I'm an Extra, so What?-Chapter 69: God, Please Save Me

"Young Master! Are you okay? I heard such a big commotion—I tried to get in—"

Serene was a mess of anxiety, her face flushed with worry, chest rising and falling as she panted.

Sweat clung to her brow; she tried climbing over the graveyard's gate multiple times.

The look in her eyes said it all—she'd been moments away from breaking it down herself.

Luka placed a hand gently on her head. "Everything went well. Just a little hiccup, but I dealt with it."

Feeling his touch, Serene stilled.

Her frantic breathing slowed, and she nodded slightly, the tension in her shoulders loosening.

"If you say so…"

Luka retracted his hand, offering a subtle half-nod before turning toward the village where the warm lights glowed in the distance.

"Alright. You ready to head over?"

Serene clasped her hands in front of her chest, her voice lighter now, almost cheerful. "I'm ready!"

"Let's get moving then," Luka said as he began walking.

▬▬ι═══════ﺤ

Having arrived—

To Luka's surprise, he was met with a small crowd—people of all ages gathered near the entrance of the village.

They greeted him with bright smiles, words of thanks, and even some cheers.

He could only nod and offer a modest smile in return as he made his way deeper into the village.

Just ahead, Eldric had finished speaking to someone and turned, noticing.

His eyes lit up as he hurried over, his cane tapping rapidly against the ground.

"Sir adventurer! You really did it! You killed all the zombies!" Eldric beamed, his entire body trembling with joy.

"We heard that loud noise and feared the worst."

He looked up with genuine relief in his eyes.

"Now the children won't have to be afraid to sleep anymore…"

Luka scratched his cheek, a little flustered. "No big deal— I was wondering—"

But Eldric cut him off, nodding eagerly. "Oh! You want your reward, of course! Just give me a—"

"…" Luka quickly raised a hand, stopping him.

"No, no, forget the reward. I was just wondering if you had a place where I could rest for a bit?"

"Oh!" Eldric's eyes widened.

He nodded rapidly.

"Of course we do! You can stay as long as you'd like—free of charge! For an adventurer to refuse a reward after such a dangerous job… You're righteous! A true adventurer! Someone who protects the weak without expecting anything in return!"

"Huh?" Luka blinked, his mouth slightly open.

That wasn't exactly the reason—he just didn't care about the reward, since it was too small to matter to him.

But he let the old man finish and simply nodded, letting the praise wash over him and out the other ear.

"Enough of me kissing your ass. Please, let me guide you to the—" Eldric began, turning to walk, when suddenly a small group of young women appeared from the side.

They quickly surrounded Luka, their eyes sparkling with intent.

"Hey, sir adventurer, why not stay over at my place tonight?" one of them cooed, brushing her hair behind her ear.

"Ew, why would he stay with a woman like you? He obviously wants to stay with me!" another snapped, shooting a glare.

Both women locked eyes, and sparks practically flew between them.

"Please, you two are at best threes," a third woman chimed in with a scoff.

"He'd obviously prefer to stay with a beautiful woman like me." She let out a haughty laugh, covering her mouth with the back of her hand.

Another woman shoved past the others, purposefully placing her arms under her chest to push them up.

"Sir adventurer," she said sweetly, "you should rest at my home. It's the biggest and warmest in the entire village. I can also make sure you're warm."

She blushed, leaning in just enough to make her intent painfully clear.

"You whore!" all the other women snapped at once, glaring at her.

Luka let out a tired sigh and rubbed the bridge of his nose in annoyance.

'God, please save me…' he thought.

It wasn't like he was some pure virgin, afraid of spending the night with a beautiful woman.

Far from it.

But he had standards.

Throwing himself at just any woman—especially one that forward—wasn't his thing.

For all he knew, she had some disease or worse.

Just as he was about to speak and politely decline all their offers, someone stepped up for him.

To his surprise, it was his personal maid.

Serene stood in front of him like a protective shield, hands planted on her hips, her voice firm and cold.

