Extra's Revenge: Reincarnated As A Slave-Chapter 130: Contingency

Rey’s eyes snapped open.

He was lying on his bed in Elara’s safehouse, the familiar ceiling above him, the faint mystical wards humming along the walls providing their usual background presence.

His body was intact, uninjured, completely removed from the Empty False World where his clone had just...

Died.

The sudden severance of connection with his duplicated Soul had jolted him awake like a physical blow.

One moment he’d been relaxed after completing the battle within the Fanged Serpent’s main base and blowing it up.

The next moment—nothing.

Complete absence where the connection had been.

It was like the link that connected him to his clone had been completely severed.

Rey sat up slowly, his analytical mind already processing what the severance meant.

’The clone either self-destructed as programmed, or something interfered with it catastrophically enough to sever our Soul link,’ he thought, running through the contingencies he’d built into the duplicate’s creation.

The clone had been a masterwork of preparation—an Artifact specifically designed for creating physical duplicates, combined with Soul Art techniques that split off a fragment of his consciousness to animate it.

The result was a functional copy that could operate independently while maintaining a subtle connection to Rey’s true self.

It had required significant resources.

A Duplication Artifact of the highest Tier in his possession, one High-Sequence Soul Art Scroll to properly fragment and transfer his consciousness, and careful preparation to ensure the clone possessed enough of his memories and capabilities to function convincingly.

But the payoff had been exactly this—the ability to conduct high-risk operations while his true body remained safely secured with a perfect alibi.

Rey stood, moving to the small desk where he’d left monitoring equipment before deploying the clone.

Mystical sensors that tracked the clone’s vital signs, Ether fluctuations that indicated its status, temporal markers that recorded when significant events occurred.

All of them showed the same thing... which was nothing

’Something unexpected happened,’ Rey concluded. ’The clone may have encountered a threat it couldn’t overcome through direct combat, triggered its failsafe protocols, and self-terminated to prevent capture or interrogation.’

Which meant his primary contingency had functioned exactly as designed.

But it all happened too suddenly.

Rey still wasn’t aware of the False World fiasco with Thane, and that it was this element in particular that caused the link to be severed.

Thus, he was a bit on edge.

His information on the matter was too incomplete for him to be at ease.

’Calm down...’ Rey told himself. ’Let’s think about this logically.’

The clone had been programmed with two absolute imperatives if capture seemed inevitable: First, attempt explosive self-destruction using all remaining Artifacts and Scrolls to eliminate evidence and potentially harm the captor. Second, if that proved impossible due to containment or suppression, dissolve its own Soul through voluntary separation from the body.

Either way, nothing useful would remain for investigators. No memories to extract, no mystical signatures to trace back to Rey’s true self, no evidence linking the clone to Modred Helt or the Red House.

Just an empty husk or scattered remains that told investigators nothing valuable.

Rey allowed himself a moment of relief, tension he hadn’t fully acknowledged releasing from his shoulders.

’I was right to be cautious,’ he thought. ’Right to send the clone instead of going personally. If I’d conducted the Fanged Serpent operation myself and encountered whatever threat destroyed my duplicate...’

He didn’t complete the thought.

The outcome was obvious enough without dwelling on it.

Instead, Rey focused on the practical implications of the night’s events.

His clone had successfully eliminated the Fanged Serpent—all seven branches destroyed, headquarters annihilated, leadership killed.

That objective was achieved regardless of what happened to the duplicate afterward.

His true body had remained here in Elara’s safehouse the entire time, protected by her security wards and surveillance systems.

If anyone investigated his whereabouts during the Fanged Serpent’s destruction, they’d find clear evidence that Modred Helt never left this secure location.

A perfect alibi.

’But the fact that something powerful enough to defeat my clone intervened...’

Rey moved to the window, looking out at Elkrim’s nighttime cityscape. Somewhere out there, the Special Investigators he’d deliberately lured to this city were operating with increasing effectiveness.

The Category S Guards were proving more formidable than he’d initially calculated. Not just powerful, but sophisticated in their methods.

They’d tracked mystical signatures from the Desgarron incident to Elkrim.

They’d begun investigating the Houses systematically.

