How to Survive as an Extra

Chapter 15

The ceiling collapsed.

RUUUMBLE!

The Dead Bees began to melt away without a trace due to the pouring sunset.

THUD- THUD─.

In a situation where huge structures continued to fall, I threw a clip and fixed it to a bent rebar.

Following the suspender strap that shrank back to its original size, I easily reached the rebar.

If I had not raised my durability stat, I would have had a hard time because of the countless falling objects.

I stood on the rebar and, with the sense of balance corrected by my agility stat, quickly climbed to the ground level.

School officials had already gathered around.

Cadets, instructors, and facility managers, about 50 people in total.

Including the people running from afar, it seemed there would be hundreds.

I fiddled with the clips of my suspenders and made my way out of the huge cloud of dust.

The first person to spot me in the chaotic situation was Vice Principal Park Cheolyeong.

He grabbed me urgently.

“You! Are you alright! What on earth is going on!”

I had no time to talk about my own condition.

I turned to show him Do Minyeong on my back and said.

“Kim Seulhee! Please call Magic Instructor Kim Seulhee! She has been poisoned for a long time!”

An infirmary instructor had not yet been assigned to the school.

If conditions allowed, we could quickly transport her to a nearby hospital, but since she had been exposed to the poison for a long time, even the travel time was precious.

But if it was Kim Seulhee.

If she could receive treatment from her right now.

There was no situation more ideal than that.

“Alright! Let’s move her to a nearby infirmary for now!”

***

Soon, Do Minyeong was moved to the infirmary.

Not long after, Magic Instructor Kim Seulhee rushed into the infirmary and, without delay, checked Do Minyeong’s condition.

“She’s been exposed to the poison for quite some time. What on earth were you doing to let it get this bad…….”

Park Cheolyeong asked in a rather tense voice.

“You, can you do it? Even now, we can go to an off-campus hospital…….”

“No, leave it to me. Thanks to the relatively slow progression of symptoms, I can restore her without much trouble. ……It would have been a big problem if we were just a little later, though.”

It was a blessing in disguise.

Although not a professional healer, Kim Seulhee was a skilled awakener who used earth and light attributes and possessed considerable medical knowledge.

Moreover, she was not a villain, so I could trust her with this.

I cast my gaze out the window, where all hell was breaking loose.

Judging by the situation being reported to Park Cheolyeong’s smartwatch, it seemed that Lee Eunho had already come up to the surface and was working with other instructors to resolve the situation.

The plan was to deal with the Dead Bees before the sun set, as they would seek shadows to hide from the sunlight.

“Then, give me a moment of your time. I need to know what happened to be able to make a statement to the public.”

Park Cheolyeong gestured towards the hallway with his chin and spoke.

I nodded and followed him out into the hallway.

From the instructors’ perspective, it was a situation where their nerves would be on edge.

Because outside the school, reporters who had followed the loud noise would be gathered.

They would probably have a hard time dealing with the fact that a Demonic Being was involved in the incident if it got out.

Although they would have help from the Special Affairs Division.

There was nothing more I could do in this episode.

Although Hong Dahee had died, unlike in the original work, it would not be a problem for Lee Eunho to reveal Park Oseok’s accomplice.

Of course, he would not succeed in arresting them.

Because the accomplice would have already finished planning their escape.

“…….”

No.

Seeing the system message appearing before my eyes, it seemed they had already succeeded in escaping.

[You have completed the episode.]

[135 Remake Coins will be awarded.]

[A reward for the episode variation will be added.]

[1,862 Remake Coins will be awarded.]

10% of the intervention rate…….

Suddenly, I faced a question.

Until now, I had thought I was in the most free position in this world, but…….

The question of whether, in the end, I too was just a mere character playing in the hands of the devoted reader.

Upon reaching that question, I curled one corner of my mouth and let out a self-deprecating breath.

“What a load of bullshit.”

***

20 minutes after the incident at the Hero Preparatory School.

Special Affairs Division Chief Baek Dojun’s office at the Bureau of Superpowers.

Baek Dojun, who had received a report on the series of events including Ji Seokhyeon’s statement, spat out words in a sharp tone.

