I AM EXTRA IN A SHONEN MANGA

The waves lapped quietly against the stilted docks, carrying with them the faint shimmer of blue light. At night, Pearlbay waters glowed like a dream an endless field of stars caught beneath the tide. But by day, they looked like any other sea. Calm. Restless. Hiding secrets.

On the shore stood Kiro Dallin.

Ten years old, his thin frame looked even smaller under the weight of the oversized shirt he wore. His messy blond hair whipped against the wind, eyes distant as they followed the horizon. Somewhere beyond it, a family lost to the sea that had swallowed them whole.

Pearlbay had taken him in since then. They gave him food, clothes, a roof but not belonging. He was still the boy from the tide, the outsider.

"Kiro!!"

The voice broke him from his trance.

Down the slope came the Avel twins Toren and Lys, barefoot as always, sandy hair bouncing in the wind. They looked identical save for the chipped tooth in Toren's grin. Both boys radiated a mischief only children raised by the sea could carry.

Kiro turned. His expression remained polite, cautious.

The twins looked at each other, a spark of agreement passing wordlessly between them.

Toren beamed. "Let's go, Kiro!!"

Kiro blinked, unsure. He gave the smallest nod.

"Lys and I found a new spot!" Toren continued, his eyes shining. "Come with us—you'll like it."

"Yeah," Lys added, voice softer but no less insistent. "It's good there."

For a heartbeat, Kiro hesitated. He wanted to say no, the ocean had already taken too much from him. But Toren's grin was stubborn, and Lys's tone carried quiet trust. Against the ache in his chest, Kiro nodded again, this time less polite and more real.

The three of them darted across the sand, the twins pulling him toward the docks.

Pearlbay itself stirred with life. Lanterns lined the boardwalks, glowing faintly blue from powdered pearl dust. Fishermen hauled in nets heavy with silver-scaled fish, while women bartered pearls small, smooth, luminous at the market stalls. The smell of salt, fish, and pearl oil clung to every breath.

Children skipped past the Elder's Hall, whose walls gleamed with mosaics of sea legends heroes wielding spears of coral, monsters shaped like storms. Villagers paused to bow their heads before the mosaics, whispering prayers to the Serene Current, the tide-god of old.

The world looked warm, inviting. But in every glance, in every hushed word traded between pearl divers, there was tension. Rumors of dark tides. Whispers of missing divers. And during the last Moonwater Festival, when the pearls should have glowed brightest, the ocean had turned black.

By the cliffs, where the waves roared against jagged stone, stood the entrance to the Tidal Caves. Dangerous places, half-flooded, said to hide black pearls cursed treasures whispered to belong to something far older than the Serene Current.

And in the depths of those caves, unseen by the laughing children on the shore, something stirred.

Something waiting.

The twins led Kiro toward the cliffs, laughter trailing behind them as they scrambled across rocks slick with spray. The sea roared louder here, crashing against jagged stone, the air sharp with brine.

They reached the mouth of the Tidal Caves. The entrance yawned like a beast—half-flooded, dark water reflecting the faint glow of pearl moss.

"See?" Toren grinned, his chipped tooth flashing. "Told you it's good here. Bet no one else's ever found it."

Lys crouched beside him, dipping a hand in the water. "Careful, Toren. The current's strong."

Kiro stood behind them, his breath shallow. The cave's echo carried whispers that weren't there like voices riding the tide.

Then

SPLASH.

From the water, a shape lurched upward. Scales glistened under dim light, patches of human skin stitched horribly against fins and barnacles. Its eyes were yellow, bulging, and its mouth split wide to reveal rows of jagged teeth.

A voice, gurgling like a throat filled with seawater, bellowed:

"OUT—OUT OF MY COVE!!"

The Fisher Man. Half-man, half-fish. A drowned thing that should never have walked.

The twins froze.

Toren's grin shattered. He grabbed Lys's wrist.

"RUN!!"

They turned, feet slipping on wet rock as they bolted for the cliffs.

But Kiro didn't move. His legs locked. His breath caught. His vision blurred.

The Fisher Man's roar tangled with another memory.

Another monster.

Another night.

The sea dragging his family into its gut, their screams muffled by waves.

"Not again… not again…!" His mind screamed, but his body refused to move.

"What are you waiting for, Kiro?! LET'S GO!!" Toren's voice cracked with fear.

"Kiro!" Lys called, desperate, reaching a hand toward him.

Kiro's chest burned. He wanted to collapse, to close his eyes and vanish into the tide. But then he saw their faces, Toren's fear, Lys's trembling hand. They weren't mocking him. They were waiting for him.

He swallowed hard, forcing air into his lungs.

