An Extra’s Rise in an Eroge

"Damn it! Domain Declaration is draining my mana too fast!" Elena gritted her teeth, frustration evident on her face.

She wasn't alone—Instructor Samantha was out there, fighting relentlessly, cutting down monsters while shielding civilians. But even with her sheer combat prowess, the sheer number of enemies was overwhelming. If they didn't have to protect the civilians, the battle would have been settled already.

Unlike Elena's Domain Declaration, which only affected monsters, Samantha's aura didn't differentiate between friend or foe—which meant she couldn't use it freely without endangering the students and soldiers.

That left Elena to act as the last line of defense.

Her domain was the only thing stopping the monsters from completely wiping them out.

But the strain was unbearable.

Her mana was draining at an alarming rate. The vast area of effect took a toll on her reserves, and she could already feel her body weakening.

'I can't dispel it.'

She knew that releasing the domain would ease the burden, but doing so would doom them all. The second the debuffs disappeared, the monsters would regain their full strength, and then—it would be over.

The students and soldiers fought as hard as they could, but most of them could only take on one or two monsters at best. Against a horde, they were completely helpless.

Only Instructor Samantha was strong enough to keep fighting on equal footing.

'We need reinforcements.'

Elena clenched her fists. If help didn't arrive soon, they wouldn't last much longer.

She took a deep breath, pushing down her exhaustion. There was no time to rest.

She lifted her hands, gritted her teeth, and resumed her casting .

Before Elena could fully focus on her spell, a dagger whistled through the air, heading straight for her head.

Her instincts screamed danger. She twisted her body to dodge, but—

Slash!

The dagger grazed her shoulder.

"Argh!" Elena winced, pain radiating through her arm as blood seeped through her robes.

"Professor Elena!"

Instructor Samantha was the first to react, her sharp eyes immediately locking onto Elena's injured form. The brief commotion caught the attention of the students and soldiers, momentarily pulling them away from the ongoing battle.

Elena lifted her gaze—

A middle-aged man was rushing toward her.

His right hand gripped a sword, while his left clutched another dagger, poised to strike again.

Elena's mind raced.

'Too fast!'

Forcing herself to focus, she swiftly cast two spells—

<Pain Tolerance> and <Cursed Shield>.

A dark shield shimmered around her, absorbing some of the pain from her wound, allowing her to stand her ground.

CLANG!

The man's dagger struck the shield but failed to pierce through.

"Tch! Stubborn."

The assassin clicked his tongue in frustration. He closed the distance in a blink, his sword aiming for Elena's vital points with ruthless precision.

Elena's shield held for a few seconds—

Then—

CRACK!

The barrier shattered under his relentless strikes.

Elena barely had time to react. She began casting another spell, but—

Too slow.

Before the deadly blade could reach Elena's neck—

CLANG!

A powerful collision of steel rang through the museum, sending sparks flying.

The assassin's sword had been blocked—

By another blade-wielding figure.

Elena's gaze snapped toward her unexpected savior. Seeing the carefree smirk on his face, she let out a small sigh of relief.

'That brat finally showed up.'

Arthur stood firm, his sword locking against the assassin's with impressive strength.

"Looks like I made it just in time," Arthur said casually, despite standing against a far stronger opponent.

The middle-aged assassin's eyes narrowed as he assessed the newcomer. His initial attack had the upper hand, yet Arthur had managed to deflect it with a subtle shift of movement, causing the force to redirect rather than overpower him.

Realizing his mistake, the assassin quickly stepped back, gripping his sword tighter.

At that moment—

Another figure stepped in standing beside the middle-aged man.

A stunning red-haired woman.

Ava and Zeke.@@novelbin@@

Zeke's expression darkened as he addressed Ava with clear irritation.

"Why are you here? Didn't I tell you to find the demonic sword?" Continue reading at My Virtual Library Empire

Ava simply shrugged, then pointed at Arthur's sword.

"Look closely."

Zeke followed her gaze. His brows furrowed as he rubbed his eyes in disbelief.

"No way..."

Ava smirked. "Oh, you're seeing just fine."

Arthur stood there, holding Abyssal Fang—the very demonic sword they had been searching for.

And yet—

He was completely sane.

"How is that even possible?" Zeke muttered, unable to hide his shock.

Ava's smile widened.

"Guess we'll have to ask him ourselves."

"We'll have to ask him ourselves," Ava mused.

Zeke exhaled sharply. "Don't worry, I'll force the answers out of him. Meanwhile, why don't you handle those nuisances?" He flicked his gaze toward the students still fighting off the remaining monsters.

Ava cracked her knuckles, her eyes glinting with anticipation. "Sounds fun."

******

Elena and Samantha had also noticed the ominous sword in Arthur's grip. However, seeing that he remained completely sane, they held back their questions—at least for now.

"I'll need an explanation for this after we survive this mess," Samantha stated.

Arthur simply nodded. "That's fair."

Turning to Elena, he swiftly accessed his system shop, purchasing a few mana potions before handing them over.

"You've still got a lot of work to do, Professor."

Elena let out an exhausted sigh, but a smirk tugged at her lips. "And here I thought I could finally rest."

She downed the potions in one go. Almost immediately, mana surged back into her veins, restoring her strength.

"Ahh… much better."

Meanwhile, Arthur tightened his grip on Abyssal Fang, and an ominous black sword aura flared around him.

"Damn! I love this sword!" he grinned, admiring the weapon.

Zeke, watching the scene unfold, took a step forward.

"Kid, I'm not here to fight you. Don't waste your life over nothing. Just hand me the sword and answer some questions."

Though Zeke didn't see Arthur as much of a threat, he wasn't here for pointless fights. Time was running out—they needed to grab the sword and escape before reinforcements arrived.

But Arthur simply smirked.

"Is that so? Too bad for you, I don't plan on dying anytime soon!"

Without hesitation, he lunged at Zeke, Abyssal Fang slashing through the air with deadly precision.

—CLANG!—

Zeke effortlessly blocked the attack.

Arthur swung his sword at Zeke's legs, the abyssal fang radiating ominous dark mana that made its movements harder to track. However, the sheer gap in strength between them was too vast for a weapon alone to bridge. Zeke effortlessly parried the attack and launched a counterstrike.

Their blades clashed in rapid succession, sparks flying as Arthur struggled to keep up. The difference in skill was undeniable—Arthur was a student at Arcane Academy, only at the peak of the intermediate swordsman stage, whereas Zeke was a seasoned warrior and one of the ten leaders of the Black Hand. Each exchange made it increasingly clear that Arthur was at a disadvantage.

"You brought this upon yourself," Zeke said coldly.

Infusing his blade with mana, Zeke swung with immense force. Arthur barely managed to block, but the impact sent him hurtling through the air. Before he could stabilize himself, Zeke closed the distance, ready to strike mid-flight.

"Shit!" Arthur cursed, twisting his body midair in an unnatural maneuver. He barely managed to bring his sword up in time.

CLANG!

Their swords collided once more, the impact sending Arthur flying backward like a bullet. He was about to crash into the museum's stone wall when something unexpected happened—black, gooey tendrils erupted from his body, anchoring him midair and stabilizing his posture.

Zeke's eyes widened in shock. "What the hell is that?"