Reborn As An Extra In My Own Novel-Chapter 40: The Unexpected Variable

(In A Certain Underground Chamber In Noctis)

"Praise! The Demon God!"

"Praise! The Immortal Venerable!"

"Salvation! Salvation! Salvation."

The large chamber beneath Noctis reeked of spiced liquor and fresh blood—sacrifices to a certain golden image.

Men draped in flowing cloaks bowed before an eerie effigy, their heads slamming violently on the ground, as if to declare their devotion.

In their midst were devotees of varied sizes. Humans from diverse backgrounds who persistently latched onto their delusion of justice and peace.

Even though they resembled crazed fools, something about them was also awe-inspiring.

Their cloaks and ominous veils were tainted crimson just like their surroundings. The altar they stood upon dripped with blood, and their shadows stubbornly clung to the floor, still eerie and haunting.

Loud chimes and distant echoes of the past sang melodies and played instruments, as a certain group danced joyously to the mysterious music.

"Deerheart! Read the scriptures of our ’Lord’" A certain man who stood at the center of the merry crew, voiced out.

The chants only intensified as a single man stood tall among the countless prostrating figures.

"Yes, archbishop."

The young man whose face was hidden behind a hood, began reading from the book he held in his pale hands.

"Let us begin brothers."

Their sermon didn’t last long, but anyone who saw it could tell that they were staunch supporters of their religion.

***

The young man who read from the ancient script—one of the apostles of the demonic cult, stood at the stairway leading out of the chamber, as two figures approached him.

"Zara be with us!" The priest who led the sermon greeted first.

"Zara be with us." The two men simultaneously replied without even looking at each other.

The priest pulled back his hood. "I’m quite disappointed in you, Deerheart." He began, his tone even. "I thought by now, you would have finished the mission the ’Lord’ gave."

Deerheart felt his heart sink, his face downcast. After waiting for some time he replied. "I ask for your forgiveness, Archbishop Amon." He then continued. "But as you may have already pieced together, the academy is in turmoil... So."

Amon waved his hands dismissively, then he gripped Deerheart’s trembling shoulder. "I understand. I do—but, you can’t keep the ’Lord’ waiting."

The corner of Deerhearth’s mouth lifted reluctantly. "All for the glory of our ’Lord’."

Amon’s eyes narrowed with a smirk. "Yes all for his glory."

------

The day’s classes had wrapped up quickly, though Professor Simba was rather irritated, perhaps due to Leo’s provocative actions.

Most of the first years had long since withdrawn to their dorm rooms, but I on the other hand still had a lot on my plate.

My eyes flickered brightly, as I stretched out my zone.

During the combat class I had gotten a vague understanding of zones and how they operated.

Because of that, the range of my clairvoyance had increased drastically, but that wasn’t the reason why I left my room, instead of resting for the day.

Charlotte—my predecessor’s childhood friend had called me on my way back from school, because of that I was presently heading for mC Nagi’s Mall.

Even though I had little to worry about. I couldn’t shake off the feeling of dread, maybe it was because Frieren had decided to follow me to the mall, so she could meet my only family, or maybe it was something else.

I shivered slightly, as the door of the mall opened automatically. At the very end where Amy and I sat yesterday, was Charlotte sitting awkwardly beside the Princess.

’Haaa!’

I sighed. ’Life just keeps getting complicated everyday.’

Only after I reached the two did I notice another figure sitting with them—forming an almost complete circle.

Matt waved me over, as Charlotte smiled softly. "Hey." I said, pulling the chair back.

"Hey Kai, we haven’t seen each other for a week now."

I nodded at Charlotte’s remark. It was true that I hadn’t seen her since the entrance exam, and our previous appointment was cancelled because of the Nefertari incident. So I apologized for causing her trouble, which made her lips stretch a little.

"Kaiser doesn’t know that working isn’t the only way to live."

"What do you mean by that princess?"

"Nothing—And I told you to call me Frieren."

Matt’s eyes widened, his brows rising slightly. "When did you two get so close?"

My gaze shifted from Frieren to Matt, who sat across from me. "It just happened."

Matt shook his head. "Do you think friendship just happen? If it was that simple everyone will be friends." He eyes narrowed and fixed on me, unwavering. "Kai... Are you a playboy?"

I choked on the coffee the waitress served me. The cup clenched tightly in my hands cracked slightly. "What kind of stupid question is that? Do I look like a playboy?"

My flustered voice made both Frieren and Charlotte giggle softly.

Matt turned to the two of them then back at me. "I—see."

"You don’t see anything. Please don’t misunderstand the situation."

Matt paused for a moment before speaking. "I understand Kai, you don’t need to say anymore."

’What absurd situation have I landed myself in?’ I mused.

I let out a soft sigh, it was a waste of time to argue now, neither one of them would even listen to me.

"Ahem—So why the sudden meeting?" I asked, trying to return to the main topic.

Matt straightened his posture, his gaze darkening. "It is about Deerheart."

My grip around the cup stiffened. "..."

Matt sighed then continued. "I know, you might not want to talk about it with so many people, but I think it is for the best."

After a few seconds I shook my head. "No that’s not it, actually I’m glad that you told others—but."

"But?" Matt asked.

My eyes scanned the group then added. "Are you guys sure you want to be involved in this?"

Frieren was the first to speak. "I think we have the right to know..." She took a sip of tea, her fingers curling around the handle. "And it was because of me that you didn’t bring it up in the meeting."

