Extra in a Romance Fantasy

184 – The Leader (4)

The group resolved.

Even if disaster struck, they would fight against it.

They would not sacrifice Mary’s life.

However, amidst that flow, there was one who suddenly raised his sword.

It was none other than Wade.

“…Wade Hebron, what are you trying to do right now?”

As if sensing Wade’s actions, Cedric asked, turning to him.

At his voice, the gazes of the others also gathered on Wade.

“Wade…?”

Rachel’s puzzled voice flew toward Wade.

It was impossible not to know.

That his actions were anything but ordinary.

“…Wade Hebron, what are you doing right now?”

With a voice noticeably more rigid than usual, Alexis asked Wade.

“…….”

However, Wade did not cast a glance at them, as if he were someone who could not hear their voices.

He simply held his sword and gazed at Mary with unwavering eyes.

“You…! What are you doing—”

In the end, unable to contain himself, Wilhelm was about to charge at Wade with a contorted face.

“Stop it.”

A sudden voice intervened, halting their actions.

“…Principal.”

The owner of the voice was none other than Beluid.

He looked at Wilhelm and the others with an endlessly heavy gaze.

“…Can’t you see it, Principal? What Wade Hebron is about to do. So… why are you stopping him?”

With a stiff expression and voice, Alexis questioned Beluid.

He simply could not understand why Beluid was obstructing them.

In response to Alexis’s question, Beluid said,

“His actions are not wrong.”

He answered in a calm voice.

“Not wrong…?”

At that response, Alexis’s expression slightly twisted.

“What… does that mean?”

Emotion filled Alexis’s eyes as he looked at Beluid.

Though unspoken, those eyes clearly asked.

What nonsense is this?

“Are you saying that what Wade Hebron is about to do… is right?”

Even Alexis, who usually spoke so calmly, began to reveal his emotions.

On the other hand.

“Indeed.”

The expression and voice of Beluid were utterly calm as he replied.

“……”

Alexis stared silently into Beluid’s eyes for a while.

Then he said,

“Please step aside. No matter what the principal has to say, I will not stand by and watch Wade Hebron’s actions.”

With a voice that had grown cold, Alexis spoke those words.

What lingered in his eyes and voice was unmistakable disappointment.

The others also looked at Beluid with eyes filled with deep disappointment.

However,

Beluid met their gazes with an expression that showed no sign of wavering.

Then, in a somewhat languid tone, he asked them,

“Are you truly determined to stop Wade?”

“Yes.”

Alexis answered Beluid’s question confidently, without hesitation.

There was no doubt in his eyes or voice.

He seemed like someone who harbored not a single doubt about his thoughts.

Yet,

“What if that action leads to the loss of every life on the continent?”

“……!”

The expression on Alexis’s face began to waver once more at Beluid’s subsequent question.

His face hardened.

The reactions of the others were no different.

Some widened their eyes, while others stared blankly at Beluid, their expressions frozen.

The lives of everyone on the continent.

It was a weighty statement that could not fail to elicit such reactions.

“…Are you saying that the disaster caused by Miss Mary is that dangerous?”

With trembling eyes, Alexis forced out the question he never wanted to ask, his voice strained.

“Indeed.”

Beluid readily affirmed that question.

““……!!””

At that confident response, unease spread across the faces of the group.

The death of everyone on the continent.

In other words, the extinction of humanity.

It was such a colossal and absurd notion that it felt almost unreal, yet none among them thought it was an exaggeration.

Because the one who spoke those words was Beluid.

Whether by his status, the rumors surrounding his character, or the actions he had directly displayed.

He was not someone who would lie in such a situation.

“If that is completed, then surely the continent, humanity, will meet its end.”

““…….””

“So do not interfere with him. He, too, must know that there is no other way now. And to begin with….”

Beluid’s gaze shifted.

Toward Wade, who was holding a sword and looking at Mary.

“Is he doing this because he wants to?”

““……!””

At those words, the group was once again stirred.

“There’s no way he could be indifferent to the situation of having to kill his childhood friend, someone he has been with all his life.”

““…….””

All eyes turned once more to Wade.

That statement was true.

The person most deeply connected to Mary in this place was none other than Wade.

Yet, he was cornered into a situation where he had to kill her.

No one here could easily predict what he must be feeling.

“Wade….”

“…….”

The gazes of Rachel and Ira toward Wade trembled.

“Considering all of that, Wade has made his decision. To protect everyone on the continent. So… do not interfere with him.”

““…….””

With those words, silence returned to the group.

They had come to understand the reason Beluid stood in their way, and why Wade held the sword.

Still, there was no desire to sacrifice Mary.

However, the words “the destruction of humanity, of the continent” weighed heavily.

How much time had passed like this?

“…Still, that cannot be.”

Alexis forced the words out.

“Even so, I cannot let Miss Mary die.”

His eyes trembled, but the will within them remained unshaken.

Even after hearing Beluid’s explanation, Alexis refused to follow his words.

“…Are you saying you would drive all the people of the continent to death for just one Miss Mary?”

“I have no such intention. It’s just… I cannot sacrifice Miss Mary’s life out of fear for something that isn’t even certain.”

With a resolute voice, Alexis declared.

“No matter what disaster may come, we will simply stop it.”

There was no certainty in his face.

Only a powerful will resided there.

This was not a sentiment limited to Alexis alone.

Cedric, Chris, and Wilhelm all looked at Beluid with eyes similar to Alexis’s.

Even Rachel and Aira, too.

“…Do you all think the same?”

Beluid’s gaze turned to Rachel and Aira.