"Not this time…"

His hands shook, but he nodded jerky, desperate.

Toren's eyes lit up. "Good! Move!!"

Kiro finally tore himself free, stumbling forward, feet pounding against the stone. The twins dragged him along, their grip pulling him back into the world of the living.

Behind them, the Fisher Man didn't chase. Its yellow eyes only glared, unblinking, its form sinking slowly back into the cave's waters like a nightmare retreating into sleep.

But the echo of its roar followed them all the way back to the shore.

Kiro's chest heaved as they stumbled back onto the safer rocks, the roar of the Fisher Man still rattling in his ears. His palms were slick with sweat, knees weak, and every wave crash sounded like a scream.

Toren grabbed his shoulder, eyes fierce despite the tremor in his hands.

"No telling. No one hears about this, understand?"

Kiro blinked at him, wide-eyed.

"…Why?"

Toren's jaw clenched. His voice dropped to a harsh whisper.

"Because if the grown-ups find out, they'll stop us from diving. No more caves, no more pearls. And you know what happens then? We're screwed. No food. No fun. Nothing."

Lys bit his lip, glancing between them. His usual grin was gone, replaced by nervous fidgeting. Still, he nodded quickly.

"Y-Yeah. He's right. We keep quiet. Just… act normal."

Kiro hesitated. The memory of those yellow eyes still haunted him, the weight of the sea pressing into his skull. Part of him wanted to run straight to the Elder's Hall, to scream until someone believed him.

But then he looked at Toren, the fierce, reckless spark in his eyes and Lys, who already nodded along like they'd made a pact.

Slowly, Kiro forced himself to nod. His voice was small, but steady.

"…Okay."

Toren exhaled in relief, letting go of his shoulder. His grin flickered back, thin but stubborn.

"Good. That's settled. Now let's go before someone sees us hanging around here."

Lys managed a shaky smile, tugging at Kiro's sleeve.

"C'mon. Pretend nothing happened."

As the three boys walked back toward Pearlbay's lantern-lit streets, the tide whispered behind them, swallowing the cave's darkness once more.

But Kiro couldn't shake the thought—

"(We didn't escape it. It let us go.)"

As The glow of the pearl lanterns flickered across the docks as the boys returned, trying to blend into the gathering crowd. Villagers pressed in close, murmuring anxiously, their faces pale in the blue light.

Then Kiro saw them, the Pearl Guardians.

Armor chipped, shields dented, pearl-dust weapons still gleaming faintly, they walked back with their heads lowered. One stretcher carried a body beneath a white tarp, saltwater dripping from the cloth.

Toren froze mid-step.

"What's wrong?" he whispered, though he already knew. His voice cracked as his eyes lingered on the unmoving form.

The captain stepped forward. Roan Tidemark. Broad-shouldered, his face shadowed by exhaustion and guilt. He tore off his dented helm, running a scarred hand through his short brown hair.

His voice carried heavy across the crowd.

"Tsk… damn it all. Kami died because of my recklessness."

The Guardians stiffened at his words, one of them slamming his fist over his chest.

"No, Captain, it's not your fault. Kami knew the risks. We all did."

Another voice, firm but shaking:

"He saved us all, sir. Don't dishonor him by blaming yourself."

The villagers bowed their heads, some weeping, others clutching prayer beads.

Then came the sound of a staff striking stone. The crowd parted as Elder Neria stepped forward. Her black hair fell like silk over her shoulders, glowing faintly in the pearl-light despite her sixty-seven years. Though her face looked closer to thirty, her eyes carried the weight of generations. The intricate waves embroidered into her robes shimmered with Shinrei.

Her voice was calm, yet sharp enough to cut through grief.

"What's wrong here?"

The Guardians straightened immediately, bowing their heads in respect.

Roan's jaw clenched, but he forced himself to answer.

"…Kami fell, Elder. To the tide beast that struck us at the outer reef. My call… cost him his life."

The Elder's gaze lingered on the stretcher, then shifted to Roan. For a heartbeat, her expression softened but only for a heartbeat.

"The sea takes, Captain. That is its law. What matters is that his sacrifice shielded the living." She turned to the villagers, her voice rising like a tide. "We mourn him tonight. We honor him tomorrow. And we do not falter."

The crowd murmured in agreement, some stronger, some weaker, but their grief was steadied by her words.

Kiro's fists clenched at his side. His heart hammered. He thought of the Fisher Man in the cave, the way it chose not to kill them. And now, a real guardian had died to a beast outside.

He bit his lip so hard it bled.

"If they knew… if they knew what we saw…"

But Toren's sharp glance silenced him.

The secret weighed heavier than ever.

To be continue