The Nameless Extra: I Proofread This World

”[True Authority].”

Immediately, the world slowed.

Taking a deep breath, Ruvian saw the surrounding dissolve into abstraction, and the flow of mana revealed itself from a higher vantage. He saw two currents layered over reality, one radiant and structured, and the other warped and unstable.

The Pure Mana was the first to respond, spreading outward in flawless formations before closing in the Dark Mana surrounding the demon.

Meanwhile, the Dark Mana struggled, swelling and recoiling in defiance, but the pressure around it did not relent, and it was pressed inward all the same.

Ruvian lowered his hand, and then he flicked his finger downward. In an instant, the space encasing the demon distorted and a crushing force descended.

The stone splintered beneath his feet as his body was driven downward. The gravity itself had turned inimical... yet he knew that resemblance was imperfect, for what bore down upon the demon was nothing but a layered restraint consciously imposed.

”Gurghh!!!”

”W-what is happening!?” the demon grumbled.

Irene and Silvena retreated instinctively, creating distance as the mana around the demon grew violently.

Both of them stared in shock, unable to comprehend the tangled collision of forces bearing down on him. It was not gravity, though it carried the same crushing inevitability. Nor was it force, at least... not any force either of them recognized.

But Ruvian understood it precisely.

What pressed down upon the demon was Pure Mana folding inward until it compressed the Dark Mana surrounding him into rigid submission.

That was it all.

The demon turned his head with visible strain, and his eyes locked onto Ruvian as he valiantly tried to understand.

”Impossible...” he muttered, disbelief stubbornly clinging to his voice as it trembled, enduring the crushing pressure.

His thoughts unraveled in short, frantic loops as agony tore through him. ”How could a mere human impose order on that accursed power?”

To the demon’s credit, no, to the world’s understanding... humans could not wield Dark Mana. Only Pure Mana. That was one of magic’s better-established rules.

Dark Mana had never, at any point in history, responded well to being handled by humans. They were corrupted, and poisoned.

And therefore, which was precisely why Ruvian hadn’t handled it at all.

So how had he used Dark Mana?

In the simplest sense, he hadn’t. He had never reached for it, nor shaped it. All he did was simply employ Pure Mana as a governing medium, drawing it tight around the Dark Mana.

Ruvian nearly answered that aloud, indulging the demon’s confusion for the brief... tempting of the satisfaction it offered.

Well, the question deserved a response, after all... just not one given freely, and certainly not one wasted on a creature that would not live long enough to misuse it.

Sharing that particular truth with a demon would have been unnecessary, and worse, profoundly moronic.

”Why bother asking that? You’re going to die anyway.”

”Wait!!! Let’s talk this through!!” the demon begged as he dug his hands into the riven floor.

Ruvian scoffed. ”What is there to talk about? You said it yourself... our negotiation had already ended.”

”You!!!” the demon cursed.

He remained still with a knowing smile as he held the spell in place, but the strain finally showed when blood spilled from his nose.

’Shit.’

’I can’t hold this anymore...’

’My control over mana is still lacking...’

Ruvian glanced at Irene, hoping for her to catch his intention and luckily, she noticed it immediately.

In the next instant, Irene closed the distance to the immobilized demon in a single breath.

The demon was incapable of reacting, incapable of resisting, and Irene concluded the execution with one swift motion, her dagger severing its head without much problem.

Slash!

Once the demon was dead, Ruvian released the spell, and his expression finally relaxed.

”Ugh... haa...”

The pressure vanished instantly, and his knees gave out beneath him. Ruvian dropped to the ground, catching himself only briefly before fully collapsing to one knee.

Released from its body, the demon’s head struck the ground and rolled until it stopped. A moment later, the demon’s body followed, collapsing heavily and lifelessly beside it.

’...Damn it. My body aches all over.’

[You have altered a character’s fate!]

[The story will now proceed differently.]

[You have received +2000 Plot Points!]

Ruvian smiled tiredly.

Silvena stared at the scene in silence, her eyes moving from the fallen demon to Irene, and then to Ruvian.

*****

From where Ruvian stood, he watched the demon’s corpse lie motionless on the floor, and then he saw it begin to lose its shape as the flesh broke apart into dark, drifting ash.

It rose slowly into the air before thinning out and vanishing completely. The process took only moments, but he followed every detail, as if confirming for himself that it was truly over.

When nothing remained of the body, he noticed that two curved horns were left behind on the stone floor. He could still sense a faint trace of Dark Mana clinging to them.

