The Useless Extra Knows It All....But Does He?

The air was thick—cloaked in silence and dread.

Emeron's laughter shattered it.

"Who knows what this bastard was doing here, hiding in the shadows," he sneered, dragging Eric's limp body into full view. The boy was barely breathing, his uniform soaked in sweat and blood. "I knew this bitch would try something," he gestured toward Seraphina, venom lacing every word, "so I took him as a little insurance. And what do you know—it turned out to be a brilliant decision. Hahahahaha!"

Luca's fists clenched at his sides, teeth grinding. "What did you do to him, you bastard?"

Emeron grinned wider, madness flickering in his eyes. "Oh, for now? Just unconscious. But who knows what'll happen if we keep dragging this out… hmm?"

Kyle stepped forward, eyes burning. "What do you want?"

"Now we're getting somewhere." Emeron spread his arms, mocking, theatrical. "It's simple, really. Hand over the Blood Crystal piece... and the bitch."

Silence.

Nobody moved.

No one spoke.

Luca's heart thudded in his chest. The pressure of the moment weighed like lead on his shoulders. There was no clean way out. Nothing he could do without cost.

Then—

"I'll go."

Seraphina's voice cut through the air—hoarse, steady.

"Don't touch the kid. I'll hand myself over to you. But that's it. No Blood Crystal."

Every head turned toward her. Even standing, she was trembling—bleeding, broken—but defiant. Unshaken.

A strange silence followed. One filled not with fear, but respect.

Emeron tilted his head back and laughed again.

"And what use are you to me without that crystal? You're just a bargaining chip, Seraphina. An old blade, dulled and discarded. I want the crystal."

Luca's breath caught. He could see it now—Emeron didn't care about Seraphina. She was leverage. A pawn. But the Blood Crystal? That was the king on the board.

Destroy it—that would be the right call. The logical call. The choice any sane person would make.

If I hand over the crystal, Luca thought, we'll all die. Me, them… even the main characters. I should destroy it. That's the rational choice.

His fingers tightened around the shard pulsing in his palm.

He looked up.

"I'm sorry, everyone."

Heads turned.

"The best choice here... is to destroy the crystal."

Gasps rippled through the group.

"But..." he hesitated.

Eric was my first friend.

Not just in this world—in any world. Not in the past, not in the life before. No one had reached out to him the way Eric did. Not with laughter. Not with trust.

Images flashed in his mind. Training together. Laughing. Joking. The dumb nicknames. Even if only for 2 weeks, Eric was already his friend.

I don't want to give up on him.

Then—

A hand touched his shoulder.

Luca turned.

Aiden stood there, calm and radiant, that trademark smile shining like a sunrise.

"Hand over the crystal," he said. "We'll fight him. Together. We'll save Eric."

Luca's breath caught.

He looked around.

Vincent gave a short, sharp nod. Elowen stepped forward with her bow lowered but ready. Kyle exhaled with a smirk.

"Hmph. I am with my brother-in-law."

Luca blinked. Brother-in-law...? No. Focus. Stress was messing with his ears.

Selena. Lilliane.

Not one questioned him.

Not one hesitated.

Something warm and foreign bloomed in his chest. Heavy. Grounding.

He stepped forward.

"Thank you," Luca whispered. "And… I'm sorry."

Then he turned to face Emeron, eyes blazing.

"I'll hand over the crystal."

He held it up.

"But forget about Professor Seraphina."

Emeron's face twisted. "Both—or he dies."

Luca's voice hardened, steady as iron. "Why don't you try? Let's see how fast I can destroy it right here and now."

A cold silence fell.

Emeron's grin wavered. He didn't move. He didn't blink.

He doesn't want Seraphina, Luca realized. He just doesn't want to take the risk. If she recovers mid-battle… he knows she could be a hindrance to him.

"Tch..." Emeron spat. "Fine."

Luca nodded. "Throw Eric here. I'll throw the crystal your way."

The exchange was made.

The Blood Crystal soared through the air—and Emeron's grotesque smile widened as he caught it. At the same moment, Eric's limp body hit the ground. Elowen rushed forward, catching him before he slumped.

Emeron let out a maniacal laugh.

"Hahahahahaha! Now, you idiots can all die. The Lord's mission will be successful!"

Behind him, the Blood Crystal pulsed violently, as if feeding off his madness.

"Elowen?" Luca asked, barely tearing his eyes from Emeron.

She knelt beside Eric, checking his pulse. "He's fine! Just unconscious!"

A wave of relief passed through the group.

The fused Blood Crystal pulsed in Emeron's chest, grotesque and glowing like a second, corrupted heart. Dark veins spread from the wound, turning his skin a pallid grey. His eyes blazed with crimson fire. The mana around him thickened—twisting, corrupted, suffocating.

Emeron's body began to change.

The crystal's power warped him. Blackened bone cracked through his shoulders, forming jagged wings. Veins glowed red under his skin. His fingers elongated into claws, and his voice deepened into something monstrous.

The grotesque fusion was complete.

Everyone raised their weapons.

Seraphina stepped forward first. Though pale and bruised, her stance was sharp, controlled—wind coiling around her legs and water rippling at her fingertips.

She struck.

Twin blades of wind whirled forward, slicing the air like guillotines. A geyser of water followed, hammering toward Emeron's chest.

He raised one clawed hand—and tore through it like paper.

Before the remnants of the storm even cleared, Aiden dashed in, his sword a streak of gold. Light flared around him, holy energy screaming toward Emeron's throat.

CLANG!

Sparks exploded. Emeron caught the blade with a sneer and hurled Aiden back like a rag doll. He hit the ground hard, rolling to a stop beside Kyle.

"I've got him!" Kyle shouted.

He spun his spear with practiced precision and lunged—feet glowing with mana bursts. He struck fast, clean, aiming for joints.

But Emeron's wings slammed into him, sending him crashing into rubble.

Selena let out a cry and fired a barrage of lightning bolts, crackling across the sky like furious serpents. Ice bloomed at her feet, forming jagged shards she sent flying after them.

Emeron vanished in a blur—reappearing right behind her.

Lilliane intercepted, her hands flaring with elemental might—flame, ice, wind, and earth coalescing into a blast of raw chaos that engulfed Emeron completely.

The explosion rocked the ground.

Vincent charged through the smoke, blood-red sword glowing like a furnace. With a roar, he slashed downward in a brutal arc.

CLANG!

Emeron blocked with one arm, the corrupted limb bleeding but healing instantly.

"You're all insects!" he roared, unleashing a pulse of corrupted mana that detonated in every direction.

It was like a black sun exploding.

Everyone was thrown back.

Elowen rolled to shield Eric again, gasping. Seraphina crashed against a stone pillar, coughing up blood. Kyle's arm hung limp, possibly broken. Aiden was back on his feet, but staggering. Lilliane's robes were torn, and her spells fizzled weakly in her hands.

Selena—

Selena was kneeling, drained, frost creeping up her legs, lightning sparking uncontrollably.

Emeron noticed.

A malicious grin curled across his deformed face.

"Oh? And what do we have here…?"

He vanished.

Selena's head snapped up—just in time to see him reappear above her.

Claws raised.

"SELENA!" Lilliane screamed.

But no one was fast enough.

No one—

Except one.

A blur of motion.

A flash of steel.

Luca.

He crashed between them, twin sabers crossed in front of Selena as Emeron's claws raked down.

Just as Emeron's attack was about to hit him,

It happened , the world stopped, everything surrounding Luca stopped

Then Luca found himself in another environment , completely different from the desolate dungeon.