Extra’s Rise: I Stole All The Women In The Hero’s Party

Zayn's heart pounded in his chest as he gripped the hilt of his sword. 

His blond hair flailed wildly as he rushed forward, boots kicking up dust from the cobblestone street.

At least he had inherited the original Zayn's ability to wield a sword, or he'd be completely useless right now.

The bandits sneered as the group approached, their weapons already drawn.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" one of the armored thugs taunted, his beady eyes scanning them with amusement. "Heroes fresh from the castle, are ya? You lot should learn to mind your own — "

His words were cut short as Kara punched him square in the jaw.

There was a loud crack, and the man collapsed instantly, out cold before he even hit the ground.

Zayn stopped mid-step.

"…Holy crap."

Kara flexed her fingers, unimpressed. "What? He was taking too long to finish his sentence."

Bran chuckled. "I like her."

The remaining bandits snapped out of their shock, their expressions twisting into anger. "You little — !"

Before they could react, Tobias spoke. "Each of us will handle one."

Zayn barely had time to process that before one of the bandits charged at him, swinging a rusty iron sword in a downward arc.

Instinct kicked in.

Zayn sidestepped just in time, the blade slicing through the air inches from his face. 

His own sword came up almost on its own, and before he knew it —

CLANG!

Steel met steel, sending vibrations up his arms.

He gritted his teeth. 

At least his body remembered how to fight.

The bandit snarled. "You little — "

Zayn didn't let him finish. 

He twisted his blade, deflecting the attack before stepping forward and slamming his elbow into the man's gut.

The bandit let out a wheezing gasp, stumbling back.

Zayn smirked. 

'Not bad.'

But he didn't have time to gloat. The bandit recovered quickly, lifting his sword again.

Zayn raised his own to block—

Only for the bandit's legs to suddenly sink into the ground.

"What the — ?!"

He looked down, panic flashing across his face as his boots were swallowed by rapidly hardening stone.

Zayn blinked.

Then, realization struck.

He turned his head just in time to see Kara lowering her hand, her fingers glowing with residual earth magic.

"You're welcome," she said dryly.

Zayn grinned. "Remind me to never piss you off."

Kara smirked. "Smart man."

The bandit, now trapped in the ground up to his knees, struggled furiously. "Damn mages!"

Zayn took the opportunity to slam the hilt of his sword into the man's temple.

The bandit's eyes rolled back, and he slumped forward, unconscious.

Zayn exhaled, wiping some sweat from his brow. "Alright, one down."

He turned to check on the others —

And immediately realized that they had already finished.

Kara's opponent was still motionless on the ground from her earlier punch.

Bran stood over his own collapsed enemy, casually resting his axe on his shoulder. 

His opponent had a very concerning dent in his helmet.

And Elisse…

Zayn blinked. "Did you just bless that guy into submission?"

Elisse smiled serenely, kneeling over the unconscious bandit. "He was lost in the darkness. I simply reminded him of the light."

Zayn squinted at the bandit, who was twitching slightly, an expression of pure peace on his face.

"…Okay. That's actually terrifying."

Tobias adjusted his glasses. "Efficient work."

Zayn scowled. "You didn't even fight anyone!"

Tobias tilted his head. "I did. I simply handled my opponent faster than you did."

Zayn opened his mouth to argue — then noticed the frozen bandit lying stiffly on the ground near Tobias' feet, eyes wide with horror.

Zayn frowned. "…What did you do to him?"

"I overwhelmed his nervous system with a stimulation spell."

"…You what?"

Tobias pushed up his glasses. "I hijacked the electrical impulses in his body, overloading his motor functions. He lost control of his limbs and collapsed."

Zayn stared at the poor, twitching bandit.

"…You gave him a magical seizure?"

"In simple terms, yes."

Zayn let out a low whistle. "Nerds are scary, man."

The merchant, who had been frozen in place the entire time, finally snapped out of his terror-induced trance.

He stumbled forward, clutching his chest. "O-Oh, saints above! Y-You saved me!"

Zayn turned to face him, offering a charming grin. "All in a day's work. No need to thank me too much."

The merchant clasped his hands together. "Thank you! Thank you all! Please, take this as a reward!"

He hurried to his overturned cart, rummaged through a few crates, and returned with a small pouch of coins.

Zayn reached for it, but Tobias intercepted it first.

Zayn muttered. "Dude."

Tobias ignored him, inspecting the contents with a neutral expression. "Adequate payment."

Zayn crossed his arms. "Could've at least let me hold it first."

"We will divide it later," Tobias replied, tucking the pouch into his coat.

Zayn grumbled under his breath.

The merchant bowed deeply. "I must go. My deepest gratitude, heroes!"

With that, he hurriedly gathered his cart and fled the scene, clearly eager to get as far away as possible.

As soon as he was gone, Zayn let out a long sigh.

"Well, that was a warm welcome to Timberstead."

Kara stretched. "If that's what the common thugs are like here, I don't even wanna know what the real threats look like."

Elisse nodded. "The darkness in this world runs deep. We must be prepared."

Bran cracked his knuckles. "We should find the guild. Get a real job lined up."

Tobias pushed up his glasses. "Agreed. The sooner we establish ourselves, the better."

Zayn sighed. "I was really hoping for a peaceful first day."

Tobias shot him a look. "We were teleported into a city filled with crime and monsters."

"…Yeah, okay, fair point."

As the group turned to leave, Zayn cast one last glance at the unconscious bandits that were being taken by guards.

He couldn't help but grin.