An Extra’s Rise in an Eroge

'Alright... time to go all out. Every affinity, no holding back.' Arthur muttered as he closed his eyes.

White.

Blinding white.

Like he had been sent straight to heaven.

'This looks familiar...'

Welcome to the simulation, student Arthur. Please select your weapon.

"Sword."

A Sword materialized before him.

And then—nothing happened.

The Battle Royale will begin once all students have chosen their weapons.

'...Great. So now I wait.'

Arthur stood in the empty void for what felt like forever.

He even started practicing his sword moves out of sheer boredom.

Then, at long last—

Battle Royale start! Good luck!

Arthur suddenly fell.

Like he had been dropped from the sky.

He crashed onto solid ground.

And saw trees.

Endless trees.

'... forest huh? Typical..'

Brushing himself off, he took in his surroundings.

Nothing.

Just more trees.

With slow, careful steps, he picked a random direction and began walking.

In a private room, the academy's teachers were gathered.

"So, who do you think will win this year?"

Professor Elena—grinned at Samantha.

"You already know my answer," she said smoothly.

"Hahahaha."

Luke laughed, tossing his head back. His long stern face eyes focused on his disciple Alex.

"I bet on Alex."

Elena, sitting beside Samantha, chimed in.

"Alicia is a strong contender too. Her compatibility with spirits is quite high"

Luke clicked his tongue.

Meanwhile, Samantha watched Arthur sprinting through the forest.

'Show me what you've got, kid.'

~~~~

The forest was quiet.

Too quiet.

Arthur slowed his pace, instincts kicking in. His hand gripped the hilt tighter, the other held slightly back, fingers twitching. Then—

Snap!

A branch cracked to his left.

He turned instantly.

A hulking creature pushed through the underbrush.

Eight feet tall. Muscles like boulders. Crude armor made of animal hide and rusted metal.

An ogre.

Its tusked mouth curled into a snarl as it raised a spiked club the size of a grown man.

"...Figures." Arthur exhaled. "They really want to warm us up with classics."

The ogre roared and charged.

Arthur moved.

His body blurred with Shadow Step, vanishing just before the club smashed the ground.

BOOM!

Dirt and debris flew.

Arthur reappeared beside its flank, already mid-swing. His blade slashed across its side, drawing a deep line of blackened flesh.

The ogre howled, swinging wildly.

He ducked, slid under its reach, and drove the sword through the back of its knee.

Crack!

It stumbled, then collapsed.

Before it could scream again, Arthur's sword pierced its skull from behind.

Clean. Efficient.

+1 Point.

"...Still not enough," Arthur muttered, wiping the blade on the ogre's hide.

He looked up.

The sky had no sun, but a faint timer glowed above in the clouds.

Battle Royale: 57 Minutes Remaining

Elsewhere: Alex

Alex moved like a storm through the trees, his axe cleaving a goblin in two.

Around him, a small group of Class A students followed his lead. His aura was fierce, aggressive. He barked orders like a commander.

"Circle the ogres! Hit from the flanks! Don't get caught in their reach!"

The students obeyed. Together, they overwhelmed a pack of forest trolls.

One troll broke formation and lunged at a younger student.

Alex's axe met it mid-air, splitting it down the middle.

+3 Points

"Stick with me if you want to survive!" he shouted.

A girl from Class B blushed and nodded rapidly.

Elsewhere: Akira

Ice spread with every step Akira took.

Three ogres charged her, unfazed by the cold—until their legs froze mid-run, locking them in place.

With one gesture, massive icicles fell from above, piercing them like spears.

+3 Points

Her face remained blank, bored even.

"This is underwhelming."

She continued deeper into the forest, eyes cold, calculating.

Meanwhile,

A panicked student from Class B screamed as a goblin stabbed him in the back.

[Eliminated – Teleporting out]

Two girls from Class C huddled together in the bushes.

"What do we do?!"

"I think I peed…"

A Class A student tried forming a team. "Let's group up! We can—"

CRACK!

A club smashed into his back from a hidden ogre.

[Eliminated]

The simulation wasn't going to wait for anyone.

Arthur looked up at the faint leaderboard in the sky.

[Current Top Scorers]

1. Arthur – 12

2. Alex – 11

3. Nadia – 10

4. Alicia – 9

5. Akira – 9

"...Time to pick up the pace."

He heard rustling.

Not beasts.

Footsteps.

Human.

Multiple.

A team.

Arthur grinned.

"Finally, some real fun."

He vanished into the shadows.

~~~~

Arthur stood over the corpse of a horned bear, catching his breath. His clothes were dirtied with blood and dust, but his posture was steady. Eyes sharp. Senses alert.

Then—

Rustling.

