How to Survive as an Extra Chapter 71 : Chapter 71

Chapter 71

After drinking the potion, I parted ways with Park Chaeshin.

Because this world lacked a status window, it was difficult to confirm any changes imdiately.

So we agreed that if there were changes, we would verify them later, and I left District 2.

Of course, the mont I boarded the tram leaving District 2, I used a coin and carefully examined the changes brought about by the potion.

[Durability 10.3] [Strength 4.7] [Stamina 5.8]

[Agility 20.0] [Intelligence 15.1] [Mana 8.1]

First of all, my Intelligence had increased by 4, reaching 15.1.

Considering that I had barely managed to raise my Strength and Stamina by one point each through mock training that consud an enormous number of coins, this increase was hard to believe.

Naturally, the increase in Intelligence led to a change in my abilities.

[*Erosion]

For a certain period of ti, erodes a designated area connected to the user’s shadow.

Dominates the environntal mana within the eroded area.

Enhances the effect of the ability ‘Bind’ within the eroded area.

Within the eroded area, all of the user’s stats increase by 2.

Within the eroded area, all stats of all targets except the user decrease by 2.

Within the eroded area, the abilities of items with ‘Earth’ and ‘Dark’ attributes are enhanced.

Within the eroded area, the abilities of items with ‘Wind’ and ‘Light’ attributes are weakened.

It was an ability that was difficult to grasp at a glance.

Moreover, it was not an ability I had written myself.

“Eroding a certain area…”

At the very least, it did seem to be the sa ability that An Hwigom had shown every night.

After all, it stated that it dominated environntal mana.

However, the additional effects listed below were anything but ordinary.

Stat increases and decreases, item restrictions, and the enhancent of the Bind ability…

[Bind]

For a certain period of ti, restricts a specific target connected to the user’s shadow in tandem with the user’s movents.

Applies the shadow to the bound target to exert physical pressure or restrict the flow of mana.

*When used within an eroded area, can bind all targets connected to the shadow.

*When used within an eroded area, the user’s movents are not restricted.

To learn its usage more precisely, I activated mock training and used Erosion.

An odd sensation wrapped around my entire body.

It felt as though my senses had fused with the surrounding terrain connected by my shadow.

Even without seeing or hearing, it felt as though I could perceive everything happening within the eroded field.

When I used my Demonic Eye to examine the eroded surroundings, I detected a flow of mana that was slightly different from An Hwigom’s.

“Is it a difference in attributes…?”

Unlike An Hwigom, whose mana influenced the ambient air, my mana was exerting its influence around the shadows cast on the ground.

It was probably a fundantal difference between An Hwigom, who used wind, and , who used shadows.

After testing a few things, I imdiately deactivated Erosion.

Maintaining it was far too exhausting.

It really drove ho just how monstrous An Hwigom was for using Erosion throughout his two-hour training sessions.

“If I tried to use Bind on top of Erosion… that would be overload on top of overload.”

Thanks to my Intelligence exceeding 15, the situation was sowhat better, but without an improvent in my mana, even attempting it would be difficult.

Still, it was an ability with exceptional performance.

Debuffs themselves were rare, and Bind was strengthened as well.

Of course, it was not a powerful offensive tool like Lee Eunho’s or Gong Minwu’s abilities, but there was no doubt that it was outstanding when it ca to escaping crises.

“But if Light-attribute items are weakened, that ans the Mist-Clearing Sword becos less effective…”

A sword that was nothing but sturdy and otherwise useless.

Letting out a sigh, I deactivated the coin usage.

As color returned to the world around , the tram resud moving at high speed, as if it had never stopped.

After passing a couple of stops, a ssage from Yu Hyeonjeong popped up on my smartwatch.

– Investigation Division Yu Hyeonjeong: The Principal has drafted the approval letter for the alliance club. All that remains is contacting the academies within the 4th Scholastic District. For this part, persuading the General Student Council first would be the most effective approach. Therefore…

It was so long that I had to scroll through the light projected above my smartwatch several tis.

In short, it ant this:

“Well, things are going smoothly.”

***

The Monday of the week before the end-of-month evaluation.

At Outdoor Training Ground No. 3, Training Instructor An Hwigom’s weaponry skills lecture was underway.

Weaponry skills was a simple class where, during the final week of every month, the cadet who collected the most bells would spar with An Hwigom, and points would be added or deducted based on the outco.

If there was one additional rule, it was that mana could not be directly discharged.

It was a sowhat old-fashioned style of sparring, but regardless of how bizarre the rules were, the person who sparred with An Hwigom was always the sa.