And now, although Rey didn’t know this for a fact yet, they’d deployed assets capable of capturing or destroying his clone despite all its resources and preparation.

’They’re getting out of my control,’ Rey acknowledged with concern. ’I invited them here to disrupt the other Houses, to create chaos I could exploit. But they’re proving competent enough to threaten my operations directly.’

He needed to decide on his next move.

Two primary options presented themselves, each with distinct advantages and risks.

Option One: Accelerate his timeline.

He could move quickly on his remaining objectives—acquire the Seed of Origin, consolidate control over the Red House, eliminate remaining threats—before the Special Investigators could narrow their search further.

There was also finding a way to exchange his items for other valuables and physical assets.

If these assets were legitimate and had aged quality, they would be preferred over more moveable and dynamic ones.

So, he could improve his speed and aggression to seize the initiative.

There were quite a few advantages in this.

For one, it would prevent enemies from gaining the upper hand through investigation and preparation.

It would also achieve critical objectives while chaos from tonight’s events still obscured the broader picture. This would allow him to maintain momentum and keep opponents reactive rather than proactive.

However, there were also disadvantages which could not be overlooked.

Rushed operations increased the likelihood of mistakes. The Special Investigators would be on high alert after tonight, making aggressive moves more dangerous.

Critical resources had been expended on the Fanged Serpent operation and lost with the clone, reducing available options for follow-up actions.

’But what about the second option? I could simply wait and observe... at least for now.’

Rey could temporarily pause major operations, monitor how the Special Investigators responded to tonight’s events, and let the situation develop before committing to his next move.

This, of course, required patience and information-gathering but it was necessary to understand the changed landscape.

There were naturally pros to this as well.

Going down this route allowed him time to assess enemy capabilities more accurately. He could also avoid attracting attention while investigators were most active.

Waiting provided an opportunity to rebuild depleted resources and plan more thoroughly... all of this while letting the natural chaos from the Fanged Serpent’s destruction work in his favor without additional exposure.

But—

’There’s the negative side I have to consider.’

Doing this meant he would essentially surrender initiative to opponents who might use the time better than he could.

The Special Investigators could make progress in their investigation that narrowed his options later. The other Houses might consolidate or adapt in ways that complicated future operations.

"Haa..."

Rey weighed the options with cold calculation, considering everything he knew about the current situation.

The Fanged Serpent was destroyed—that removed immediate pressure on the Red House and weakened the conspiracy against Lady Z.

The Blue Lotus and Yellow Lily had pulled back their support, making them less aggressive threats. The corrupted Advisors were exposed and on edge.

But the Special Investigators were now a major factor.

They had capabilities he hadn’t fully accounted for. They were actively hunting whoever was responsible for the Desgarron incident.

And they’d just captured or destroyed his clone, which meant they knew someone had conducted the Fanged Serpent operation tonight.

Of course, the last part wasn’t yet confirmed to Rey, but he considered the possibility.

’They’ll investigate aggressively,’ Rey predicted. ’Try to identify who was responsible, attempt to connect tonight’s events to the Desgarron incident. But they’ll be working with limited information—no surviving witnesses from the Fanged Serpent, no evidence from my clone except possibly an empty body.’

The question was whether they could make enough progress in their investigation to threaten him before he achieved his critical objectives.

After several minutes of consideration, Rey made his decision.

Wait.

Not indefinitely, but long enough to see how the Special Investigators responded to tonight’s events.

If they flailed ineffectively, he could proceed with his plans at a measured pace.

If they demonstrated dangerous competence, he’d accelerate and accept the additional risks.

’The Category S Guards are the biggest threat to me in this city,’ Rey acknowledged. ’More dangerous than the corrupt Advisors, more capable than the other Houses. I need to understand their response before committing to major operations.’

He would use the waiting period productively—rebuild his depleted Scroll reserves, repair damaged Artifacts, and gather intelligence on the Special Investigators’ activities.

Then, he would position himself to move quickly when the opportunity arose, but avoid exposing himself unnecessarily while enemies were most alert.

Rey returned to his bed, settling in to rest properly after the night’s exertions.

His clone had died, but that was acceptable.

His objectives had been achieved, his alibi was solid, and he’d gained valuable information about enemy capabilities.

’Now, I await their next move...’