The Extra of The Lunerra

Security at the academy almost kicked me out because I didn't have any identification. But thanks to Melany, I somehow managed to figure it out, so I didn't reveal my name.

And... when I saw the familiar buildings of the academy, I couldn't help but smile. I didn't really care about the strange looks a few students gave me. I just... missed this place, the air, literally everything about it.

But I didn't stay where I was for long. I moved before I was recognized by the strange looks of a few students, and my destination was... probably one of the places I had visited the most in the entire academy.

The Research Laboratories.

With Melany's help in advance this time, I went straight in without any security issues. I didn't even have to bother with the reception desk. I simply walked up to Ulka's room and pressed the button next to the door.

First, I waited for a few seconds, and then the door slowly opened. And... a familiar figure looked at me through the gap.

It was not Ulka. On the contrary, it was someone I didn't expect to see here.

Alexander Callidas.

"Oh, well... hi?"

I looked into his eyes as I curled my lips up slightly, but... he continued to look at me with a cold expression. It was almost the same expression he had before the dungeon, before we started to trust each other.

No, he looked much worse... actually.

Yet, shortly after he heard my voice, his expression changed. First, his brow furrowed, then a look of confusion crossed his face.

"Aiden?"

"Bingo!"

"Oh..."

For a moment, he just stayed where he was. His eyes left me, fixed on the floor as if he was thinking about something. Then he sighed slightly. When he turned his eyes back to me, this time... his lips curled upward.

"You already woke up, huh... I thought you'd let me know first."

"I'm being a bit... stealthy and quiet for now. You know, I'm a bit of a celebrity and all..."

I slowly walked into the lab and Alex closed the door behind me.

I took a deep breath in and out as I lowered myself into one of the armchairs just to the left of the door, just as Alex took the seat opposite me.

My eyes searched for Ulka, but he was nowhere to be seen. It was a bit... strange since he was always in his lab.

But there was something even stranger.

"I didn't... expect you to be here, to be honest."

Alex reached for one of the plates on the table in front of the armchairs. There were unpeeled oranges on it.

"You said you were working with Professor Ulka. So... I went to him because I couldn't reach you after I decided to accept your offer."

"And you got close enough to work in his lab, huh? I don't doubt you and your skills, don't get me wrong... I was just a little surprised because..."

He rolled his eyes as he peeled one of the oranges and finished my sentence himself.

"I know, Professor Ulka is a bit... difficult."

I smiled slightly, and then I couldn't help but let out a small laugh.

"Exactly. But you've already succeeded, apparently. So it's not that big of a deal."

When he finished peeling the orange with his hands, he split it in half and handed one to me. I accepted it without objection, and we both popped a slice into our mouths at the same time.

The orange was... good. I cannot lie.

"Oh, not that I remember... how's your mom? Did the plant work?"

Alex stopped chewing the orange in his mouth for a brief moment, his whole body just froze. It was such a strange reaction that I couldn't help frowning, but Alex recovered quickly. He swallowed the orange in his mouth forcefully and sighed deeply as his eyes slid to the floor.

"My mom... she's dead, Aiden."

A heavy silence fell over the room for a moment. The smile faded from my face as my furrowed brow slowly straightened. I didn't even pause to ask my next question.

"Who did it?"

It would be another year before his mother died of her disease. So there's no way her death is... natural. I even gave his son the plant that would help her recover pretty fast.

So the only possibility is that one of the idiot nobles wanted to send Alex a 'warning'. I can't think of anything else.

"It's nothing to worry about. I've already taken care of it. I was doing something similar on my side while you were fighting in a war."

"So... you killed the person responsible?"

It's not... overly surprising that he could do that. Because Alex is strong, even though he's relatively weak for the world he's in. He's smart, really smart, and he has a great skill that allows him to showcase that intelligence in a spectacular way.

There are very few people on Lunerra who would want him as an enemy. That goes even for me.

"Yes. It was Count Herun and a few minor nobles who collaborated with him. I had refused to join their group before. They resented me, apparently..."

He had a cold expression on his face as he popped the last orange slice into his mouth.

"But I also resented them a bit."

"I see..."

I leaned back slightly on the couch. I was silent for a short while.

"I'm... sorry for your loss. Which cemetery is she buried in? I'll visit her sometime."

"In Fuhra City, Martin Cemetery."

