The Extra's Rise-Chapter 276: Second Mission Interlude (5)

With my coma behind me and fall break officially started, it was time to get back to work.

Of course, before that, I had a slightly more pressing matter to handle—namely, the three other girls who had been blocked from seeing me while I was unconscious.

By Rachel.

For an entire month.

I was now sitting at a lounge in Creighton estate, surrounded by four very different—but equally dangerous—women.

Rachel, of course, sat beside me, looking smug and unapologetic.

Cecilia, on the other hand, sat directly across from her, arms folded, her golden curls shining under the soft lighting. Her usual teasing smirk was absent. Instead, she radiated the kind of calm that only came before a storm.

"So," Cecilia drawled, tilting her head, her piercing gaze locked onto Rachel. "You kidnapped my darling Arthur for an entire month."

Rachel sipped her tea, utterly unbothered. "I nursed him back to health."

"You imprisoned him."

Rachel shrugged. "Semantics."

Cecilia exhaled slowly, gripping her teacup with far more force than necessary. "Do you have any idea how close I was to declaring war?"

I nearly choked on my own drink. "What?"

Cecilia turned to me with a sigh, waving a delicate hand. "Well, obviously, I wouldn’t have actually started a war. But I did consider it."

I blinked. "That doesn’t make it better."

Seraphina, who had been silent up until now, took a slow sip of her tea before speaking. "I wouldn’t have gone that far," she said in her usual quiet tone, "but I was considering a more… subtle retaliation."

That didn’t sound comforting at all.

Rachel sighed dramatically. "Come on, it wasn’t that bad."

"Rachel," Rose finally spoke up, giving her a disapproving look. "You literally kept him cuffed."

"Only sometimes!"

"For a month!"

"…Fine," Rachel muttered, looking away. "Maybe a little bad."

"A little," Seraphina repeated, her brow twitching ever so slightly.

I pinched the bridge of my nose. "Let’s move on."

Cecilia let out an exaggerated sigh, finally turning her full attention to me. "Well, now that you’re finally free—" she shot Rachel a pointed look "—are you at least feeling better?"

I nodded. "Yeah. Stronger, too."

Seraphina’s gaze softened slightly as she set her cup down. "It’s been a while since we last spoke properly," she murmured.

I turned to her, meeting her ice blue eyes. "Yeah," I admitted. "It has."

A moment of quiet passed between us.

Seraphina wasn’t the type to voice her emotions outright, but there was a lot unsaid in the way she looked at me. The last time we had truly spoken, things had been left… unsteady.

I sighed. "Seraphina, I—"

"You don’t need to say it," she interrupted gently. "I understand."

But she still smiled. And for Seraphina, that was enough.

Cecilia clapped her hands together. "Good. Now that we’ve all made up, let’s talk about something important—how exactly are we getting back at Rachel for this?"

Rachel groaned. "Oh, come on—"

’I honestly think that if something bad happened to you, a world war would break out,’ Luna mused in my mind.

I ignored her.

"Anyway, Arthur—" Rose said, smoothly tuning out the ongoing bickering between Rachel and Cecilia. "How did you end up in a coma to begin with?"

I told them everything.

The corruption of the Redknot Guild. The infiltration of the cult. My battle against a Bishop. And, of course—Reika Solienne.

Seraphina cut in immediately. "Reika?"

A crack rang through the air.

We all turned just in time to see Cecilia setting down a tea cup—or what was left of it. A fracture ran clean through the ceramic, a small piece chipping off.

Cecilia, however, didn’t look the least bit bothered.

"Oh, sorry," she said, voice light, turning to Rachel. "My bad."

Rachel, who had definitely noticed, merely sipped her tea. "It’s alright."

Cecilia gave a small smile, but her next words were drenched in pure, weaponized irritation.

"It’s just that Arthur keeps seducing more women and increasing competition, which is—how do I put this—annoying."

Her crimson eyes flicked to me, sharp as laser sights.

I immediately raised my hands. "No, I didn’t do that."

"You didn’t?" Cecilia drawled.

"Reika doesn’t like me," I said firmly.

Rose sighed. "You didn’t tell him?" she asked Rachel.

Rachel, who had the audacity to look guilty, averted her gaze. "No."

Seraphina muttered something under her breath.

"Evil Saintess,"

Rachel blushed.