“Bells.”

“Tch, I wanted to beat you this ti, Minwu.”

It was Gong Minwu.

He had just defeated a cadet who had been showing promise in sparring and had taken nearly all of the bells.

Securing more than half of the bells would have been enough to guarantee a spar, yet he continued fighting relentlessly, as if he intended to take every cadet’s bells.

That was simply his nature.

It was also his way of establishing dominance over whatever goal he set his sights on, through overwhelming skill.

“Do you think Minwu can beat the instructor this ti?”

“I do not know. The upperclassn say that just avoiding point deductions so far is already impressive.”

“Impressive? You must not know what kind of guy Minwu is. This ti, it will probably be pretty even. It is already their third spar. He must have figured out the instructor’s weaknesses by now.”

“He is right. Gong Minwu’s style is to completely crush any opponent.”

Just as the cadets expected, the one to climb onto the golem’s stone platform this ti would also be Gong Minwu.

Of course, before that…

He would not be satisfied until he took my last remaining bell as well.

Before I knew it, Gong Minwu had stepped onto the training ground where I stood and faced as if he were about to start sparring imdiately.

“Ji Seokhyeon, you are the last one.”

“Looks like it turned out that way.”

“……”

Of course, it was no coincidence.

I had been aiming for a spar with Gong Minwu from the beginning.

That was why I had not sparred for bells over the past three weeks.

To begin with, there had been no cadets eager to step onto the training ground with , and rather than crossing blades with half-baked opponents, watching Gong Minwu’s spars had been far more worthwhile.

“Coincidence or not, it does not matter.”

“That works out nicely.”

Unlike his first spar, Gong Minwu grasped a training spear and assud his stance.

A posture that was nearly flawless, without a single wasted movent.

In response, I lowered my stance and raised my sword.

They said that you only see as much as you know.

After training with An Hwigom, I had co to realize just how perfect Gong Minwu’s stance was, to the point where it almost felt wrong for a novice like to face him.

Just standing there with our blades raised made it painfully clear that he was an opponent I could not defeat through conventional ans.

Even so, I had no intention of losing without a fight.

I had waited for this spar to gauge my growth, and I planned to push myself as far as I could.

With my bell held hostage, he would not take it lightly either.

I took a deep breath, trying to suppress my nerves.

But before I could even complete a single breath, Gong Minwu kicked off the ground.

“…!”

It was a straight, direct charge.

He held the spear shaft close, as if gripping a short spear, a decision clearly made to ensure a decisive cut, and the spearhead was angled downward to slice upward along a diagonal.

I tilted my body toward the outside of the spear shaft.

In that brief instant, the spear tip lost its direction and hesitated, ultimately piercing empty air as it grazed past my thigh.

“……”

“……”

A brief silence.

Then the spear blade moved again to cut into my side, and I deftly raised the flat of my sword to block it.

Clang!

The dull sound of blades grinding against each other.

Only then did Gong Minwu speak, having sensed sothing amiss.

“…Did you dodge that on purpose?”

“Who knows.”

I widened the distance between us again.

This ti, Gong Minwu did not rush in, instead watching my movents carefully.

“Your grip on the sword has beco quite natural.”

“I have worked hard, at least as much as the number of chips missing from the blade.”

“You can tell by clashing blades. That sword is not the kind that would chip like it has from being hacked apart. …What kind of training are you doing?”

Hacked apart…

Well, considering it was a product of Hyeonseong, rumored to have a dwarf blacksmith tied down, perhaps that was only natural.

Without answering, I adjusted my grip on the sword, urging him on.

After a mont, he kicked off the ground again, his expression clearly displeased.

This ti, he held the spear shaft farther back.

He was clearly aiming to use his range advantage for a thrust.

Just as Gong Minwu took his final step forward, I stepped back as if I had been waiting for it.

The spear tip stopped right in front of my chin, no more than a fist’s width away.

“So you really did dodge it knowingly…”

As I naturally widened the distance again, I replied,

“I just got lucky.”

“…Then I suppose I should test how far that luck goes.”

The mont he finished speaking, Gong Minwu launched a more agile assault than before.

His movents were seasoned, far beyond what one would expect for his age.

Still, compared to the ambushes I had endured from An Hwigom, his attacks were a step or two behind.

To the point that I almost found myself wishing, “If this were An Hwigom, he would have attacked like this.”

I used every corner of the training ground to evade and block his strikes with my sword.

In the past, I would have been knocked out of the ring long ago, but now my body reacted instinctively, pulling out of danger ti and again.

“Shouldn’t he be getting beaten down about now?”