“Request cooperation from Dispel immediately! Go straight to the commissioner! It’s a top priority to expand the scope to the entire 4th Scholastic District, not just the Hero Preparatory School, and divert attention! If it’s revealed that we are involved in the incident, the media will dig into not only the Demonic Beings but also the shard and Park Oseok!”

Kim Seyeon hesitated slightly and asked.

“But…… considering the weight of the incident, wouldn’t mentioning it to the press in advance help increase the bureau’s credibility?”

“Tsk, you don’t know what you’re talking about. The biggest obstacle in solving a case is public opinion. Whether positive or negative, public opinion is a useless burden that gets on a perfectly fine ship and prattles on about justice and principles. Besides……!”

“…….”

“Do you think the citizens of Seoul, upon seeing the headline that a Demonic Being has appeared for the first time in over a decade, will sit patiently and wait for the situation to improve?”

“……No, sir.”

“If you understand, then move quickly! Demonic Beings must not be mixed in with public opinion, at least until we announce the investigation results!”

Kim Seyeon disappeared in an instant, without a single footstep.

Baek Dojun picked up an apple from his desk and took a deep bite.

‘Ji Seokhyeon……. I knew he was a promising one, but to survive a Demonic Being’s scheme…….’

It was still too early to judge based on the information he had received.

Besides, there were tons of things to do right away.

He had to summon the family members of Hong Dahee, who had become a Ghoul, and investigate their connections to the Demonic Being.

Verification and screening, of course.

The principle of guilt by association applied to cases related to Demonic Beings.

Depending on the degree of involvement, immediate disposal was not out of the question.

‘Hong Dahee, if I remember correctly……. was she the child of the alchemy guild that attended the last potion license trial.’

Alchemists were responsible for the production and distribution of potions.

In this world where light-attribute awakeners were rare, the social status of alchemists, who produced life-sustaining potions, could not be easily ignored.

Therefore, it would have a considerable impact on other guilds related to the business.

‘Perhaps Hong Dahee was chosen as a Ghoul for another reason.’

***

The next day.

Wednesday evening, after all classes had ended.

Do Minyeong opened her eyes under the unfamiliar ceiling of the infirmary.

For a full day, Magic Instructor Kim Seulhee had been solely responsible for Do Minyeong’s care.

Given her position as a cadet, she had to be closely monitored until she regained consciousness.

Just then, Yun Jeongseop also timely witnessed Do Minyeong waking up.

He had stopped by the infirmary to bring Kim Seulhee dinner.

“So that’s what…… happened.”

Do Minyeong heard from Yun Jeongseop about what had happened yesterday.

Who Hong Dahee was, why she had ended up in that situation, and how they had escaped.

Of course, Yun Jeongseop kept silent about the Mystery Club.

He just vaguely explained that it was an extension of the incident involving the vacant infirmary instructor position.

“Is, is Ji Seokhyeon alright?”

Do Minyeong’s question was tinged with hesitation.

The basis for her question was the fact that they had drunk the same potion.

The question of why Ji Seokhyeon had not been poisoned.

However, Yun Jeongseop answered dryly.

“Yes.”

“…….”

Do Minyeong corrected herself and asked.

“No, I’m asking why he’s fine when we drank the same potion.”

“Ah, that. He said he drank it without touching his lips to the bottle.”

“……Pardon?”

An unkind answer with the context cut out.

Do Minyeong looked at Kim Seulhee as if she needed an explanation.

“The poison the cadet ingested is a poison extracted in extremely small amounts from the ‘Munui-mungchi fruit.’ It’s not a deadly poison, but it’s effective in incapacitating awakeners. Also, it’s colorless and odorless, so it seems it was applied to the surface of the potion bottle.”

“On the surface…… I see.”

“How about you show your gratitude by thanking him when you meet him later? He was more desperate than anyone to save you.”

“He was?”

“Of course. I don’t know what trick he pulled, but he managed to get through all that falling debris and come up from the underground training ground. He probably recognized that your condition was critical, right? Of course, the same goes for Cadet Lee Eunho.”

