How to Survive as an Extra

Chapter 126

The smell of old books drifted through the air.

So thick that I could not even sense the aroma of the black tea right in front of me.

“You are walking a difficult path for someone so young.”

I was alone with Gong Seungryong in his study.

“I was just unlucky.”

“Most people would say that they were fortunate.”

“I tend to be an exception.”

“Is that so.”

After Dispel searched the lodgings, Gong Minwu was confined to his room in the mansion.

With the evidence already in hand, it would not have been strange for them to take him straight to Dispel’s branch office, but for some reason, Gong Seungryong demanded a little time from Dispel.

“I called you here because I have a favor to ask.”

“About Gong Minwu?”

“Yes.”

“You believe he did not do it.”

“Not merely believe. I am nearly certain. That child does not have the temperament to commit such a thing.”

Gong Seungryong’s words were nothing more than personal conviction.

Even so, anyone who had watched Gong Minwu for any length of time would have struggled to believe that he had used a poison technique.

In the first place, defeating Cheok Gyeongjun in the Martial Tournament would have been easier than using a poison technique.

That made it highly likely that this was someone’s scheme, but for now, Gong Minwu had no choice but to shoulder everything.

Because there was no way at all to refute the evidence.

“I want to help as well, but I cannot move recklessly when I belong to a place like mine.”

“I understand your position. I will keep your involvement as secret as possible. In return, if you solve this…… I will give you what you want.”

I nearly swallowed without realizing it.

For the head of the Gong Clan to offer me whatever I wanted was an astonishing condition.

After the Great Rift, District 10—where Hunters had gathered in droves—naturally became a place where many heroes had left traces behind. And along with those traces, numerous items once used by heroes were stored away.

The Gong Clan, which effectively ruled District 10, possessed dozens of such items alone.

Of course, there were none belonging to those whose bloodlines remained, like Sword Saint Kim Yuseong, but there were still many mysterious items of unknown use from nameless heroes.

I already had a prize in mind when I spoke.

“And if I fail?”

“Then there will be no compensation. And that child Minwu will have to bear yet another burden.”

He truly was Gong Minwu’s father—his conclusion was so coldly crisp it bordered on merciless.

“All right. I accept. May I inform you of what I want later?”

“Of course.”

“Ah, and one more thing. Who do you think the culprit is?”

Gong Seungryong narrowed his eyes, as if he were gauging my intentions.

The expression was exactly like Gong Minwu’s……

After a brief pause, he answered.

“I do not know. But one thing is certain: the culprit’s plan went awry.”

***

After leaving the study, I walked down the corridor, lost in thought.

I had accepted the request because I was dazzled by the reward, but in truth, I still did not know the culprit, let alone the method.

It was not that I lacked confidence.

The knot that cleverly wrapped the case simply refused to loosen.

“The motive…… and the benefit they gained from it…….”

If the culprit had truly been targeting only Gong Minwu, was this really the best method?

Gong Minwu would be eliminated from the Martial Tournament, his reputation among awakened beings would collapse, and in the end, he would fail to inherit the Gong Clan and wander Seoul’s outskirts as a free mercenary……

Judging only by the outcome, it was ideal.

“If the goal was to bury Gong Minwu for good.”

There was only one problem: it did not persuade the people around Gong Minwu, starting with Gong Seungryong.

No one could believe that Gong Minwu, with his upright character, would use a poison technique.

If this case concluded with Gong Minwu as the perpetrator, backlash was inevitable.

That was also why Gong Seungryong had asked me to investigate.

If I reasoned from that assumption, then the culprit’s scheme had failed.

Either it had been planned poorly from the start, or something had gone wrong partway through.

“……No. There is no way they made a mistake at the planning stage.”

If they had, they would not have used a poison technique at all.

So something must have gone wrong in the middle.

“Did the poison technique that should have hit Gong Minwu end up on Cheok Gyeongjun instead?”

Or perhaps it should have struck me or Gong Seunga……

That mismatch was the knot I had been talking about.

It felt like standing before a puzzle that did not fit.

If I could place just one piece, the entire picture would become clear—so why did this one piece look so bizarre on its own?

“……Unless it is a puzzle from a completely different picture.”

Gong Seungryong had said it “went awry.”

That matched my reasoning.

It meant there was a strong possibility that an unavoidable error had occurred midstream……

“Do not tell me the culprit was not aiming for Gong Minwu at all!”

What if Gong Minwu had only been caught in the plan by chance, and the culprit had been forced to slip the vial into Gong Minwu’s lodgings?

The moment the incident happened, I had assumed the target was Gong Minwu, the one who naturally drew the citizens’ hatred.

A stupid prejudice.

“Damn it.”

I had been missing something fundamental.

Which meant the culprit’s true target was not Gong Minwu, but Cheok Gyeongjun.

The instant I reached that thought, I stopped walking.

Before I knew it, I had already left the mansion.

“What in the world happened?”

Do Minyeong was waiting at the entrance, stamping her feet in agitation.

That anxious expression must have been for Gong Minwu.

……I felt a twinge of jealousy.

I strode past her.

“I am going to arrest the culprit. Right now.”

***

For Gong Seungung, the Gong Clan’s third child, today was far too busy.

As a member of the family, he had to oversee the Martial Tournament.

He had to support the eldest daughter, Gong Seunga, the favorite to win.

And he had to scurry around to contain the aftermath of the tournament’s suspension.

“At this rate, it will be hard to resume the Martial Tournament.”

But more than anything else, what tormented him was Cheok Gyeongjun—his prospective son-in-law—who was hovering between life and death from a poison technique.

Even now, he was on his way to the lodgings to care for him.

Gong Seunga had messaged that she would return to the family house and bring some basic supplies.

