Chapter 11: Why are you here?

A golden holiday.

A day meant to soothe a body worn out from labor by spending time at ease.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t rest—I was spending time with my student.

“Shall we begin?”

“Come at me whenever you like.”

A new sparring ground built behind the mountain.

Erin, standing across from me with a sword drawn, faced off against me while I rested a shovel across my shoulder.

She pointed the tip of her blade at me and charged without hesitation.

Clang—!

I deflected the flash-like tip of Erin’s sword, aimed at my forehead, with the shovel.

Then I leaned my upper body back, forcing the blade aiming for my shoulder to slice through the air instead.

I swung the shovel, aiming for Erin’s wrist, but she took a step back and twisted her wrist to avoid the shovel’s edge.

“Hmph…!”

Erin continued her relentless flurry of strikes, and I responded by reading the trajectory of her attacks and blocking them all.

Frustrated that not a single hit had landed, Erin bit her lip.

“Your movements flow smoothly, but there’s not enough strength in your wrist. You’re probably trying to soften the impact when your opponent blocks, but that’s a weak mindset.”

Itshin, who had been observing the sparring match, offered a sharp critique.

I repeated Itshin’s exact words to Erin without missing a beat.

“I’ll correct it!”

Raising her sword high, Erin struck down with a forceful blow, as if she meant to slice me in half.

I quickly raised the shovel above my head and blocked her attack.

The tremendous power surged through my arms.

The impact spread through my entire body, and my knees buckled slightly.

Not missing the opportunity, Erin swung her sword diagonally in a wide arc.

Too late to dodge, I slapped the flat of her blade with my palm, twisting its trajectory.

“You put strength into that strike, but your movements were stiff this time. Watch your footwork. No, forget that—just show her what the problem is.”

I threw the shovel I was holding with one hand.

While Erin deflected the shovel with her sword, I slipped into her guard.

As she hurried to swing her sword, I grabbed her arm with one hand and her collar with the other.

Securing both of her arms tightly, I twisted my body, throwing Erin off balance.

With her legs tangled, I lifted her easily and slammed her to the ground.

“I yield.”

“Don’t forget how important your legs are in supporting your body. If you lose your balance during combat, you’re as good as dead. Always be mindful of where your feet are.”

***

After subduing her, I combined Itshin’s critique with my own advice.

Erin shut her eyes tightly and nodded.

She humbly accepted defeat, but the frustration on her face showed she couldn’t help how she felt.

As the first mock battle came to an end, I let go of her and stepped back.

“Your fundamentals are solid. But you lack flexibility in unconventional movements. You should work on improving your agility. I recommend regular stretching.”

“Understood!”

Erin sprang to her feet and brushed the dust off her clothes.

She picked up her fallen sword and got back into stance, prompting me to wave my hand dismissively.

“That’s enough for today.”

“Huh? We’re stopping after just the warm-up?”

“Yes.”

The first round was strictly swordplay.

The second round incorporated magic.

And the final, third round allowed for anything—no rules, full power.

That was the usual training routine with Erin.

But today, I had decided to stop after the first round.

Naturally, Erin looked dissatisfied, so I gave her a valid reason.

“Tomorrow’s the all-student combat exercise, isn’t it? I heard you’ll be going up against a third-year student alone. Is that true?”

“Yes, it is.”

A first-year student, barely enrolled, facing a third-year one-on-one.

Under normal rules, that would never happen.

Two first-years were required to challenge a second-year, and three were needed to take on a third-year.

Giving Erin the chance to face a third-year alone meant Wellton Academy acknowledged her skill.

As someone who sparred with Erin regularly, it was a privilege I thought she fully deserved.

“No matter how strong you are, you could lose if you’re not in top condition. That’s why I’m not pushing you hard today. Go back early and rest.”

“That won’t happen. So far, the only people I consider stronger than me at the academy are you and the chairman!”

“Don’t get arrogant. I’m not questioning your abilities, but there are more strong people than you realize. Especially in areas where you’re still lacking—so keep a closer eye on your surroundings.”

As the story progressed, opponents stronger than Erin kept appearing.

Each time, Luke would find allies within the academy or gain new powers to overcome them.

The academy was full of talented people capable of doing things Erin couldn’t.

That’s why I had to make sure Erin didn’t look down on the other students and encouraged her to work with them.

‘Now that we can no longer rely on Luke, Erin has to be at the center of every incident.’

The main character of ‘How an Extra in the Academy Survives’ was undoubtedly Luke.

