The Extra of The Lunerra

The second year of the academy... was making me realize more and more every day how different it was.

And that's mostly because of Jack and Cassandra.

Yes, I beat them in the arena.

Yes, I made my message clear.

But they haven't given up, and it doesn't look like they will. All they're doing is trying to do things a little more discreetly. But I can see what they're doing. I know what they want, and I know they're forming alliances until I disappear.

In short, they are not very difficult to deal with. They don't even realize what they're up against, so I don't have to pay much attention to them. Especially as long as Maeve is true to her word and continues to stand by me.

They just... how should I put it... keep me entertained, a little bit? Yeah... I'd be lying if I said it wasn't fun to deal with.

Other than that... everything's going as it should. Our company, which Ulka and Alex are doing a lot of work on, the academy, tracking Saligia, looking for Paul... everything.

The only thing I've been doing lately is going on with my academy life, getting status reports, and telling people what to do.

'You're bored, aren't you?'

Sith said these words as he sat cross-legged at the table in front of me. He was slightly raising his left eyebrow.

"Haaaaah... yeah. Yes, I'm bored. Very much so!"

I have no idea what to do... all I can do is prepare for what is about to happen and wait for it to happen.

I stared for a while, doing nothing and thinking nothing. Sith continued to watch me in silence.

'Why don't you hang out with your girlfriend instead of doing nothing?'

My eyes slowly drifted away from the wall to Sith, who was rolling his eyes at the table. Then I made a blank expression involuntarily.

"Actually... that makes a lot of sense."

*******

Okay, I remember the first time I came here... I realized that the rides in the amusement park were for people with mana and I turned my stomach upside down.

Turns out even that has its limits...

Because this time, I don't really feel anything, no nausea, no excitement, no fear...

Although... shouldn't my body be even worse than before because I'm crippled?

Is it because I've gotten used to the danger and action of war rather than because my stats have gone up...?

I paused for a moment when I realized that the war was having more of an effect on me than I thought. It was an awkward moment because I was getting off a bullet train at this very moment and there was screaming all around me, but still... it was an awkward moment, and as awkward as it was scary.

Because I felt like a war veteran.

'Aren't you, at least technically?''

Huh...

Actually... why did I think I wasn't?

"Aiden, hey?"

I snapped out of my thoughts and looked at the person walking next to me.

"Uh, yes?"

Her dark blue eyes remained fixed on my face for a moment, then she sighed lightly.

"You seem a little... bored."

"Ah, no. Don't misunderstand, it's not your fault."

I looked toward the bullet train we had boarded a minute ago.

"It's just... I guess these things don't impress me much anymore."

A look of understanding suddenly appeared on her face.

"Oh..."

Sue didn't say anything for a while, took her eyes off me, and kept walking in silence.

So we walked... and walked... and walked some more.

Finally, we stopped in front of the Ferris wheel to relax a bit before calling it a night, and as we slowly made our way upstairs, we were... silent again.

I curled my lips upward slightly, looked out, and watched the academy.

"It's a lot like the first time we were here, huh."

Sue kept her eyes on the academy.

"You're not taking me to the rector's office again... are you?"

"I can if you want, it's not too much of a problem."

"No, this is more than enough... but thank you."

She silently focused on the view, not moving a muscle. As I looked at her beautiful face, her eyes, I realized that I was immersed in her, just as she was immersed in the landscape.

The smile on my face widened. I secretly opened my watch, went into the camera and quietly took a picture of her.

It was perfect. The way she stood sideways to the camera, the tiny smile on her lips, the landscape behind her... it was a work of art.

But I didn't stop there, I opened a video this time and quietly started filming her.

At the sixth second, she realized something was wrong and turned toward me. Her eyes shifted to my watch and her expression suddenly changed.

"Are you recording a video...?"

"Yes."

Her eyes focused on the camera, looking directly at the video. She didn't stop until she gave a slight sigh.

"Don't record people unannounced."

"I don't record other people, I record my girlfriend."

The corner of her lip twitched. She continued to stare blankly for a while. Then she looked at me, and she continued to do so for a while. And then... her twitching lip curled upward slightly. She let out a little laugh.

"Huh, what happened?"

She put her chin in her hands and said only one thing this time.

"It's nothing. It's just... I'm happy, I guess."

She smiled deliberately this time, ignoring the camera.

"So, thank you."

She smiled so brightly, with her high charm, that for a moment I just stood where I was.

"Oh..."

I slowly turned off the camera and continued to stare at her like an idiot, and then a tiny smile appeared on my face too.

"I... thank you, I guess."

I turned my eyes back to the view and she did the same. The Ferris wheel started to take us down again.

Even though it was quiet... it was a nice and relaxing moment.

But in the middle of this silence, a notification echoed through the cabin. And it wasn't from me, but from... Sue's watch.

Sue gently raised her arm and checked the notification. Then her expression suddenly changed. Her upturned lips flattened and became serious.

It was such a sudden change that I couldn't help frowning.

"Is something wrong?"

Sue didn't answer. Instead, she transferred the watch's display to a larger holographic screen, enlarging it slightly to make it easier to read. Her eyes roamed over the holographic screen for a while.

"Sue, can you hear me, is something wrong?"

She paused, her eyes quickly leaving the holographic screen and turning to me.

"Huh? Ah..."

Her lips opened as if she was going to say something, then closed again. I don't know how much longer she could have made it clear that something was wrong, but for a brief moment, it was as if she wasn't sure what to say.

And yet she finally spoke.

And the words that fell from her lips made me stiffen where I was.

"My brother... Paul. He texted me."

Paul? The Paul we've been looking for everywhere but can't find...?

"But... he said weird things. He apologized, said he wouldn't be around for a while. He told me not to worry, that he'd be back. But... but I don't understand."

Before she said anything to me, she typed a reply to the message, pressed send and waited for a while. But then a warning appeared on his screen, a warning that the message could not be sent.

"W- what's going on?"

Her eyes left the screen completely, turned to me. She looked at me as if... as if she was begging. As if asking for help.

My eyes narrowed. I took a deep, really deep breath. I thought for a while about what I should do. I was torn between telling the truth and lying.

And in the end...

"I can look into it if you want."

I decided to postpone it for a little while, to find out what happened if I could, to follow up on that message, and then to talk to Sue.

"P- please do... has something happened to him? Don't let him be in danger..."

With every word she said, with every new thought that came to her mind, her face became more and more worried. And... all I could do was watch, nothing else.

"Okay..."

First, I have to understand what it is...

*******

After Sue and I parted ways, I contacted Melany, Ronald, and Lucas straight back. I told them what had happened and they quickly followed up on the message.

Their final destination was... a random building in Wiathen.

But only a few minutes after they got this information, a raid revealed that the house was completely empty. Paul had escaped again. In the CCTV footage, he can be seen leaving the apartment, there was even an image of him staring soullessly into the camera. But then he went down the stairs and disappeared again.

And that was the point at which I had to make a decision.

Paul took action. He's probably going to start getting actively involved... rather than just quietly running away.

I have to tell Sue.

I have to do it.

But... I'm scared. I'm scared of how she'll react, how it'll affect her, and so much more.

'You have to tell her, Aiden. You can't put it off any longer.'

Sith was very straightforward. Not just his words, but his face, too.

'Isn't she your girlfriend now? You have a relationship, you can support her. She may be devastated to learn the truth about her brother, but that's why you need to stand by her.'

"Haaaaah..."

I stood up slowly, step by step with my cane, and made my way outside.

"Okay. Thank you."

Sith landed on my shoulder, smiling a little.

'You're welcome.'

And... I made my choice. I slowly started to make my way toward Sue's room.