Extra's Descent-Chapter 351: Rain of Reflections [4]

Drip. Drip…!

—Just kill him.

Brandon froze, but quickly composed himself. A figure stood not so far from Raven.

A figure Brandon was all too familiar with. Of course, needless to be said, it was Lumian.

"You're an idiot."

Brandon sighed and massaged his temple. It was more so, for Lumian, than it was for Raven, who had just blurted out that he couldn't trust him.

"Oh, so I'm the idio—"

"Just do whatever you want."

Brandon decisively cut him off. There was no point in arguing with Raven further.

After all, he couldn't blame Raven for losing his trust in him.

The rain dampened their features as Raven stared at him briefly before turning back around, his focus on the two mirrors.

—It's an exam, just kill him and ascend the floors on your own. You were meant to take the exam alone anyway.

Brandon waved his hand to the side and quickly dismissed Lumian. Raven's voice followed shortly after.

"I'll take the left mirror, you don't have any problems with that, right?"

"Right."

"...."

Raven frowned, then sighed.

"I see what you did there."

Turning around, Raven stepped inside the mirror and his figure vanished. The right mirror started fading, and Brandon stood still amidst the cascading rain before shaking his head and entering the mirror soon after.

Stepping right beside Raven, Brandon looked ahead. Mirror platforms that seemed to to look like disconnecting stairs scattered in the air.

But something else alerted him.

Drip. Drip…!

In comparison to before, the rain was way stronger here So much so that Brandon could feel the floor was slippery.

Looking down, an abyss spread wide from below, sending a chill down Brandon's spine.

"...."

Brandon steadied himself on the slippery surface, his eyes fixed on the disconnected mirror platforms ahead.

It seemed like the objective was to climb the platforms. Above them was a large mirror surface, expanding wide.

Raven glanced back, his eyes meeting Brandon's. A flicker of doubt crossed Raven's face, but he said nothing and turned forward again.

"Lead the way."

Brandon gestured.

"Sure."

Raven nodded his head in response and took that first step.

Step—

"Ah—"

Raven stepped forward, his foot slipping slightly on the wet platform. He steadied himself, then jumped to the next, the rain pounding on his back.

"...."

Brandon stared for a brief second before nodding and taking a deep breath, bracing himself.

He stared at the timer.

[Time Remaining: 16:34]

It was the second floor, and seven and a half hours had already passed.

Screw the deadline.

That being said, Brandon too had joined Raven.

Step—

He stumbled for a bit and he felt his life flash before his eyes as his palms started to sweat.

—Fall. Jump down. I know you want to do it.

A voice echoed from behind, but Brandon paid no heed to the words.

"Shitty voice inside my head."

He cursed.

Step by step, they progressed, Raven leading and Brandon close behind. The rain made every surface treacherous, and Brandon felt his heartbeat quicken each time he would almost slip.

His entire figure, drenched in a mix of cold sweat and the pouring rain.

"Ah."

Suddenly, Brandon's foot slipped on a particularly slick platform, and he teetered on the edge. Raven lunged, grabbing his arm and pulling him back to safety.

Brandon glanced at him, briefly meeting his gaze.

"Thanks."

Raven nodded his head, but his eyes remained vigilant, keeping a fixed distance from Brandon.

Brandon sighed and followed closely from behind.

As they climbed higher, the rain intensified, and the mirror platforms grew increasingly slippery and smaller.

Until finally, after twenty more minutes or so, they reached the top.

Step—

As soon as Brandon stepped on the glassy surface…..

WHII—

A blinding light flashed before his eyes, and Brandon couldn't help but recoil back, closing his eyes.

Opening his eyes, all of a sudden.

"...."

The scenery changed.

"....Raven?"

Not only that, but Raven disappeared so suddenly.

The entire plain was rather empty as the rain continued pouring down, intensifying the further Brandon trudged.

"The hell am I supposed to do here?"

There were no given instructions by the tower's system.

—What else? Jump.

"Fuck off."

He cursed. Lumian in his head was getting annoying.

But in the next few minutes or so, as Brandon continued looking around, mirrors started to appear.

