Path of the Extra

”This...”

”...How did we get into such a mess...?”

Sitting beside Celestina, who was chained to the wall, Yelena held the piece of paper out in front of her. She leaned in as well, and together they read what Lumine had written.

Their faces kept shifting—first pale, then dark—while Lumine, of all of them, felt almost elated.

He had taken another gamble.

And he had realized something crucial.

As long as he did not speak about going back in time aloud, he could still communicate it.

Honestly, the overwhelming relief he felt at that moment was the only reason he was not crying from happiness. The mere thought that he might have had to figure out how to get everyone out of this situation alone had already felt hopeless. But now, not only could he rely on Yelena’s help—he could rely on Celestina’s as well.

That meant there was a chance.

A much better chance.

His burden had not disappeared, but it had become lighter.

At least a little.

Still, while Lumine felt that way, the same could not be said for the two girls. He realized that quickly enough, and forced himself back down before hope made him careless.

’...I can’t let Yelena get hurt like that again...’

Just thinking about the way Nol had killed them...

Killed her...

Lumine lowered his gaze and clenched his teeth.

’Bastard...!’

Did Azriel even know how insane Nol was? To keep someone like that close for so long... had someone like Azriel really not noticed?

His eyes drifted toward Jasmine, who looked as if she were sleeping soundly. Lumine pressed his lips together.

’Does she know?’

Now that he thought about it...

’Why haven’t I tried waking her up?’

While the two girls remained absorbed in the paper he had given them, reading through all the information he could provide about what he had experienced in his loops, Lumine slowly stood up and walked toward Jasmine.

If Celestina’s help was not enough, then Jasmine’s would be unimaginable. If even half of what everyone said about her was true, then her skill and talent—said to be almost unmatched—would make their survival far more certain.

’Why is she asleep, anyway? How can she sleep through all this?’

Standing in front of her now, looking down at her, Lumine felt his breath catch for a moment.

She looked so peaceful.

So impossibly peaceful.

For a second, the sight of her nearly consumed his attention completely.

Then, from behind him, a sharp voice cut through the air.

”Get away from her, Lumine!”

Lumine flinched and turned around at once.

Celestina was leaning forward, held back only by the shackles binding her to the wall.

”W-what?”

’Did I do something wrong?’

”Don’t touch her.”

”W-why?”

”Because there is a spell placed on her. She should wake up soon, but I don’t want to risk hurting her by forcing it.”

”But...”

’We really need her...’

”Get away.”

Celestina’s expression was serious. Worse than that, she was starting to look angry.

Yelena glanced between the two of them, panic and discomfort clear on her face. Seeing that, Lumine decided to obey. He stepped away from Jasmine.

The moment he did, Celestina seemed to ease.

”Come here,” she said with a sigh. ”We need to discuss what we’re going to do next.”

Lumine felt his mood dip. Dragging his feet, he walked back toward them and sat down cross-legged in front of Celestina.

For a moment, Celestina only looked at him in silence.

Under her gaze, Lumine began fiddling with his fingers.

Then she opened her mouth.

”So—”

”I’m sorry!”

”Huh!?”

Before Celestina could continue, Yelena lunged at Lumine like a cannon and wrapped her arms around him.

”Y-Yelena!?”

”I’m sorry! I’m sorry you had to go through all of that, Lumine!”

”W-wait, it’s not your fault! Why are you apologizing?”

”Still! You kept dying because—!”

”Enough!”

The two of them flinched as Celestina’s voice rose.

”How many times are you two going to keep hugging each other in front of me?” she snapped.

”Listen, Lumine. I’m sorry as well. I really am. I’m sorry you had to go through all of that. But there is no time to comfort you. If what you wrote here is true, then we have around twenty minutes before that void creature probably makes its way here. After that, the proctor appears and gives us only five hours to leave this colosseum. We need to find the best way for you two to reach Lioren so you can escape.”

”Wha—wait!”

”It’s a good thing Azriel is with him. That means he can at least still be saved.”

”Wait!”

”Lioren will know a way out. He has some sort of ability related to his Unique Skill that would have gotten us to the summit quickly, so he should be able to use something similar to get all of you out of this underground—”

”Celestina, wait!”

Bam!

Yelena and Celestina froze.

Lumine had slammed both hands against the wall, one on either side of Celestina’s head.

He glared at her with such ferocity that the words caught in her throat.

”You...” His voice was quiet, but its sharpness only made it more frightening. There was a roughness in it, as if he were almost out of breath. ”Why are you talking like that?”

”L-Lumine...?” Yelena stared at him, shaken.

Celestina blinked, startled by how close he suddenly was—and by how angry he looked.

”Leave the colosseum? Escape?” Lumine continued. ”I understand those parts. What I don’t understand is why you’re talking as if you’re not included.”

His glare deepened.

”As if I’m supposed to abandon everyone else here.”

”...”

”...”

”...”

Lumine’s voice dropped lower.

”...Are you stupid?”

”L-Lumine!?”

Yelena’s jaw fell.

So did Celestina’s.

