The Manaless Extra (A Progression Fantasy Story)

Volume 03, Chapter 124
The Eñeforte Aftermath [1]

Arthur halts on a rise overlooking Eñeforte. He scans the horizon, searching for the ominous purple haze Max described earlier, but the sky remains eerily clear. There is no smoke, no swirling mist—just the stark emptiness of a world waiting for something terrible.

'Where's the smoke?' Arthur murmurs to himself, tension growing in his chest.

He scans the horizon once more, and suddenly his gaze locks onto an astonishing sight: a towering demon, its body blackened and cracked with veins of lightning, stands before Dominic—or rather, before Clark, who now inhabits Dominic's body. The demon's posture is strangely subdued, almost reverent, while Clark stands calmly in front of it, unafraid, his silhouette stark against the broken boundary of the town.

Arthur's heart hammers as realization dawns. 'That demon… Was it the source of the smoke? And Clark—did he… defeat it? Alone?'

Even after everything, Arthur finds himself stunned. He never imagined that the boy who now lives as Dominic would one day face down a foe that could make even the most hardened Stargate Raiders tremble—and do so with such calm, unwavering resolve.

He steps forward, hesitation warring with curiosity, trying to make sense of the impossible scene. Suddenly—

"Arthur!"

He spins around, startled, just in time to see Lumi descending atop her colossal dragon. The beast's wings stir up a fierce wind, stinging his eyes. Lumi leaps down, landing beside him with the effortless poise that marks her every movement.

"Arthur, where's the poison mist your butler mentioned?" Lumi demands, her gaze sharp as she surveys the battered landscape. She spots the demon and Clark in the distance, her expression shifting to awe. "Did Dominic… defeat that thing by himself?"

Arthur nods, still trying to process the ruined plaza before him. "Judging by the crater… yeah, I think he did."

Lumi narrows her eyes, studying the demon's lingering aura. "It's at least [A] Rank. I wouldn't have believed it if I weren't seeing it with my own eyes."

Arthur shivers, caught between awe and dread. "Even though demons and magicians share the same ranking system, it's never an even match. An [A] Rank demon can fight five [A] Rank magicians or Manaficials and win easily."

"You got that from your father?" Lumi asks, her voice softer now.

Arthur nods again, more quietly this time. "Yeah. Come on, let's check on them."

They move forward, but before they can take more than a few steps, the demon suddenly kneels. Its monstrous form unravels into a cloud of radiant crimson dust, spiraling around Dominic in a slow, deliberate dance.

"Did he just… form a pact with the demon?" Lumi breathes, her astonishment plain.

Arthur frowns, confusion knitting his brow. "But why? I know he has Umbran Magic, but forming a pact with the same demon that nearly destroyed the town? What is he thinking?"

Lumi remains silent, the same doubts and fears written plainly across her face.

Without warning, dark wings erupt from Dominic's back, shadows twisting and spreading wide. In the next instant, he launches himself into the air, streaking toward the shattered heart of the town.

"Why is he flying to the town?" Lumi asks, her voice rising with concern.

Arthur shakes his head, helpless. "No idea. Let's follow him!"

But before they can move, a suffocating wave of Mana crashes over them, so thick and oppressive that Arthur staggers, panic racing through his veins.

"W-What is this…?" Lumi gasps, struggling for breath.

Arthur's instincts scream at him. He seizes Lumi's arm and draws Mana into his legs. "Flash of Merlin!"

He grabs Lumi and runs as fast as he can. A huge explosion erupts behind them, and a powerful shockwave hits, throwing them into the air. They land hard on the ground, bruised and stunned.

Arthur forces himself up, lungs burning, blinking dust from his eyes. What he sees next freezes his soul.

A massive pillar of darkness and lightning bursts up from the ruins of Eñeforte, exploding outward in a wave. Black lightning falls from the sky, destroying everything it touches. The entire town- its memories, homes, and people- vanishes completely, as if it had never been there.

Arthur's jaw trembles as he tries to form words, voice ragged with shock and grief. "The… Eñeforte town… It's destroyed."

In that moment, Arthur remembers all the times he laughed with the original Dominic and how close they became as friends. Now, he also thinks of his bittersweet friendship with Clark, who lives in Dominic's body. Even though they are different people, both mean a lot to Arthur.

Lumi rises, her eyes glued to the sky-shattering explosion. "That darkness… is it Dominic's?"

Arthur feels his thoughts spiral out of control, emotions boiling over. 'Why would Clark…? Why would he use such a destructive spell? Did he lose control? Is he still alive? Could he have survived that? Did he mean to destroy the whole town, or was it a last resort?'

"Calm down, Arthur… maybe he survived. There might be hope," Lumi tries to reassure him, though even she sounds uncertain.

"Alive?! How can he be alive after that?" Arthur's voice cracks, anguish and disbelief pouring out as he falls to his knees, overwhelmed. Even if the soul within is Clark, it is still Dominic's body- Dominic's memories, their shared history, now lost, perhaps forever.

He remembers, in perfect clarity, the moment Clark confessed: he was not the original Dominic, but an outsider, lost and struggling to do what was right. Still, Arthur had grown to care for him, all the same. They had built something real, despite the secret, despite everything. It still hurts. It still matters.

"Clark…" Arthur whispers, grief raw in his voice.