To which they responded.

“…If we leave it as it is, Lord Wade will surely regret it. He will suffer. I don’t want to see him like that…”

“…We cannot place such a heavy burden solely on Mr. Wade.”

In their eyes and voices, a strong will was palpable.

“…I see.”

Beluid nodded calmly.

And then.

Hooong—

He began to unleash a magical power so strong it evoked the image of a storm.

“Then there’s no need for conversation.”

The meaning was clear; while the will was virtual, Beluid had no intention of clearing the way.

He knew well the nature of the impending disaster.

He understood that their will was merely a resolve born from ignorance.

“…….”

Seeing this, the group quietly swallowed their breaths.

The magical power emanating from Belluid, the intensity of it, was beyond what they could bear.

A sorcerer renowned across the continent, that was Belluid Demens.

And he was openly displaying hostility towards them.

It was pressure that no mere academy student could withstand.

Yet, despite that.

They did not falter in fear.

Resolute in their decision to fight, they began to draw upon their own magical power.

To save Mary.

And to save Wade.

In that moment, where a battle seemed imminent.

“Don’t do anything pointless.”

A calm voice, yet tinged with exhaustion, interjected between them.

The group’s gaze naturally turned towards that direction.

“You are….”

They quickly recognized the owner of the voice and widened their eyes in surprise.

The voice belonged to none other than Ethan.

He approached, looking as if he had just emerged from rags.

“…what do you mean by that? Pointless things?”

Alexis asked him.

Ethan’s condition was utterly pitiful, but this was not the time to concern themselves with that.

And Ethan felt the same way.

Without a care for his own state, Ethan answered Alexis’s question in a calm voice.

“You still don’t know that guy well enough.”

With that, Ethan turned his gaze towards Wade.

With eyes filled with unwavering certainty.

*

‘…You’ve made up your mind.’

As Mary looked into Wade’s eyes, she realized.

That Wade had finally come to a decision.

Just moments ago, those eyes had been shaking incessantly, but now they were no longer trembling.

Looking into those eyes, Mary felt a whirlwind of emotions.

Even she found it hard to articulate what she was feeling, but one emotion stood out clearly.

‘…I’m sorry.’

It was the sorrow directed at Wade.

For many years, having watched Wade from the closest distance, Mary knew.

That the seemingly stoic Wade was not truly an indifferent person.

He didn’t express his feelings outwardly.

He remained unshaken no matter what happened.

Mary understood well.

That Wade was just like everyone else.

That he could feel sadness and joy just like anyone else.

That he had a warm heart.

There was no way that someone like Wade would feel no emotion about killing her.

If he were to take her life, if he were to end it with his own hands.

Wade would surely fall into a sorrow and despair that he couldn’t easily shake off.

Yet, despite that, Wade drew his sword.

He had resolved to kill her.

To prevent the impending disaster.

To protect the lives of others.

For that, Mary felt a deep sense of guilt.

For having placed such a painful burden on Wade.

‘…I’m sorry.’

Once again, she silently apologized to Wade.

If it were up to her heart, she would want to apologize over and over again.

But still, those words of apology never left her lips.

For if she spoke them, Wade’s resolve would surely waver.

—

Because he would only suffer more.

Knowing that, Mary quietly swallowed her words of apology.

And in that moment, Wade finally began to move.

At that, Mary offered a faint smile.

Mary, of course, had no desire to die.

There were still many days left to live, and many things she wanted to try.

However, if the situation had come to this, there was no choice.

She couldn’t bring about a catastrophe that would annihilate humanity just to save herself.

So, she had to die here.

Though she didn’t want to.

It was sad to die like this.

But if her death meant that everyone else would survive.

If it meant protecting the lives of others, of those precious to her.

That would be enough.

With that, she could die with a sense of satisfaction.

…Yet, that didn’t mean there weren’t regrets.

There was just one thing she regretted.

‘…Wade.’

In the end, she hadn’t been able to convey her feelings to Wade.

That alone was a deep regret.

Wade was usually quick to pick up on things, but when it came to this, he was hopelessly oblivious.

He probably hadn’t noticed at all that she held feelings for him.

And likely, he never would.

That one thing.

That one thing was what she regretted.

Hmm—

Wade’s sword began to emit a faint cry, and Mary, her senses expanded by an unknown energy, felt it.

The immense power gathering in that sword.

At last, Wade slowly began to lift the sword.

‘Wade.’

—

As she witnessed the scene, Mary quietly called out Wade’s name in her heart.

At the same time.

Memories from the past began to unfold in her mind.

The memory of the day he gifted her the item she had longed for, recalling the words she had let slip.

The memory of stubbornly sneaking out of the mansion together in the dead of night.

The memory of him praising her in a calm tone when she successfully cast magic for the first time.

The memory of him eating every bit of her first disastrous dish without a single complaint.

Memories of her time with Wade flashed through her mind in an instant.

In her memories, in her life, there had always been Wade.

They had shared meals, played together, and studied side by side.

Always, they had been together.

Just the thought of those times brought a smile to her face, memories that warmed her heart.

Mary slowly looked back.

Eventually, when she had reflected on all her memories with Wade.

Wade’s sword came to a halt, and soon began to radiate a dazzling light.

“Wade.”

She called his name once more in her heart.

A name so precious.

And a name she would never call again.

“…Wade.”

At last, Wade’s sword began to swing.

As she watched the scene unfold.

Mary slowly closed her eyes.

“I love you.”

A confession that would never reach him, whispered quietly in her heart.

And then.

Swish—

Finally, Wade’s sword struck Mary.