“Yeah… Is Minwu going easy on him?”

“H-He must be, right? I an, how long can that social care beneficiary bastard possibly last?”

As always, the cadets gathered around the training ground began tearing into .

Still, I could not completely deny their words.

With my chronically low Strength and Stamina, overturning this one-sided situation was difficult.

At so point, Gong Minwu began wielding two spears at once, unleashing relentless attacks without pause.

When I collapsed awkwardly to the ground, he gave no ti to get up and stabbed with the spearhead, and when I barely managed to block the shaft with my sword, the spear in his other hand slashed toward my neck.

“Are you just going to keep dodging?”

“Dodging? I have been blocking too.”

“…Then keep it up.”

I had started this spar to asure my growth, but the longer it went on, the more it rely proved how lopsided my stats were.

As a matter of fact, even during our first spar, I had been able to read his movents.

The only difference now was that, thanks to the countless ambushes from An Hwigom, my flailing had beco more efficient.

How many more attacks could I block?

My stamina was nearing its limit, and my muscles felt sluggish, as if they were overloaded.

It was like knowing all the answers to a test but lacking enough ink in the pen to mark them down—an absurd situation.

Compared to An Hwigom’s training, which constantly pushed beyond my limits, I could still catch my breath here, but I did not want to lose by being chased down like this.

I fixed my gaze on Gong Minwu’s movents once more.

Not to dodge, and not to defend, but to find a way to win this spar.

…

What if I dodged an attack and counterattacked in the opening?

What about cutting the wooden shaft of the spear with my sword to disarm him?

What if I moved first to seize the initiative…?

I racked my brain for every possible approach, but in the end, there was only one thing I could do.

Steal the leather pouch at his waist, stuffed full of bells.

In other words, adhere faithfully to the original purpose of this bell-stealing ga.

Soon, Gong Minwu broke into a run.

In response, I charged straight toward him.

Closing the distance against Gong Minwu, who wielded two spears, was undoubtedly difficult.

Reaching for the leather pouch attached to his clothing was even more so.

But from the mont he kicked off the ground, every step of his movent unfolded vividly before my eyes.

The position of the hands gripping the spear shafts.

The shorter stride compared to before.

And the height of his charging posture…

Maintaining my running speed, I hurled the sword I was holding with all my strength.

I aid it at Gong Minwu’s left spear, since he was left-handed.

As expected, when the sword ca flying in close, he swung his spear to knock it aside.

Clang-.

In that instant, an opening appeared on his left side.

I darted into that gap, surging forward, and in the blink of an eye, the leather pouch was right in front of .

“…!”

One of the spear shafts was already following through to stop .

Gong Minwu’s face twisted in visible shock, while I boldly grabbed the leather pouch and yanked it with all my might.

Rip!

The sound of leather tearing.

At the sa ti, with a whoosh, the spear shaft that had been swinging struck my side.

“Urgh!”

That was how I was knocked down for the first ti in today’s spar.

I barely avoided being sent flying off the training ground, but before I could even push myself up, the cold tip of Gong Minwu’s spear was leveled at my chin.

“You…”

Towering over with his 190-centiter fra, Gong Minwu looked down at .

More precisely, at the leather pouch clenched in my hand.

He opened his mouth as if to speak, then closed it again.

My actions clearly displeased him, but they were still within the rules.

This ga was about “stealing” the opponent’s bells through sparring.

He understood that fact as well, which was why he could not continue.

“…So, wait. Does that an Minwu lost?”

“What are you talking about? That bastard is the one who got knocked down.”

“But he stole the bells before that.”

“Well, that is…”

Murmurs rippled through the crowd around the training ground.

I tried to get up, but the bluish spear tip aid at my chin did not budge an inch.

At that mont, An Hwigom’s sharp voice rang out.

“Lower your weapon.”

“……”

“The outco of the spar has been decided. There is no need to cling to it any further.”

An Hwigom, who had climbed onto the training ground at so point, snatched the leather pouch from my hand.

And then…

“You are the winner.”

He held it out to Gong Minwu.

“……”

“…!”

It was completely unexpected.

Although the flow of the spar had been one-sided, it was undeniably I who had stolen the bells according to the ga’s rules.

“By the rules of the ga, didn’t I win? It is about stealing bells.”

“True. As you say, stealing the bells is all that matters.”

“Then why…”

For a mont, An Hwigom gave a aningful look.

A strangely familiar expression…

Sure enough, his next words were thoroughly unpleasant.

“To my eyes, it looks like your neck gets skewered by a spear, and this one retrieves his pouch.”

“……”