Thump!

The right.

Thump!

The left.

Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!

Mirrors started appearing and implanting themselves on the ground from both sides, forming a visible path.

"...."

Brandon stared at the grayscale sky for a moment, wondering where Raven had gone. Clearly, something happened.

But that didn't matter.

It was a simulation. If Raven had died off somewhere, he would only be ejected from the simulation.

Right, now was not the time to worry about others.

Step—

And so, Brandon trudged the path laid before him, occasionally glancing at the mirrors.

First, the left, next, the right.

His reflection was visible. Pale–white hair, ice–blue eyes. Well proportionate features that would put male idols to shame.

Step—

All of a sudden, Brandon's steps halted and he neared one of the mirrors. Immediately, his eyes widened and he swallowed his saliva.

Touching the mirror, Brandon stared at his reflection.

His hair, his eyes…..

They were ink–black.

Swoosh—

He glanced back, staring at the mirror on the other side.

"...."

In that mirror, his reflection was normal. Pale–white hair and ice–blue eyes.

"...."

It didn't make any sense.

Was it showing his…. real reflection?

But if that was the case, shouldn't it show his past appearance?

Not the handsome Brandon Locke figure, but his original features, blonde hair and black eyes.

"Haha."

He laughed.

All he could do was laugh.

It was funny.

This exam was funny.

"This exam is fucking insane."

It felt like it was breaking his mind.

A floor that never seemed to harm him physically, but corroded his mind the longer he stayed.

"I need to get out of here."

Drip. Drip…!

The rain poured down relentlessly. His bangs, drenched in rain water, obscured his vision as he stared at the mirror.

Moving back, Brandon brushed his bangs up and walked ahead.

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As soon as he arrived at the end….

Bang!

Something struck his back and he was sent skidding back several meters.

Holding onto his back, Brandon turned around and scanned.

A figure stood not so far from him, holding two daggers up. Jet–black hair and red eyes that looked at him indifferently.

A face that Brandon was all too familiar with by now.

A face he was sick of.

And the person he wanted to kill the most.

He clenched his fists, wiping the wet hair from his eyes, focusing on the enemy in front of him.

Drip. Drip…!

Amidst the pouring rain that seemed to never end, Brandon's mouth parted open and a whisper left his lips.

"Raven."

***

Raven stared ahead. The moment he reached the end of the mirrored path, a figure stood and blocked his path.

Two ice–blue eyes stared at him indifferently, and Raven couldn't help but frown.

He couldn't believe it at first, and he didn't want to believe it.

But it was clear to Raven by now that Brandon harbored some kind of hate towards him.

He couldn't understand why.

But all of Brandon's actions after he returned from who knows where now made sense.

The realization twisted something deep inside him.

It clicked at his insecurity, but furthermore, his trust.

He wanted to trust him as his friend, but all it took was a few hours on this floor for it to all come crumbling down.

'That must be how shallow our friendship is.'

"What did I do?"

Raven asked aloud, his voice cracking amidst the sound of raindrops.

"What did I ever do to you?"

His thoughts spiraled, trying to remember if he had ever wronged Brandon. But that wasn't the case.

Raven was always well–liked by his peers, and he was well aware how he treated Brandon.

In any case, it was more so Brandon who had always teased or messed with him.

"...."

But there was no response.

If Brandon really was a good friend, he would've made an effort to fix any kind of misunderstanding that this exam had implanted in his mind.

But he didn't.

He stayed indifferent, composed, unbothered.

Raven should've seen the signs before.

If Brandon was annoyed by him, then he should've spoken up instead of keeping him close.

A lot of things didn't make sense. But the rain fogged his mind, clouding his judgment, and making his heart grow dark.

He needed to get out of this place.

The entire atmosphere was wrong.

Was he confident he could beat Brandon?

'No.'

He shook his head.

He couldn't see any future at all in which he could even best him. Not in academics, not in a fight.

Nothing.

'Ah.'

"Haha."

He laughed.

He was a hypocrite himself.

He had come to realize by now.

Brandon Locke's entire existence.

….Was the living proof of his insecurities.