"The Young Master will sleep in a private home! It would be beneath a noble to share a roof with commoners!"

She was fully in protective mode.

After all, Serene knew all too well how commoner women threw themselves at nobles, hoping to get pregnant and secure a future for themselves.

Not on her watch!

Not with her Young Master!

However, Serene's words had the opposite effect.

The moment she said "noble," everyone froze.

Eyes widened.

Mouths dropped.

And then, as if on cue, the entire group—women and even Eldric himself—dropped to their knees.

"I had no idea you were a noble! Please forgive me for speaking to you so casually!" Eldric exclaimed, grunting a little in pain as he bent one knee, gripping his cane tightly for support.

"Get up. It's all good." Luka reached down and helped the old man to his feet.

He turned his attention to the women, waving a hand.

"Seriously, it's fine. Just treat me casually. I'm not a huge fan of having my ass kissed."

The women stood up slowly, but now… they looked at him with stars—

No…

Hearts in their eyes.

Their cheeks were flushed, their fingers twirling hair or clutching skirts, and a few squirmed in place, as if struggling to contain themselves.

"…" Luka caught their stares and immediately turned back to the elder like his life depended on it.

"Anyway," he cleared his throat, "can you guide me to a home so I can rest?"

"Why, of course!" Eldric said, quickly setting off.

Luka and and his personal maid followed behind him—

Leaving the group of thirsty women behind.

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The Academy.

At the moment…

Kira was living in one of the small staff homes provided to teachers—

Her face was buried in her bed, face mashed into a pillow.

She hadn't moved all day.

She was dressed in her cute demon pajamas.

With a groan, Kira finally rolled onto her back and let out a long, exhausted breath.

"What is wrong with me…?" she muttered.

Ever since returning from Golem Mountain, something had felt off.

Not physically—her body was fine.

It was mental. Emotional. Twisted.

For the first time in what felt like forever, she didn't feel that familiar, sadistic pleasure when tormenting a human.

And the reason was simple: him.

Her student.

"He didn't beg for my help… he didn't try to get me killed… he didn't act like a normal human at all!"

Kira thrashed beneath the sheets, yanking the covers up over her head.

"Ughhh… I hate this feeling…"

No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get that damn smirk of his out of her mind—so cocky, so sure of himself, as he racked up more and more XP like it was nothing.

"That damn human…"

Kira clenched her fists and bit down on her lip, shaking her head with sudden urgency.

"He must've done something to me when I wasn't paying attention!" she hissed to herself, as if trying to force the blame somewhere—anywhere—other than where it belonged.

She sat up abruptly.

Her shoulders sagged.

"Impossible… How could a low-level human ever affect me?"

She knew her student hadn't done anything—he couldn't have.

He didn't even have any items on him.

Kira groaned, dragging both hands down her face.

"Ugh! I just can't wrap my head around it!"

With a small thud, she dropped backward, her head hitting the pillow as she glared up at the ceiling, utterly defeated by her own words and thoughts.

"I really need to figure this out…"

Kira rubbed her temples.

"Ugh, the Headmaster's going to bitch about me not being there…"

Too mentally exhausted to keep spiraling about her student and the strange feelings gnawing at her all day, she forced herself to change gears—anything to get her mind off him.

Her feet hit the rug with a soft thump as she finally dragged herself out of bed.

Her eyes drifted to the small bulletin board on the wall—a calendar cluttered with pinned notes and event flyers.

One, in particular, caught Kira's gaze.

"That's right… the annual Elf-Human Showdown is coming up."

Her brows furrowed.

"I wonder if my student will get picked…" she muttered—then froze.

"…Duh, of course. He's not like other humans—AH! Damn it!"

Slamming her eyes shut—

Kira rushed over to the sink.

She twisted the faucet and splashed cold water onto her face.

"Snap out of it! All humans are bad!" she shouted at her reflection in the water droplets, gripping the sink's edge.

"That includes my student! Yeah, especially him!"