Not one. Three sets of footsteps.

From behind the trees, three girls stepped out—one from Class A, two from Class B. All attractive. Skimpy gear. Weapons drawn but lowered.

"Arthur Ludwig," the leader cooed, brushing her fingers along her collarbone. "You've racked up quite a score already. Why not… partner up with us?"

The one on the left twirled her dagger playfully. "We're not bad in a fight. And we're even better... off the battlefield. We could show our "expertise" if you could carry us"

Arthur didn't even blink.

"You're wasting my time."

Before they could react, he vanished.

Shadow Step.

He reappeared behind the flirtatious leader, blade already swinging.

Slash!

Her eyes widened, blood spilling from her mouth. She crumpled forward, gasping.

The other two shrieked, backing away.

"W-Wait! We're on the same sid—"

Too slow.

One thrust. Pierced through the gut.

She collapsed.

The third girl turned to run.

Shadow Chain lashed out, wrapping around her ankle, yanking her to the ground.

Arthur stood over her.

Stab.

+3 Points

He moved on.

~~~~

Akira watched two Class A boys fight a frost wolf—only to strike them both from behind with a massive shard of ice.

The wolf howled and ran.

The boys? They didn't move again.

+2 Points

She didn't flinch. Didn't gloat. Just walked past their corpses, cold as the element she wielded.

~~~~

Nadia appeared in the center of a clearing where five students fought a giant troll.

None of them noticed her—until the troll suddenly shrieked and dropped dead.

Then silence.

They turned, confused.

"Who—?"

She raised her scythe.

A shadow burst from the ground and skewered the first two.

She moved like a ghost through them, scythe spinning.

Blood rained.

+5 Points

Her violet eyes gleamed with delight.

~~~~

Arthur now stalked solo groups.

A lone swordsman? Dead.

A healer caught off guard? Slit throat.

Two archers hiding in trees? Dragged down with Shadow Chains and skewered through the ribs.

Another girl tried flirting mid-fight—flashing a smile, showing cleavage, whispering "You wouldn't hit a girl, right?"

She got a sword through the heart.

+12 Points

~~~~

Two daggers sliced through the air, colliding with a steel blade.

"You're fast," the boy muttered.

Alex smirked. "Not fast enough."

He vanished in an instant—[Shadow Blink]—and reappeared behind the boy.

Shhk!

One dagger buried itself into the spine. The boy froze before shattering into glowing fragments.

Alex rolled his shoulders. "One down. No breaks tonight."

He turned, eyes sharp, moving through the underbrush like a ghost.

—

Alex moved swiftly across a rocky trail, wiping blood off his curved daggers. His breathing was steady.

'I will win this time.'

But that wasn't the real reason he was pushing so hard.

It was Arthur.

Arthur had been a wall he couldn't climb since day one. Stronger, faster, smarter.

'Not this time. I'm done playing second string.'

An arrow whizzed toward him—he leaned slightly, letting it pass.

In a blink, he warped behind the archer girl.

She turned—too late.

"Sorry. You're in my way."

Two blades went through her skull.

She vanished.

Alex didn't stop to look. His eyes were already scanning for his next opponent.

—

Arthur stepped out of the forest and into a wide, grassy field.

Tall grass swayed in the breeze, sunlight glinting off his blade.

'Boring terrain. I'll be easy to spot here.'

He clicked his tongue. Still, he kept walking.

Movement—someone running.

Arthur crouched low, blending into the grass.

They weren't just running. They were fleeing.

'Huh? Who's that?'

As he got closer, he recognized her.

'Althea...?'

She was injured—blood on her shoulder—and behind her were two boys in pursuit.

Nobodies. Probably from Class B or C.

'She can't handle two randoms? Seriously?'

Arthur exhaled quietly, annoyed. But a kill was a kill.

He circled wide, staying low.

"You're finished, Althea!" one of the boys yelled. A fireball formed in his palm.

The other, a white-haired mage, raised the ground—[Stone Pillar]—trapping her legs.

'Alright. Let's wrap this up.'

Arthur activated [Wind Step], his body gliding silently behind the earth mage.

His sword flashed once—clean through the neck.

The boy shattered.

"What the—?!"

The fire mage turned just in time to see Arthur.

Arthur didn't say anything. He just moved.

The fireball came flying—Arthur flicked his sword, slicing it in half mid-air.

The boy barely had time to react before Arthur grabbed him by the collar and slammed him to the ground.

[Spatial Anchor] activated—his limbs cracked, unable to move.

"Wait, don't—"

Arthur drove the blade into his skull.

Gone.

Arthur stood, brushing dirt from his sleeve. Then he looked at Althea.

She was limping, trying to escape while he was distracted.