Aetheric Chronicles: Reborn As An Extra

Beneath the roiling skies of the Lightning Territory, a lone figure strode forward, his every step echoing faintly over the charred ground. The black-haired boy with the scythe dragged his weapon behind him, its blade leaving a shallow groove in the scorched earth.

Above, jagged streaks of lightning forked wildly across the heavens, thunderclaps splitting the air in deafening bursts. The chaotic storm seemed alive, hurling its fury down at the ground with relentless intensity.

But no matter how many bolts rained from the sky, not a single one came close to the boy. The air around him shimmered faintly as if an invisible barrier deflected the storm's wrath.

He walked in silence, his expression solemn, his eyes cast downward beneath the chaos of the storm. His scythe gleamed faintly, its black blade reflecting the pale, flickering light of the lightning above.

Then, the boy froze mid-step, his sharp gaze locking onto the horizon. Through the haze of rain and static, several figures were visible in the distance. Find adventures at empire

A group of examinees struggled against a massive bird-like creature with wings crackling with electricity. The beast let out a piercing screech, its feathers glowing as arcs of lightning danced across its body.

The boy's solemn expression twisted, his lips curling into a savage grin. His eyes gleamed with a feral light as he lifted his scythe slightly off the ground.

"Interesting," he muttered to himself.

In an instant, he moved.

The distance between him and the battle—nearly three kilometers—vanished in the blink of an eye. One moment he was standing still, the next, he was a black blur streaking across the terrain, the ground cracking beneath him as he accelerated.

The examinees and the bird monster didn't even notice his presence until he was upon them.

With a single, fluid motion, he swung his scythe.

The blade expanded mid-swing, growing impossibly large as an inky-black aura surrounded it. The sweeping arc seemed to distort the air itself, an eerie silence blanketing the area for a fleeting moment before the sound returned in a rush, like a vacuum being filled.

The examinees flinched, but not from any physical pain. The scythe hadn't touched them—or at least, it hadn't touched their bodies. Yet something had changed.

The first to react was a boy holding a longsword. His face paled as he stumbled back, clutching his chest as if trying to feel for something that was no longer there.

"W-What just happened?" he stammered, his voice trembling.

The others looked at each other, their confusion and fear mounting as they realized something was missing, something intangible, yet vital.

"It's... gone," whispered a girl with twin daggers. "Something inside me... it's gone."

All eyes turned to the black-haired boy. He stood a few meters away, his scythe now back to its original size, resting casually against his shoulder. His feral grin remained, but his eyes were cold, calculating.

"He's trying to steal the last kill!" one of the examinees shouted, his voice tinged with both fear and anger.

But the boy didn't respond. He didn't so much as glance at the monster or the examinees. Instead, he turned his back to them and began walking away, his scythe trailing lazily behind him once more.

"Hey! Stop!" another examinee yelled.

Still, he ignored them.

The group stood frozen, their hands tightening around their weapons as they tried to process what had just happened.

Suddenly, a sharp screech pierced the air. The bird monster, enraged by the intrusion, launched itself into the air. Its wings spread wide, crackling with even more lightning than before, and its glowing eyes locked onto the boy.

Without warning, it dove.

Lightning bolts rained down from its wings as it descended, the crackling arcs surging toward the boy with deadly precision. The storm seemed to intensify around the bird as it barreled toward him, its razor-sharp talons poised to strike.

The boy stopped in his tracks, his grin widening as his eyes followed the bird's every movement.

"Heh," he chuckled, gripping his scythe tightly.

As the bird closed the distance, the boy swung his scythe again. This time, the blade glowed with a dark, otherworldly light, leaving a trail of black energy in its wake. The motion was almost lazy, as if he were merely swatting away an insect.

And yet, the result was devastating.

The bird's screech was cut short as its body was cleaved cleanly in two, the halves spiraling to the ground with a sickening thud. A final bolt of lightning burst from its body as it hit the ground, crackling harmlessly into the air before fading away.

The boy didn't pause to admire his handiwork. He slung the scythe back over his shoulder and continued walking, his steps as calm and deliberate as they had been before.

The stunned examinees could only watch in silence, their gazes darting between the massive carcass of the bird and the boy's retreating figure.

"What... what was that?" one of them finally whispered, her voice barely audible over the dying wind.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

None of them had an answer.

In the distance, the boy's savage grin remained, hidden from view as he disappeared into the storm. This was perhaps the 12th or 15th group he found in just half an hour.

However, he wasn't satisfied. He needed to find every one of them, including the favorite Top Ranker Candidates. Everyone must receive a taste of his scythe. This was his sole mission in attending the exam.

The life of his people depended on it.

"I should head to the next territory in the next hour." He muttered as his calm expression returned. "I need to find them before they reach the center area..."

"Hmm?"

The boy's footsteps slowed as his gray irises shifted sharply to the right. His scythe, which had been trailing idly behind him, stilled as he tilted his head slightly.

There, amidst the chaos of the storm, stood a figure unlike any other he had encountered in the Lightning Territory. Nearly two meters tall, it loomed like a shadow against the flickering backdrop of jagged lightning. It had humanoid features, yet its presence was anything but human.

Purple wings, veined with glowing energy, spread out behind it, crackling faintly with power. Its glowing purple eyes seemed to pierce through the haze of rain and thunder, locking onto him with a chilling intensity. The air around it was dense, oppressive—far more so than even the most powerful monsters he'd encountered here.

But this was no monster.

The boy's sharp instincts screamed the truth. It was human. A human in disguise.

For the first time in a while, a shiver ran down his spine. It wasn't fear—it was excitement.

His lips curled upward into a wider grin, the savage expression twisting his face as he lowered his stance slightly, readying his scythe.

"Well, well," he said, his voice carrying easily over the storm's din. "I didn't expect to find someone interesting this early."

The figure didn't respond, its glowing eyes remaining fixed on him. It stepped forward, the motion unnaturally fluid, almost too smooth for a monster.

The boy shifted his grip on the scythe, resting the massive weapon on his shoulder as his grin widened further. His excitement was palpable, the thrill of facing a foe who might actually challenge him igniting a fire in his chest.

Though it wouldn't be better if he touched them with his scythe.

He needed to be careful.

But he wasn't the type to shy away from a fight and scythe wasn't his only weapon or source of strength.

"So, are you here to stop me?" he asked, his voice dripping with mockery. "Or should I skip the pleasantries and just cut you in half?"

The figure tilted its head slightly, as though studying him. Then it spoke, its voice distorted and layered, as if multiple tones were speaking in unison.

"You are... not human?"

"What are you."