She let out a genuine smile, but her tone was sombre. "I have already seen part of the incident already... Even I can’t gather the courage to kill him or throw stones at him."

Matt and Charlotte both wore a confused expression. "Is there something I’m missing?" Matt asked.

Charlotte was just quiet and observed us.

"Let me start from the beginning."

I began explaining everything I knew about Deerheart—while leaving out things only I would know as the author.

Matt’s and Charlotte’s faces turned paler each passing second, until the moment I was done.

As my last words reached their ears, no one said another word.

’She doesn’t seem surprised.’ My gaze was fixed on Frieren who was casually sipping her tea.

Her odd behaviour made my mind enter a spiral of negativity.

How much did the princess know? What was she keeping from us? Does she know I’m not the real Kaiser Vanguard?

Meeting her gaze only made the downward spiral worse as she offered me a gentle smile.

Matt let out an exasperated sigh. "That’s a lot to take in at once."

Charlotte was still deep in thought, but he continued. "Here I was thinking of stopping him alone." His eyes were downcast. A feeling of powerlessness that every human needed for their growth—it came down to whether he would accept it or toss it out the window.

Matt was the type of person to feel powerless or useless easily, just like a typical protagonist who would later rely on his companions—mostly females to help him up.

But I didn’t have time for that. If my memories served me right, today was meant to be the demonic humans monthly gathering

That meant Deerheart would make his move soon—but the feeling of dread I felt earlier still persisted.

’Don’t tell me?...’ I shut my mouth, sweat beads forming on my forehead. ’... did Amon appear?’

I shook off the ominous tingling, it wasn’t possible for an archbishop to come and help out a low ranking priest but if that really happened—

"Kai!" My mind snapped back to reality as Matt looked at me with concern. "What happened? Did you remember something?"

I shook my head. "No, nothing."

’Let’s first in imminent future, other things can take care of themselves.’ I reassured myself.

"So what’s the plan?" Charlotte finally asked. "Since I’m a third year, I can try to get you guys into restricted areas, but aside from that, I’m at a loss as to what to do."

On the surface, all of us seemed calm, but underneath—we, I in particular, were a churning mess of emotions. Sitting and doing nothing but waiting ate away at me, but we were all at a loss.

Deerheart wasn’t someone we could just randomly plan to defeat. It was one thing if it were only him, but—

I gripped my head tightly, beads of sweat forming on my forehead, the memories of the hellish nightmare I had played on repeat in my mind.

My stomach churned as the others turned, startled by the noise of my breathing.

My hand curled tightly around the cup’s handle, my feet tapping rhythmically on the floor.

The others didn’t pay me much attention. Why would they? They all felt it too:

This was a life-or-death crisis.

Frieren was the first to speak up, she tried to mask her fears behind a smile but no one bought it. "For now I think it’s best to keep this within our small circle." She then turned to me. "Have you told any other person?"

"Cordelia, Anica, I think that’s all."

She paused for a moment, then gave a decisive nod. "I think this might work if we tread carefully. And Kaiser I hope you rest a little, we won’t want you falling ill."

She then turned to the rest of the group. "I hope no one does anything reckless. Tomorrow, we will meet in this same spot with everyone who knows about this plan."

We all nodded and dispersed, but even as I walked back to the dorm, I couldn’t help but feel something ominous. It was like air itself wasn’t present anymore—it wasn’t just an exaggeration.

My skin was white with crimson painted on my cheeks.

’Did I fall sick,’ I thought looking at the sky above. ’Looks like it’s going to rain.’

----

(In A Certain Graveyard Near Noctis Academy)

A young man with pale skin looked at the sky and muttered, "Looks like it’s going to rain."

Step... Step then another step, rain drops landed on the grasses that decorated the garden, but the black jacket worn by the strange man wasn’t touched in the slightest.

His eyes was fixed forward, his shoulders standing tall. His pace was steady and deliberate as a bouquet of flowers swayed slightly.

As he stepped through the flower field, the grasses and beautiful flowers bowed, turning into white dust.

He didn’t need to run—no, his pace was even. Too even, in fact, like nothing in the world mattered. Not even the fact that he was in a cemetery.

The young man removed his cap and glasses, letting his slightly long white hair fall.

His hair was as white as his skin, his eyes a sharp silver contrasting beautifully with his tall tender figure.

He knelt slowly on one knee at one of the graves that bore the inscription:

TO MY DEAR SON—

But no name was written, as if the person in question had been lost in time.

"My ’Lord’, I didn’t know you lost someone." A man in a black suit with messy brown hair spoke to the ethereal figure.

"Hmm..." he said. His voice was like the light wind that passed through the eerie graveyard, enticing, but also sombre. "It’s for my son."

The man beside the one with brown hair opened his mouth, shut it, then opened it again. "’Lord’, I never knew you had a son, and worse yet, that he died."

The ’Lord’ smiled slightly and shook his head. "It’s a bit complicated."

The brown-haired man swallowed hard. "My ’Lord’, if we may be so rude, how exactly should we address you? Some say you are the Immortal Venerable, others the son of the Demon God... but—"

The ’Lord’ seemed genuinely pleased by the young man’s question. He then answered softly, "All those are just silly titles. I’m but a simple man lost in time. A man who has surpassed even space."

He stood slowly as the small black star in his pupil grew larger, spreading out from his eyes—like a circle drawn over a star. "I’m Cha Jinwoo... no, that’s not it. Call me Dolion Vanguard."