”W-what did you just call me?”

”An idiot.”

”You’re the idiot!” Celestina shouted back immediately, her cheeks flushing with anger. ”Sir Fe... No. Felix is a traitor. Nol is a traitor. Caleus is a traitor. Anastasia is a traitor, though that one was obvious. Almost half the participants here are traitors who came for the bounties on our heads and a chance to secure a place on the leaderboard—which, by the way, you two should be doing, considering the absurd opportunity you have here.”

Her chains rattled faintly as her voice rose.

”And ignoring that, there is a High Commander running around who seems to want Jasmine dead, which means it is probably that immortal eyepatch bastard with space magic, of all the irritating affinities he could have. Ignore that too, and there is also a void creature about to go on a murder spree. Ignore even that, and, somehow, according to you, there is a literal demon inside this underground colosseum.”

She glared at him.

”So tell me, Lumine. How am I the idiot for saying the obvious? Get the hell out of this place while you still can!”

”I won’t leave and abandon all of you!”

”Are you some naive child!?”

Celestina’s chains snapped taut as she threw herself forward. Lumine flinched and stumbled back, while Yelena’s face went pale.

”How can you still be this obtuse after everything you just went through?” Celestina demanded. ”You want to save the lives of people who would not hesitate to throw you to the dogs. And even if there are a few outliers here who don’t deserve to die, you can’t save them. Look at our situation. We have less than twenty minutes, and somehow you want to save everyone? Including me?”

Her voice turned colder.

”Now that Felix is a traitor, and Lioren is with Azriel, no one here can destroy my chains. Waking Jasmine might come with the risk of damaging her mind—unless you want to carry her unconscious body while trying to find an escape route. And Azriel already wants to kill himself, so—”

”So you’re just giving up!?”

Celestina froze.

Lumine cut her off, his own voice rising.

”Well, I can’t!”

”...”

For a moment, silence fell between them.

Then Lumine sat properly, planting himself in front of her with a stubborn glare carved across his face.

”If you don’t agree with me this time, then I’ll try again next time. And if not then, then the time after that. And again. And again. And again.” His hands clenched against his knees. ”Until you finally realize that we can come up with a decent plan if we work together.”

His voice trembled, but it did not break.

”There has to be a reason why I can...”

Lumine suddenly went quiet.

Then, more softly, he said, ”There has to be a reason I can do this. A reason, with everything that’s happening.”

He looked seriously at Celestina.

”So I’m going to wring every last bit of worth out of it that I can.”

*****

’Idiot...’

Celestina stared at Lumine, at the tenacity burning in his eyes, and felt the air between them grow heavier.

’This guy really is an idiot... An idiot calling me an idiot. Idiot.’

And yet, she knew he was right.

At least partially.

If they thought this through together, then maybe—just maybe—they could find a way out while saving more people.

But there was one problem.

The only way for Celestina to break these chains was something she did not want either of them to see.

She had never planned to die here.

Not once.

She had only been trying to bait Lumine and Yelena into leaving her behind. Once they were gone, she would free herself and escape with Jasmine while these two fled with Lioren and Azriel.

But Lumine was not going to change his mind.

She could see it clearly in his eyes.

And Yelena seemed to have resigned herself as well. She sat beside him, though unlike Lumine, her gaze was not stubborn. It was pleading.

’Idiots.’

Celestina’s eyes drifted downward.

’Time travel, huh...’

If that was truly possible, then did that mean Azriel had not merely been rambling like a dying man in his final moments?

Had there actually been some truth in it?

No.

Celestina already knew, even with the faint doubt still lodged in her heart, that Azriel had not been lying.

’Why is it that I can sense something was wrong with time...?’

The thought made her remember what the child Azriel had killed had said.

’If I really believe him... then why would he defy the God of Time for me?’

Then her eyes widened.

’It was back then... wasn’t it? During the containment facility!’

At the time, she had thought Azriel had done something to her mind. Something strange. Something invasive.

But no.

She could not prove it. She knew she might be reaching. Yet, for some reason, her instincts were telling her that it had something to do with that moment.

Her lips pressed into a thin line.

’That still doesn’t answer why.’

And yet...

’Ever since that day, I haven’t felt so insecure about falling behind. My inferiority complex lessened. A lot.’

Azriel...

’I can’t let you die.’

Celestina made up her mind.

She lifted her gaze toward Lumine and Yelena. Despite their stubborn defiance toward her, despite standing against the literal Frost Heiress, both of them looked like they were sweating from nervousness.

”Back off,” Celestina said coldly.

They both flinched.

Lumine clenched his teeth.

”I already told you, I—”

”I said back off. Idiot. Stupid blond idiot.” Her eyes sharpened. ”I’m breaking these chains, but I need space.”

”W-what?” Yelena asked, startled. ”But how are you going to do that?”

Celestina’s expression dimmed.

For a moment, her eyes grew a little sadder as she looked down.

”With my Unique Skill...”

”Your... Unique Skill?”

Celestina was silent for a breath.

Then she spoke its name.

”...[Gluttony].”