She had said there was no need to worry because servants were stationed there, but he insisted on going himself to Cheok Gyeongjun’s room.

“How could I endure it when my heart feels like this.”

He soon reached the lodging building and entered Cheok Gyeongjun’s room.

Yet strangely, the servants who should have been tending him were nowhere to be seen.

“Did they step out for a moment?”

When he approached the bed, Cheok Gyeongjun had pulled the blanket over his head.

The poison must have raised his fever, so he was likely feeling chills.

After confirming the door was shut, Gong Seungung carefully peeled back the blanket.

“……!”

Inside was not Cheok Gyeongjun, but Ji Seokhyeon, the Special Affairs Division’s probationary investigator.

And he was lying there with his eyes wide open.

“You came sooner than I expected.”

“W-Why are you here?”

“Why else? Because, attempted murderer Gong Seungung…… I was waiting for you.”

***

Gong Seungung forced himself to look calm.

But he blinked repeatedly as he stared down at me.

“I-I do not quite understand what you mean……”

I kicked the blanket away and sat on the edge of the bed.

He was not asking because he truly did not know.

He only needed time to comprehend the situation.

Time to retrace where he had made his mistake.

“At first, I was trapped by prejudice and assumed you were targeting Gong Minwu. That is why I could not infer the culprit’s motive or purpose. But once I considered that your target was not Gong Minwu, but Senior Cheok Gyeongjun, every question was resolved in an instant.”

“It is good news that you solved the case. But is the Special Affairs Division investigator not misunderstanding something? Clear evidence was found in that boy’s room.”

“The vial filled with Yellow-Sticker Thorn poison…….”

I let out a quiet, mocking laugh.

“Are you saying you committed the crime and then hid it in the lodgings like an idiot? What about the possibility that you entered the lodgings carrying the vial? I heard you were the one who found it as well.”

“You would do well not to speak so lightly when you cannot prove it.”

“Then I will speak lightly. The fact that you set foot here at all is proof that you are the culprit.”

“…….”

“Once I believed the crime was aimed at Senior Cheok Gyeongjun, one thing bothered me. Why did you not kill him? What benefit did you gain by merely putting him in bed? I thought it through, but there was no satisfying answer. Because for some reason, you could not kill him.”

“You would condemn me as the culprit for such a flimsy reason?”

“Yes. Because there is no more appropriate moment than right now to finish the job.”

A strong suspect had already been produced in Gong Minwu. The target had already been poisoned once. And there was an excellent chance to approach him with a legitimate reason—family.

The medical staff said Cheok Gyeongjun was recovering, but poison always had variables. It would not be strange at all if he simply died while lingering like this.

“Hah. It seems the Special Affairs Division has fallen to the times. To think it employs an investigator who spews such nonsense. Stop slandering me with absurd sophistry and produce evidence.”

“The evidence is right here.”

I pulled a pill from my pocket.

The half pill Cheok Gyeongjun had shared with me.

At the sight of it, Gong Seungung shut the mouth that had looked ready to spit a curse.

“Senior Cheok Gyeongjun collapsed because he swallowed a pill before his match with Gong Minwu.”

“…….”

“And this is why you came all the way here to deal with him. If he awakened and testified, you would be finished.”

This pill contained Yellow-Sticker Thorn poison.

Cheok Gyeongjun had handed it to me without knowing.

The reason he had given me one every week since spring was to escape suspicion, just in case.

It was meticulous. And covert.

Gong Seungung looked between me and the pill, then lowered his voice.

“How do you have that……?”

“I received it. The direct-line elder was there, and Senior Gong Seunga was there as well.”

“……!”

“I already broke off a portion of the pill and handed it to Dispel. The test results will come soon.”

“T-Then that means…….”

Gong Seungung glanced toward the door.

As if they had been waiting, people entered.

Dispel personnel, Do Minyeong, Gong Seungryong, Gong Seungho, Gong Minwu, and even Gong Seunga.

I spoke to Dispel’s investigator.

“If he truly came to kill Senior Cheok Gyeongjun, he will be carrying Yellow-Sticker Thorn poison on his body.”

“N-No! I……!”

Dispel subdued Gong Seungung at once, and from his arms they found a vial filled with liquid.

Exactly like the one discovered in Gong Minwu’s lodgings.

The moment she saw it, Gong Seunga slapped Gong Seungung across the face with all her strength.

“S-Seunga……!”

“Why did you do this?”

“I-I did it for you! Do you think you can survive in this world by tying yourself to such a worthless family? I know it! Father knows it! Everyone will despise you, mock you, and laugh at you! Marrying into the Cheok Clan—those people with no foundation, clinging to District 10—is the same as sentencing yourself to death!”

“…….”

“You have the talent to lead the Gong Clan! I believe that! That is why I could not leave the one ruining your future alone!”

The Gong Clan was a renowned household of District 10, while the Cheok Clan had a paltry reputation.

As he said, if Gong Seunga became the heir over Gong Minwu, Cheok Gyeongjun would become an obstacle.

Even if she did not become the heir, he would still stain the family name.

But that was only from the family’s perspective.

To her—someone who had poured her whole being into swallowing her resentment, who could not even bring herself to blame her father—that perspective did not matter in the slightest.

“I wanted nothing. I was happy just being able to be together. With him, and with you as well. But…… I do not think that is true anymore.”

“S-Seunga?”

“I hope I never see you again. Because I might…… do something to you.”

Gong Seunga left.

Gong Seungung tried to follow, but Dispel restrained him.

“Your father did it for you! For you……!”

“…….”

I left the room, turning my back on his screams.

For some reason, my throat felt rough and dry.

“Is there not even a vending machine here?”

……Damn it.