"Anyway—" Cecilia leaned back, still looking far too amused, "that Reika girl? After us, she was the most insistent person trying to see you while you were unconscious."

I frowned. "What?"

"Maybe even more than us."

That got my full attention. "What?"

"After all," Cecilia said, tilting her head, "you’re her knight in shining armor! Her savior! Well done, Arthur."

She clapped, a slow, deliberate motion.

She was smiling.

But her eyes told me a very different story.

I seduced her? I just saved her life. If anything, I probably should’ve scared her instead. That would’ve been the reasonable outcome.

’No, you dumbass,’ Luna groaned, exasperation thick in her tone. ’In her eyes, you were willing to throw your life away fighting for her. And, objectively speaking, you seem to have a handsome face by human standards, so it’s obvious she fell for you.’

’I am one hundred percent sure that is not the case,’ I responded, completely certain.

’Just accept your goddamn fate already,’ Luna sighed, like a being that had long given up hope.

I sighed, too. Internally.

At least I wasn’t alone in my suffering.

Across the table, Rose placed a firm hand over mine, her brown eyes filled with the rare, sincere kind of concern. "No more, Arthur."

I blinked. "What?"

"No more," she repeated, tightening her grip. "You’re already surrounded by these three—"

Rachel, Cecilia, and Seraphina all turned to her with identical expressions of pure indignation.

Rose ignored them. "—and if you get any more possessive girls like them, you will not survive."

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I thought about denying it.

Then I thought about the past twenty-four hours.

Then I decided that Rose had a very valid point.

"Anyway," Cecilia coughed, sitting up a little straighter. "I do have one important question."

I already didn’t like where this was going.

"Do you like being cuffed?"

I closed my eyes.

Breathed in.

Breathed out.

Opened them.

Closed them again.

Then finally exhaled through my nose.

All four of them were staring at me expectantly.

Even Rachel—who I had specifically told that I hated being cuffed—looked like she was hoping for a different answer.

"No."

Cecilia and Rachel actually sulked.

Meanwhile, Seraphina—who had been completely neutral in this conversation so far—subtly moved her fingers.

A soft, crystalline glint flickered between them.

I chose, for the sake of my sanity, to pretend I didn’t see it.

’I didn’t see that,’ I told myself firmly.

And for the preservation of my already fragile peace of mind, I would continue to not see it.

The conversation, much to my dismay, did not move on from my apparent dislike of being restrained.

"Are you sure you don’t like it?" Cecilia pressed, twirling a lock of golden hair between her fingers.

"Positive."

"Not even a little?" Rachel added, leaning forward slightly, her sapphire eyes gleaming with interest.

"Absolutely not."

"So if we tied you up and—"

"Rachel," Rose cut in, rubbing her temple, "please stop."

"Fine," Rachel huffed, pouting. "But I still think he might change his mind someday."

I gave her a flat look. "Don’t hold your breath."

Seraphina, for her part, had remained quiet, though she looked suspiciously pleased with herself. Which, given her usual composure, was honestly more concerning than if she had joined in.

I was about to change the subject entirely when the magnetic doors to the lounge slid open with a soft hiss.

A man in deep navy robes stepped inside, his posture formal but tense.

Rachel turned her head. "What is it?"

The mage bowed slightly. "Apologies for the interruption, Lady Creighton. But someone important has just arrived at the estate."

Rachel raised an eyebrow. "How important?"

The mage hesitated for a fraction of a second—long enough that even I felt the shift in atmosphere.

"The Martial King has requested an audience with Arthur Nightingale," he said at last.

Silence.

Absolute, utter silence.

Then—

"Who?" I asked, blinking.

The mage’s expression didn’t change. "The Martial King. Rank One in the world."

A slow, creeping realization set in.

Cecilia lowered her tea cup.

Seraphina’s fingers stilled.

Rose straightened.

Rachel, to her credit, maintained a relatively composed expression—except for the slight widening of her eyes.

"He wants to meet Arthur?" she clarified.

The mage nodded. "Yes, my lady. He specifically requested Arthur Nightingale."

Four pairs of eyes turned to me.

I stared back, my brain still processing the fact that the strongest individual on the entire planet was apparently in this very estate—and, for some reason, had specifically requested to meet me.

This was going to be interesting.