But this world was a fictional one, brought into existence by Luke’s possession.

So, looking at the story in a broader sense, the protagonist is Erin, and Luke is essentially her helper.

That’s why I volunteered to become Erin’s mentor, taking Luke’s place as her supporter.

“If you happen to lose and come back, I’ll stop being your teacher that very day—so you better make sure you win.”

“I-I will definitely come back victorious!”

The truth is, regardless of her condition, Erin will win without any major problems.

The issue is what happens afterward.

The highlight of Chapter 1, Act 1, is when demons and beasts invade during the combat training, throwing everything into chaos.

Erin has to not only complete the training but also deal with the demons.

That’s why I told her to rest up for tomorrow.

***

“Oh, right! What happened with that investigation I asked about earlier?”

“Do you mean the request to look into whether there was any connection between Luke and a student named Marcus?”

“Yeah, that one.”

I wanted to look into it myself, but since I took Erin in as a student, I’ve been stuck inside the graveyard.

Thankfully, the headmaster added a rule that no one is allowed to enter the graveyard without my permission.

If not for that, I probably would’ve gone crazy, constantly getting swarmed by people.

“As a result of the investigation, there was absolutely no connection between the two. Just in case, I even asked people who are close to them, but they said they hadn’t even spoken to each other.”

“Really?”

That’s strange.

The joint combat training is tomorrow, and it’s hard to believe that there’s no conflict between the two.

‘Did the future change again?’

The demon that appears tomorrow is none other than Marcus, who transforms into one.

As the heir to a viscount, he was arrogant by nature and bullied the commoner Luke harshly.

However, the Luke who had been possessed used his wits to overpower Marcus and humiliate him.

Meanwhile, a demon who wanted to kill Erin approached Marcus, who was burning with rage.

The demon seduced him, promising great power, and thoroughly exploited his hatred.

Eventually, Marcus gave in to the temptation, absorbed refined demonic energy, and turned into a demon himself.

He then rampaged during the training, driven by his thirst for revenge and the primal instinct to kill the Hero.

That was the full story of Chapter 1, Act 1.

‘But now that there’s no animosity between Luke and Marcus, that future seems unlikely to come to pass.’

‘If I had to point to the reason the future veered off course…’

There’s no way Marcus’s arrogant personality suddenly changed, so I can’t help but suspect him.’

I need to find out who he is, and fast—but being confined to this graveyard is beyond frustrating.

“Should I look into it a bit more?”

“No, I don’t think that’ll be necessary. Thank you for helping with the investigation.”

“As long as I’ve been of help to you, Master, that’s enough for me. I’ll be heading off to rest now.”

“Alright, good work.”

***

After seeing Erin off, I stayed on the mountain for a while, organizing my thoughts.

The future I once knew had changed, but some things remained the same.

Namely, the demons still want Erin dead.

Sending a lycanthrope to the entrance ceremony was basically their way of declaring that they’d kill the next Hero.

From now on, they’ll stop at nothing to take her life.

Before, they used Marcus’s hatred as their weapon—but now that hatred is gone.

‘So what approach will they take this time?’

‘I have no idea…’

Despite racking my brain, I wasted a precious day off and got nowhere.

I ran through every possibility, but all I could think of was some ridiculous development where the Demon King himself suddenly shows up.

It really hit me how valuable foresight is as an ability.

If this weren’t the world of that novel I’d read, I wouldn’t be worrying like this.

“I guess I’ll just have to see it with my own eyes.”

With all the students gone to the arena for the joint combat training, I figured I could at least watch from a distance.

I quietly slipped out of the graveyard and headed toward the academy building.

That’s when it happened.

“Found you…!”

At the sound of a voice that grated like metal scraping metal, I froze and turned around.

Standing there was Ayla, the girl who challenged me a while back and got utterly defeated.

“What’s with that look now?”

But something about her was clearly off.

Her hair was wild, and her eye makeup had run down her cheeks with tears, painting her face black.

Her eyes glinted with madness, and her mouth was twisted in a grin that looked like it would rip her face open.

It was like seeing a gender-swapped version of the Joker.

‘Wait a minute, haven’t I seen this before somewhere?’

She looked different, of course, but she reminded me strongly of someone.

Someone I’d even mentioned recently.

‘I remember now! She looks just like Marcus when he turned into a demon and stormed the arena!’

‘Wait, so she’s targeting me right now?’

‘This isn’t how it’s supposed to go!’

‘That’s when I realized the plot had completely gone off the rails.’