And... that was that. Nothing more needed to be said.

Yes, it was a development that surprised me... but there was nothing I could do about it. There was no point in apologizing to Alex several times. There was no point in opening old wounds any further.

I was a little worried, though. Because Alex... was too attached to his mother, too caring. In a world without her... I was pretty sure he'd rather commit suicide, but he was in front of me now, and he didn't look suicidal.

Still, that didn't stop me from worrying. So I decided to observe him a little bit, to see how his behavior was now and how his mother's death had affected him.

But this was a task that would take time. So... it was more important to move forward with the things we were going to talk about.

"I'll cal-"

I was interrupted by the sudden opening of the door behind me. When I turned my head to check who had entered, I saw a very familiar face again.

Professor Ulka closed the door as soon as he entered. He looked at Alex and then at me. Then, he sighed.

"I thought you would wait a little longer before coming."

I smiled slightly. It was a nice coincidence that the person I was going to call showed up right on my word.

"I was in a bit of a hurry, Professor. Why don't you sit down? I'm going to take up some of your time today, for your information."

Ulka didn't say anything as if he had already guessed what I was going to say, and took one of the empty seats. He took a slice, as did Alex, who kept reaching for the oranges on the table. Then, without waiting for me, he started talking.

"I've hired most of the people on the list you gave me before you left. They're still at their jobs, but they'll quit as soon as I send them a message. There may be a few who will cause trouble... but given the contract they signed, there won't be many of them. In short, we have our people ready."

I nodded with satisfaction and Ulka continued.

"For the moment... our only problem is funding for the company and a specialized laboratory. A big one. With only the money I have, there's only so far we can go."

"Ah, funding and the lab are not so important... You know who I am, don't you?"

Ulka waited a moment before answering. A look of understanding suddenly appeared in his eyes.

"The Holar Republic... They will provide the funding?"

"That's right. I'll also have them arrange the building for the company, so it's not something we need to think about too much. So... let's talk about the future now, shall we?"

They were both silent. And I continued.

"I'll be a noble soon. I don't think I'll be a marquis or a duke, but I'm sure I won't be a simple baron. And you are a count. As two counts, we shouldn't have too much trouble with opening a company. As for what we will do..."

And... I kept talking like that. I told them in turn most of the things that I had prepared for the future, at least as far as the company and the nobility were concerned.

It was quite simple, actually. We were going to create a large laboratory that would sell potions and enhanced runes to the guilds, and we were also going to create a team to do research on an ongoing basis. This would be the tip of the iceberg.

On the invisible side of that iceberg, though... things were changing a little bit. And that's where a lot of the things that I talked about were related to. We were even getting a little bit illegal in that regard.

Alex and Ulka noticed a couple of small issues and asked about them. I answered a few of them, and a small number of them were problems that even I didn't realize.

But at the end of the day, none of them were things that we would have found extremely difficult to solve.

Minutes turned into minutes. And then... hours. Time flew by quickly. And so, I talked with Ulka and Alex for a total of two and a half hours. We discussed a lot of things about the plan, we sorted things out, and planned even more.

But we all seemed to be satisfied with the result. We had identified the potential problems, we had chosen the solutions, and now... all we had to do was to open the company in a few days with my nobility and get the funding we wanted.

And then everything would go smoothly.

So... I had no more business here.

"If there are any problems, call me. And send a notice to the people we have signed contracts with so that they are ready, ready to leave their current jobs. For now... I'm off."

And they had no objections either.

The first thing I checked after leaving the Research Laboratories was the position of the sun.

The days were quite long because it was July of the year. So the sun was still setting. Therefore, I had plenty of time.

So I turned my steps toward the place I visit the most in the academy after the Research Labs... The hospital.

*(A/N: Okay, I've set a new schedule for the chapters from this point onwards. There will be a chapter every two days for sure. Sometimes, if I have extra chapters, I might do a mass release, or I might publish a chapter on an off day, but that will be the general schedule.

Now... my question is this. Should I make the chapters a little bit longer because I'm going to do it this way or not? I'm trying to keep most of the chapters around 1800 words for now, but since I'm going to be posting a chapter every two days, I can increase that a little bit. That shouldn't be a problem. But should I do that? If the chapters are longer, will they be boring or dull? Or is it not a problem? It would be nice if you could give me your opinion.)*