high-level species from beyond the rift.

Not a Demonic Being.

They had no desire to preserve value.

In this case… dwarves would be the more appropriate answer.

“Damn, this place gives me the creeps. How about we move the statues back toward the tunnel? Staying here too long feels like a good way to get haunted.”

“Yeah, he is right. Our primary objective is rescue anyway.”

“Hey, Hyeonseong, make a call already.”

“…….”

Under pressure from the Hunters, a decision was made.

Half the team would move the statues outside, while the other half investigated the area.

They would be moving the statues without proper equipment, but for awakened beings, carrying stone figures was hardly a challenge.

Cha Yeri, Choi Suhyuk, myself, and several Hunters spread out to inspect the space more closely.

After about five minutes, Cha Yeri approached me with the bound survivor in tow.

“What do you think?”

“About what?”

“Do not play dumb. I can tell you have been distracted this whole time. You already reached a conclusion about this place, did you not?”

Her intuition was sharp, as always.

“Well, that these murals were created to preserve records.”

“And?”

“…….”

“So?”

“That they depict a civilization different from humanity’s.”

“You mean another species?”

“I cannot say for sure. Only that…”

I stared at the survivor.

“That something attacked in order to protect these records, just like he said.”

“Then that something has not noticed us yet.”

“Yeah. There is probably a trigger. Touching the murals, or the environmental mana here reaching a certain density.”

“Wait. Then we need to warn everyone else.”

“That will not be necessary. I already touched the murals.”

“…….”

Cha Yeri shot me a look of pure contempt.

I hastily averted my gaze and continued.

“It might be a simple condition. Loud noises, or a direct impact.”

The survivor continued muttering to himself.

His body trembled, as if exposed to severe cold.

Cha Yeri spoke as though she had already given up.

“For now, let us hold this place until all the statues are moved. For a detailed investigation, it would be better to bring in specialists.”

“That would be wise, but…”

Suddenly, my attention was drawn to a Hunter passing near the hole, carrying three statues at once.

He was probably trying to finish the job quickly, but…

For some reason, his steps looked unsteady.

Was there still alcohol in his system?

“What is wrong?” Cha Yeri asked.

“No, it is just…”

Sure enough, the Hunter suddenly dropped one of the statues.

As expected, the statue fell straight into the hole, and a moment later, a heavy, dull impact echoed up.

Then came a bizarre cry.

“It has started! We are all going to die! We are all dead!”

The survivor screamed as the ground began to shake violently.

Uuuuuung—.

Instinctively, I activated my Demonic Eye and turned my back to the murals.

The sudden vibration caused Cha Yeri to lose her grip on the bindings, and the survivor used a perception-inhibiting ability before sprinting toward the tunnel.

…So that was how he had survived before.

Before I could even scoff at myself, something enormous burst out of the hole.

A massive, elongated body.

Ash-gray skin that looked as tough as dragon scales.

And the hiss of a serpent, reverberating through the entire chamber.

Ssssss—!

There was no doubt about it.

A monster that petrified its prey just by meeting their gaze.

A basilisk.

How should I even describe its size?

Like a squirrel standing before a king cobra.

Either way, there was only one thing I needed to do now.

“Do not make eye contact with it!”