Ruvian sighed, then turned his gaze toward the window.

’I wonder how much time has passed...’

The sun was already high in the sky, and the angle of its rays told him more than he liked.

It was already afternoon.

”...It’s late,” he muttered, his voice tired. ”I really wasted a lot of time on this mess.”

After a brief pause, he walked toward the horns resting on the floor. Before his fingers could close around the nearest horn, Ruvian suddenly felt a cold steel pressing against the side of his neck.

”...”

Ruvian stopped without flinching.

Of course, he knew whose blade that was.

After all, they were still here with him, and obviously, they had a lot of things to say. Though Ruvian hasn’t figured out yet what excuse to give.

No, in truth, he actually did have that one trump card in his sleeve, but he was still unsure of using it.

Either way, he needed to say something, or else... the edge of the blade was getting closer.

After a short moment, he finally spoke, with a hint of amusement in his voice.

”By the way, shouldn’t this be the part where we thank each other for taking down that demon? I don’t think putting a knife to your ally’s throat is the appropriate way of thanking.”

”Don’t touch that,” Irene said firmly.

Ruvian sighed and lifted both his hands slowly as he rose back to his feet, careful not to make any sudden movement, and gave a small shrug.

The situation barely troubled him anyway.

”Fine. I won’t touch it.”

Then, in front of him, he saw Silvena walking toward him.

As she closed the distance, he noticed the faint distortion of her disguised magic began to peel away, layer by layer, with each step she took.

By the time she stopped in front of him, the magic had completely faded, revealing her true appearance.

’Huh? She undisguised herself...?’

Ruvian thought, keeping his expression neutral.

Her emerald hair was styled into a refined short layered cut, the soft feathered layers framed her face, while longer front strands curved gently along her cheeks, accentuating the sharpness of her gaze.

Under the light, the green hues shimmered with depth, lending her appearance a controlled, almost exquisite allure.

There was a quiet refined beauty to her, but it carried an edge that made him instinctively wary.

Why would she reveal her true form now? Especially not when caution would have been the wiser choice, but even so, he did not relax.

Whatever her reason was, he knew better than to let his guard down. The blade was still close enough to draw blood if he misstepped.

”So, what did you do to them?” Ruvian asked.

”Them? Ah, the thugs~” Silvena echoed lightly, one hand idly turning a small crystal vial between her fingers.

”Hmm, I was simply curious about what that shimmering liquid of theirs did.”

She gave it a brief shake near her ear, listening to the faint slosh, before smiling pleasantly to herself.

”It turns out that it’s a rather effective sleeping draught. Very convenient, doesn’t it?”

Her eyes flicked back to Ruvian with a hint of mischief. ”After all, dragging criminals across half the city while they’re awake is such an unnecessary hassle, don’t you think?”

She stopped a short distance from him and uncorked the vial with a soft pop, the scent faint but sharp, then recorked it just as easily, as if the whole matter were trivial.

”As for what comes next for them,” Silvena went on, glancing past him toward the unconscious figures sprawled across the floor, ”I’ll have them delivered to the city watchhouse. Let the magistrates decide what to do with them.”

Ruvian let out a small, crooked smile.

”Then, what about me? What comes next for me?”

Silvena stepped closer. One hand rose and came to rest against his chest, her fingers pressing lightly to the rigid structure of his build.

Slowly, almost idly, her hand slid upward, passing his collarbone, tracing along the line of his throat, until her fingers reached his chin.

The dagger was still there, close enough that he could feel the faint chill of steel.

Silvena lifted his chin with a gentle nudge, and despite the angle, Ruvian still met her gaze as her emerald eyes studied him.

”This is where you should zip it first and let me be the one to ask you the question. I mean, it’s fair, right? I already answered yours, so... shouldn’t you do the same for me now?”

Ruvian let out suppressed chuckles.

”Normally, I’d say I’m flattered by the attention, but I’m afraid I have a strict policy against explaining myself while someone’s blade is pressed to my throat.”

”It’s ticklish.”

Silvena smiled, slightly amused. More than that, she was impressed by his calm demeanour to take his situation lightly.

”Irene, you can put that away now.”

Irene followed her instruction without further comment.

At the same time, Silvena took half a step back and hid her hands behind her. Only then did she remove her playful smile and said:

”I’ll be straightforward.”

Her gaze turned cold as she looked deeply into Ruvian’s eyes.

”How....”

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[Chapter 24: Did You Know My Name?]