Path of the Extra

”Haaa... are you done now?”

Nol lay on his back in the middle of the arena, surrounded by stakes crowned with impaled heads. His hands rested over his chest, his eyes were closed, and an impatient expression sat on his face, like that of a child desperate to leave.

A few meters away, another figure sat cross-legged. It looked like a shadow dragged into life, its posture still and composed, as though it were meditating.

”I am merely savoring the souls I was able to collect,” the shadow said. ”There is no need to rush. That would ruin the enjoyment of their flavor. Though it is a pity these souls were artificially created. It spoils the taste. And the other half are nothing more than puppets in human skin, so I cannot even take them.”

Nol opened his eyes and sighed.

”Hmmm? But you’re only collecting them, not eating them, right?”

He placed a finger against his cheek and tapped it repeatedly, frowning.

”So why are you lying?”

Silence lingered between them for a few seconds.

Then the shadowy figure said, quietly and with a trace of awkwardness,

”...I am doing both.”

A vein bulged on Nol’s forehead.

”Ten minutes! Then I’m leaving, with or without you!”

”Tch. Stupid brat. You have no appreciation for delicacy.”

Moaning in boredom, Nol rolled through the dried blood smeared across the stone floor a few times before staring up again.

A hint of sadness entered his crimson eyes.

”Hey...”

The shadow gave no response.

”Can we really not try to save Master?”

Again, it did not answer immediately. Nol had to wait several seconds before the shadow finally spoke.

”That was never part of the deal we made, brat. And save? Save him? Heh... kekekekekeke! Do not make me laugh.”

It laughed anyway, its voice twisting in a strange, broken way before it continued.

”Who even says he needs saving to begin with? I certainly do not know. For all I know, it is the gods who need saving from him.”

Nol pushed himself up into a proper sitting position and gazed at the shadow’s back.

”I might love entertainment,” the shadow said, ”but I am not eager to risk my beautiful, amusing life any more than I already have.”

”Coward...”

Nol muttered the word, but the shadow heard him.

It flinched.

”Coward?” it snapped, its voice rising with anger. ”The league these gods belong to—and your oh-so-beloved master along with them—is the very highest. A single wrong blink of my mesmerizing eyes, and I would perish. Not even a fool would willingly involve himself in what is about to happen. And I have yet to regain enough of my power to even think of getting closer than I already have.”

At that last part, Nol tilted his head.

”Huh? But it’s already been more than half a year since we last spoke. You still haven’t recovered your full power?”

”It would have been faster, but the Name I gave that stupid human was damaged when that Apostle killed him. Well... keke. The human himself was quite easy to manipulate. Gullible, really. We were fortunate he bore a name similar to mine, so we were able to merge them.”

”Ah, the Apostle of Ruin, right? Zoran was his name! He killed that Dante fellow!” Nol sighed, shaking his head. ”Seriously, after all the trouble of manipulating him into going to the Asura Mountains and making him believe he would become immortal, he died just like that...”

”Little Dante served his purpose. But that Apostle quite literally damaged the soul, and the Name I had given to that human. He truly lived up to his title as the Apostle of Ruin. So when I took it back, I inherited the damage as well. That is why it has taken longer.”

”I see...”

Then Nol suddenly looked away, pouting.

”Just say you’re weak...”

”...I heard that.”

Nol flinched and kept looking away.

”Keke. You call me weak, but I have been making rather swift progress. Not that I have had much opportunity to reveal myself in your world, considering the holy guardian is a literal demon from the foulest corner of the demon realm. Had he ever taken notice of me, we would have been erased from existence. What a vile creature to have guarding an entire human planet.”

”You’re really scared of that so-called demon, huh?”

”Not so-called. That demon belongs to a kind no one should ever approach. Even if you are stronger, the price will always be far too costly.”

”Yeah, yeah...”

Nol did not take his words seriously and lay back down.

”...Give up on your master,” the shadow said. ”I have told you before. He does not care for you.”

At those crude words, Nol’s face tightened. He gritted his teeth.

”Shut up. I’m not having this conversation again.”

”Have you forgotten?” the shadow suddenly asked.

”When was the last time we spoke before entering this scenario?”

Nol already knew the answer.

”The last time we were trapped in [White Haven]... right before Master finally accepted my invitation. Just as you predicted.”

”Precisely. And do you remember what I told the human Dante?”

”...That Master is a traitor.”

Nol turned his head and looked at him, pressing his lips together in frustration.

”But I don’t get it. You say Master betrayed you so loooooong ago, but you never share any details with me. That’s so unfair! You hate Master, but you won’t tell me why. Come on, spill!”

”...”

”See!? You go quiet again! How am I ever supposed to trust you!?”

”Human,” the shadow said softly. ”Trusting me would only make you a fool. Not that you aren’t already one for daring to make a deal with me.”

At those words, Nol cooled down and looked back up at the ceiling.

”...I don’t regret making a deal with you. You were the only hope I had, after all.”

”Keke. A line I do love to hear.”

Nol lifted one hand above his face and stared at it. Slowly, he clenched it into a fist, his crimson eyes sharpening with stubborn resolve.

”I must save her.”

The shadow fell silent.

Then it said,

”...It seems we have two visitors.”