The Unrecorded Extra

The scent of lavender assaulted my nostril as Lumi approached us, I felt my body tense up but managed to keep my expression straight.

"Oh, Lumi."

Lux waved meanwhile Ayano slightly bowed politely as she did to me earlier.

As Lumi was only a few steps away from us, it was then that she noticed me. Her emerald eyes glinted in recognition as she stared at me.

"You're…" There was a long stretched pause between her words as she thought about what to say. "The playboy in my class, Zio Varrez, right?"

"Huh?" I surprised. Of course, who wouldn't be surprised when someone suddenly called you a playboy when even you did nothing, and never hooked up with a girl?

I heard gasps behind me, which I knew were coming from Lux and Ayano.

Lux looked at me with disappointed eyes and Ayano gave me a side look.

"I never thought you are like that…" said Lux, shaking his head.

Beside him, Ayano was shaking her head too.

"Huh? No? I'm not a playboy, though?"

"You are not?" Lumi asked with a surprised face.

"I'm not," I said firmly.

"Hee…"

Lumi observed me for a while before turning her attention back to Lux and Ayano.

"Anyway, have you guys decided which club to join?"

"We're talking about it right now. Me and Zio are going to apply for the Explorer Club, and Ayano said she is going to Tea Ceremony Club," said Lux.

Though I said I was still considering my choice, I did not argue with what Lux said. Because in the end, I would still join it unless I found a way so I could join the Tea Ceremony Club instead.

"You too? Explorer Club?"

Lumi's eyes shifted to me with a pure shocked expression, almost felt like she was going for that with what everything I did.

Too much of that and her jaws might fall off…

"Yes. Though I'm still considering my choice, there are still clubs with outdoor activities other than the Explorer Club after all."

She eyed me for a while, and curiosity filled in her face.

I smirked inwardly. I knew that whenever Lumi started to look at someone's face for longer than 10 seconds and even looked at them again and again, it meant that she was interested in said person.

Not romantically, though.

She was the heir of the Nova Corps as well as the Nova Guild, ranked second only after the Prodigy Eclipse Guild. As an heir, obviously, she would be the next head of the organization, and guess what was the head of the organization looking for?

Yes, talent. Someone who has extraordinary talent was sought after by every organization.

Her purpose in enrolling in the academy was to look for that talent and by now, she must be already set her eyes on Lux, who hadn't been affiliated with any organization.

I also believed that she was setting her eyes on me too.

No. I was not arrogant or confident, it was just because I knew about her nature.

If she did not put an interest in me, she wouldn't even remember my name. Knowing my name and even called me a 'playboy', meaning that she always observed me in class.

I had a hunch that she started to take an interest in me since the Practice Hunt where I ranked third. I did so because at that time I was already planning to get Lumi curious about me,

'How did the 911th come in third?' was probably what she thought when she saw the rankings.

The reason why I wanted to get Lumi curious about me was that she might help me to reach my goal.

I had decided that I would take a risk by interfering with the main characters, even if that meant the plot would be altered. An altered plotline wasn't a problem in the first place if I wanted to prevent the bad ending, instead, it was good.

Since the world had a bad ending, it meant that if I was to follow the original story and only changed a little thing here and there, then it would just lead to another bad ending.

If I wanted to change it, instead of following the plotline, it'd be much better to completely alter everything as long as Lux who would be the strongest alive.

Back to Lumi, she could help me with my financial situation. I wanted to make a deal with her, to produce the Catalyst Potion.

"How about you, Lumi?" Lux asked.

Lumi reluctantly shifted her eyes from me to Lux and Ayano.

"Ah. I'm also planning to join the Explorer Club…"

My mind drifted away as I listened to their conversation.

Memories were being played in my head, I did not know whose memory it was but it showed me a gruesome scene where a city was burning, engulfed by the raging red inferno.

I opened my eyes immediately as soon as they came to my mind.

'That scene again…'

The same memory, and the same scene of the burning city that I first had seen at the welcoming ceremony a month ago.

It was always being played in my head every time I did not hold on to my consciousness such as when I was sleeping or had my mind wandering, empty.

Because of that, I could now tell what it meant.

There were three events or incidents that related to the burning, flame, raging inferno, etc. in the story.

First, was Nuria's last heroic moment before she died.

Second, was when the third catastrophe arrived.

And third, was the demon in the New Avian.

Though I was not sure yet which of the tree the scene I saw referring to.

Just then, a loud voice coming from the nearby booth disrupted my thought.

"Ah! Welcome, welcome, first-year students!" The senior started.

"We are the Explorer Club, a club dedicated to exploring the unknown and uncharted territories of our world. Our expeditions cover everything from mountain climbing to deep-sea diving, and we are always seeking new adventures to embark upon," they paused, scanning the crowd filled with enthusiasm.

As he smiled, he continued,

"However, the club is actually more lenient towards ancient sites and ruins exploring, as we are particularly interested in uncovering the mysteries of the past. Join us if you have a thirst for adventure and a passion for uncovering the secrets of the world!"

Lux looked at Ayano who stood beside him.

"Ayano, are you sure you don't want to come with us to the Explorer Club?"

Ayano slightly shook her head, her hand also gesturing rejection.

"Sorry, but no. I will join the Tea Ceremony Club."

Lux, a bit looked disappointed, but did not fully express it, sighed.

"I see."

Ayano giggled softly, "Don't be like that. You will make me feel bad."

She looked around.

"Then… I'll look for the Tea Ceremony Club's booth. See you later, Lux. Zio Varrez and Lumi too," she waved at us, then ran toward another booth.

My eyes followed her until she disappeared from my sight. Then, feeling a tap on my shoulder, I found Lux.

"How about you, Zio? You are joining the Explorer Club, right?"

I thought for a moment.

"Yes," I said, followed by a sigh.

With that, we lined up in front of the Explorer Club's booth.

It took us 30 minutes until we found ourselves standing in front of the booth's reception, manned by the senior.

"Welcome, are three of you applying for the Explorer Club?"

What an obvious question with an obvious answer. Was there even any purpose for asking this?

"Yes, senior."

"Great choice! Please fill this form first!"

The senior handed us three pieces of paper and pens.

The form consisted of the applicant's personal identification such as name, student ID, class and year, hobby, etc.

I filled in the form, but since I was not particularly good at writing on paper and using a pen, I could only hope that they could read it.

I was a digitalized person, I meant, everything I did was done on digital platforms. Just like the vessel tube blueprint, which I had drawn on my tablet, and the text was done by typing on a digital keyboard.

The senior's face looked troubled when he saw my form, but he did not say outright to me that my writing was bad and unreadable, better learn how to write.

"Lux Virtus. Uhh, Zio Varrez…?" There was a bit of uncertainty in his voice. "...and Lumi Alicia Alexa?!"

The senior swiftly shifted his eyes from the paper form and Lumi's face alternately.

"Oh, goodness gracious! It's an honor to have the heir of Nova Guild in our club!"

We were surprised when the seniors suddenly jumped and stood from their seats, gazing at Lumi in awe.

"Please, don't be like that, senior. We are all students here, social standing is nothing if not just a hassle, and I am your junior. I hope you won't treat me differently as the other students just because I'm an heir of my father's guild."

Why did that sound like she came from a royal family in a kingdom-fantasy novel? Oh well, whatever. I had promised I wouldn't be surprised again…