“Ah…….”

Do Minyeong organized her thoughts.

As she nodded her head, Yun Jeongseop took something out and said.

“It seems your questions have been answered. Here, take it. It’s yours.”

What he held out was a transparent plastic case.

Inside it was a thumbnail-sized storage device, a ‘memory card.’

“I don’t think this is mine…….”

“It’s yours. They’re videos that Ji Seokhyeon recorded with his smartwatch by attending your classes. He said you would definitely need them. Something about your passion for learning being quite something.”

“Pardon……? But my Wednesday class schedule is completely different from his.”

Do Minyeong asked again, but Yun Jeongseop just shrugged his shoulders lazily in response.

“……No way.”

“As if I would know. Anyway, I’m glad you’ve come to your senses. I’ll be going now. You can miss tomorrow’s classes, so rest well until Sunday.”

Yun Jeongseop left the infirmary with those words, which were no different from a notification.

Do Minyeong tilted her head as she watched his retreating back.

‘Did he take care of my classes even while skipping his own? But why…….’

Ji Seokhyeon.

The only person among the cadets who had entered with her to speak to her informally.

Could he be interested in her?

Or did he have other intentions?

‘Asking to team up for points was a little suspicious too.’

It was understandable since she was an outcast in her division, but she remembered the situation when Hong Dahee gave her the potion clearly.

‘……He definitely drank it with his lips touching the bottle.’

Unless he was hiding something, there was no reason to lie.

Unless he was pretending to be a non-awakened.

But hastily suspecting someone who had risked their life to save her was not in her nature.

He was a person whose intentions she could not read, but observing and judging him directly was the proper order.

‘So why on earth did he take care of my classes…….’

Do Minyeong averted her gaze from the infirmary door, leaving a sense of unease.

Then, as if she had been waiting, Kim Seulhee tilted the lunchbox that Yun Jeongseop had brought.

“More importantly, you must be hungry, right? Want to eat this together?”

***

Yun Jeongseop came out of the infirmary.

I had been leaning against the hallway window for a moment, and as soon as he came out, I straightened up and asked.

“How is she?”

“What about her.”

“Her condition.”

“She seemed fine.”

“That’s good.”

That Do Minyeong had woken up.

That she had recovered without any problems, as if Kim Seulhee’s efforts had been rewarded.

I let out a sigh of relief inwardly.

“Are you really not going in?”

“No, I saw with my Demonic Eye that the mana in her body is circulating properly.”

“That’s very convenient.”

Convenient…….

I nodded my head in agreement, feigning.

The Demonic Eye was an excuse from the beginning.

No, it was true that I had checked her condition with my Demonic Eye beforehand, but it was an excuse not to enter the infirmary.

Because if I faced Do Minyeong, I would have been pestered with unnecessary questions.

I already had a mountain of things to worry about, so there was no need to waste my energy.

“By the way, did the talk go well?”

“What talk?”

“The Elixir.”

For a moment, Yun Jeongseop clicked his tongue and narrowed his eyes.

But that was only for a moment, as he let out a dry breath as if in resignation.

“Yes, positively, very much so.”

“That’s good. Any other news? About Lee Gangju and Park Oseok.”

Lee Gangju, Park Oseok’s accomplice.

It was only a matter of time before he was identified.

Because yesterday, at the time of the incident, he was the only instructor who had not shown himself under the sunlight.

He had run away first, in the first place.

“Nothing unusual. As you know, we lost Lee Gangju, and Park Oseok was transferred to Muspel after it was proven that he was related to the Demonic Being.”

“…….”

Muspel’s meaning was the world of fire that existed in Norse mythology.

In this world, it was an awakener prison where the worst criminals were incarcerated.

Going to Muspel meant a life sentence.

The process was different, but the result seemed to have followed the original work.

Also, it could be seen that I had been given time to catch my breath until the next episode.

If so, what I had to do from now on was to make thorough preparations for the next episode.

Now that I had succeeded in persuading Yun Jeongseop, there was no need to hesitate any longer.

“By the way, Instructor.”

“Yeah.”

“Please do me a favor.”