The Extra Works Hard - Chapter 3

“Ugh, you’re going straight to the academy? Let’s get on the carriage.”

“!”

“If we leave now, I’m sure you will arrive on time for curfew. It’s a shame not to take you since it’s so close.”

“Yes! Thank you!”

The coachman asked the man to get into the wagon as if it were natural. The man was about to get on the wagon and remembered that he had left his luggage, so he hurriedly went back to pick up his luggage and got on the wagon.

“Then let’s go.”

The wagon began to rattle. The ride was worse than the train. He felt like he was getting a little motion sick because of the crazy shaking inside of the wagon. The man’s attention was distracted for a moment by the passing scenery, but this time his thoughts spread about the Aurora Academy he was heading towards.

‘Aurora Academy.’

The familiar and unfamiliar word was something else that did not exist in the man’s real life, but it did exist in the novel he had read. The man came up with an absurd hypothesis. This place he had landed in seemed to be in a book. The man slowly closed his eyes. His head, which was still dizzy from the motion sickness, was pounding against his temple even more.

“Hazard Erasmus” was the title of the book as well as the name of the protagonist.

The fifth prince of the Shekira Kingdom and a man who will become a hero. A charming prince with blonde hair that looked like melted gold and blue eyes, bright like the summer sky. Hazard was a character who could be described as the typical princely model that people loved.

“Hazard Erasmus” was an adventure fantasy novel that wrote the life story of such a prince. In this world, monsters called ‘daemons’ existed. There were swordsmen who used mana to wield their swords and there were wizards. There was even a Sword Master who stood at the apex of his sword. The dungeons also existed, but it happened thousands of years ago in ancient times and were now sealed. There was also a God in this world. Not now, but there used to be. Therefore, the authority of the temple was strong, and up to now, the sovereignty and the priesthood were in constant conflict with each other.

This was where Aurora Academy comes in. The most prestigious academy in the Shekira Kingdom produced knights, wizards, and other professionals. The beginning of the story started at the academy. Hazard, who entered high school, was entangled in various incidents and ‘accidents’. In the process, he gained his companions and obtained various powers. All of this was a stepping stone for the future. By the time Hazard graduated from Aurora Academy, the world changed.

The dungeons that had been sealed for thousands of years were each awakened one by one, and it became a world in which daemons flourish.

‘Only one of those who inherit the blood of Erasmus will save the world and become the true king.’ It was a story where Prince Hazard went on a long adventure with his companions to re-seal the dungeons. What a wonderful story that was. But in that story, there was no figure with red hair like a withered rose. So the man couldn’t be sure of his identity still.

Thump, thump.

The man was startled by the sudden sound and straightened his body. Outside the carriage, the coachman was knocking on the door. The wagon seemed to have stopped before he knew it.

“Student, we have arrived. It’s time to get off.”

“Ah. Yes, yes…”

The man packed his things and got off the wagon. He thanked the coachman as he came out and the man looked at the academy. The academy campus was huge. When he saw the large buildings like Western castles he had seen before in photos, the man felt a bit dismayed.

He was looking for the entrance while looking at the iron fence that was a bit taller than his height, and a boy with orange hair was standing in front of the entrance. The orange-haired boy was constantly looking from his pocket watch to the people passing by. The boy was clearly restless, standing there and going back and forth. He stopped moving when he found the man walking, tumbling and slow. The boy’s face contorted, followed by an angry loud voice.

“Nathan Norbert!”

The orange-haired boy ran towards the man.

“You! Why are you here so late? I thought something had happened to you!”

The boy’s orange hair was very short, and unlike his youthful appearance, he had a good physique. Seeing that he was wearing the same attire as the man was wearing, this outfit seemed to be the school uniform. The orange-haired boy approached the man as if to hit him. He saw the boy’s fingers twitch as if he was really about to hit him. They were the same height, but he was intimidating because of the huge difference in physique. As he instinctively flinched his body, the boy stood tall and sucked his teeth.

“Tsk. Follow me quickly. You have to go to the dormitory and go straight to the professor. Professor Michael is looking for you!”

Then the boy turned around and started walking. The man reluctantly followed although he was slow because of his heavy bag. Seeing this, the boy became even more restless. To make matters worse, the old bag could not hold its contents and the latch broke. In an instant, the contents exploded out onto the floor.

“Ha! You are really useless!”

‘Yeah.’ Even in the midst of embarrassment, the man retorted inwardly. Leaving behind his embarrassment, the man hurriedly swept away the things that had been spilled on the floor. Of course, the boy didn’t help. He just folded his arms and rolled his eyes in annoyance. The man shoved his luggage back into the broken bag. The bag with a broken lock could not be closed. He couldn’t help but toss the huge bag into his arms. The boy saw it and started walking again. The man walked quickly and followed the boy.

His arms were numb from the bag that was so heavy that his body could fall on his back, but he had to clench his teeth and hold on. The boy acted as if he knew the owner of this body. But looking at his tone and facial expression, it didn’t seem like they were on good terms. It felt like time passed slowly. In reality, it was about 10 minutes, but the man’s hands were red and his sweat was pouring. He was out of breath.

He walked quickly in order to catch up with the boy, but the gap with the boy only widened, and at some point, the boy was far away. He was still in the same place. The boy opened a certain door and went inside. The man was able to enter the room after a long while.

“Leave your bag anywhere. Go and get it sorted out. Well, anyway, you don’t organize well, so it’s no use letting me wait.”

At the boy’s words, the man was only able to put the bag down on the floor. He was out of breath and his limbs trembled.

“Cough, cough…!”

This body was garbage. He didn’t move much, he only lifted this weight, but his vision turned fuzzy. He was dizzy. The man was still struggling, so the boy gave him a little resting time. The orange-haired boy didn’t bring him water, but he told him where the water was, so he could drink a glass.

“I think I’m alright now.”

“Are you finished resting? Go. We’re still late!”

“Ahem hem! …okay.”

The man spoke awkwardly. But the boy didn’t feel anything strange, so he just went out first. In the wide hallway, there were a few boys and girls who seemed to be about the same age. They sometimes looked back at the man and murmured.

Their gazes were different. It seemed like they saw a pitiful thing. And when their eyes met him, they seemed to smile a little. The man thought it was strange, but he decided to pretend he didn’t notice.

The boy stopped in front of a door, and there was a sign on the door saying “Second Magic Room”.

‘The Magic Room!’

That word made the man flutter. It was magic… So far there could be no more heart-fluttering words than that. And the boy who saw it thought that it was as if a light had entered his eyes, which had been dead since he came here.

“You have to talk to them! Tell them we’re late because of you. Whoo, I was so relieved that I didn’t have to share the same room with you now… what is this. Really ridiculous! Nathan Norbert. It is already disgusting we were seen together, so let’s not see each other again.”

Then he hurriedly ran away. The man didn’t even say anything, and just wiped the back of his head with his shaky hand.

“Nathan Norbert.”

Twice the boy called the man Nathan Norbert. Then it must be his name from now on. Although it was still a name he had never heard of.

Knock, knock, knock.

Putting aside the subject of the body he was in for a while, Nathan stood in front of the door and knocked.

“Excuse me. Nathan… It is Nathan Norbert.”

The name that came out of his mouth was very unfamiliar. After a while, a noble-sounding voice came from beyond the door.

“Come in.”

Nathan carefully opened the door. The door swung open without a creaking sound as if the hinges were well-oiled. Nathan entered the room, rubbing his damp palms against his clothes. The first thing he noticed was the smell of medicine. In addition, unlike the cold outside, there was a warm air inside, which was strangely warm.