Lumi hears him, and her own heart twists with confusion and fear. Quietly, she repeats, "Clark…?" The word is barely more than a breath, carried away by the dying echoes of the explosion, her gaze still locked on the pillar of darkness as it slowly fades into silence.

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The steady sound of the train fills the air as Célestin and Jun sit quietly, each deep in their thoughts, while the train speeds toward Eñeforte Town.

Then, without warning, a suffocating pressure presses against their chests so thick it feels as if the air itself is collapsing.

Jun coughs, clutching his throat. "What- what was that?" he gasps, eyes wide with alarm.

Célestin's jaw clenches, his teeth gritting against the invisible force. He has felt powerful mana surges before, but this is on a different scale. It feels apocalyptic.

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A tinny voice crackles through the carriage speakers. "Ladies and gentlemen, we will have an emergency stop. Our systems have detected a massive mana explosion in the distance. Please remain calm—"

But calm is impossible. The train screeches to a halt, hurling both Célestin and Jun from their seats. They crash into the opposite bench, hearts hammering. Just as they try to steady themselves, a deep boom thunders through the air.

Outside the window, a column of darkness and lightning splits the sky. The shockwave hits an instant later, shattering the glass, slamming into the train, and sending it careening off the tracks like a toy.

Metal screeches, wood splinters, and the world spins in a chaos of force and fear.

In the chaos, Célestin instinctively shields Jun, pulling the older male into a tight embrace, his own body absorbing the worst of the impact. They tumble together, rolling until the battered train finally comes to a stop.

Gasping, Célestin pushes himself upright, wincing at the bruises already blooming across his body. He glances down, and Jun is unharmed, though wide-eyed with shock. Célestin helps him up, and together they stumble from the ruined carriage, out into the open.

The landscape has changed. The sky is marred by a titanic pillar of shadow and lightning, a wound in the world itself. The air shimmers with the aftermath of wild magic. Dread pools in Célestin's gut, a feeling colder and deeper than any fear he has known in a hundred regressions.

"Why would Clark…? No…" Célestin whispers, his voice trembling. "Why? Did he have no other choice? Was it someone from Umbrascourge?" He presses a fist to his heart, fighting back the sting of tears. "It's not the Dominic I grew up with… but Clark, you… you made yourself part of this world. We laughed, we fought, we tried to save each other. You weren't just an outsider. You became my friend, too."

Regret, helplessness, guilt, all these feelings tangle together, twisting inside him. He wishes for a different ending, a better answer, something that could save everyone. But the sky's answer is only thunder and darkness.

Jun stands beside him in silence, his face expressionless, but his eyes wide. For a decade in La Peste Noire, he saw all manner of brutality and power, yet nothing like this. The raw, destructive force leaves him breathless, a silent awe written on his face.

'So this is what true power looks like…' he thinks, unable to look away from the burning pillar on the horizon. He always imagined himself hardened by crime and violence, butb this is magic beyond reason, beyond humanity. He swallows, both terrified and, secretly, deeply impressed.

Beside him, Célestin lets the silence stretch, the two of them framed by the smoldering ruin of the train and the distant, unanswerable storm.

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Inside the dense cover of the forest, an impromptu camp springs up, tents and blankets scattered beneath the trees.

Most of the people here are students and teachers from the Académie d'Eñeforte, rescued in a frantic rush when disaster struck.

Maurice moves among them, his face grave. Using gentle telekinesis, he arranges the bodies of victims onto soft blankets, his hands glowing with diagnostic magic as he checks for any sign of life.

Each body shimmers faintly, a telltale sign of recent exposure to powerful, unnatural mana.

"They're dead…" Maurice whispers to himself. "That smoke… it came out of nowhere. Thank the gods the academy's grounds are small, at least I was able to evacuate the students and staff in time."

A voice calls out, breaking his reverie. "Monsieur Maurice!"

He turns to see a fellow teacher hurrying over, her face haggard and pale.

"I've finished counting the bodies you teleported in," she says, her voice trembling. "Some of them are barely alive, but… most of them are gone."

Maurice's shoulders slump. "How many?"

"Out of 1,200 bodies you brought here… one thousand, one hundred and nineteen are dead."

Maurice's breath catches. He shuts his eyes for a moment, trying to gather himself. 'So many lives gone in an instant. How will the Eñefortes ever recover from this? How will they look at me, knowing I wasn't fast enough?'

He forces himself to look around the camp. Nurses and healers work frantically over the few survivors, while teachers and older students do their best to help. The air is thick with grief and fear.

Maurice floats a few inches off the ground, his eyes set with determination. "I'll be right back. There might still be others." He lifts into the sky, scanning for any more signs of life.

He flies swiftly, his heart pounding as he crosses back over the Eñeforte territory. But when he arrives, he freezes, stunned.

"The smoke… It's gone?" he mutters. There is no sign of the deadly purple mist that had covered the town just minutes before.

Before he can question it further, a surge of Mana hits him, so intense it makes his skin prickle.

"[A] Rank Mana… Clark?"

Maurice looks down and sees Clark, who is surrounded by wild, unstable power, with shadows and lightning crackling around him. The air feels tense and dangerous.

"What is he thinking?" Maurice whispers. "That much mana… does he mean to obliterate the entire town?"

He closes his eyes, using his magic. In his mind's eye, a three-dimensional map of Eñeforte appears, the bodies of the dead glowing red among the ruins. He counts, searching, tallying the last souls.

'That's it… That's all of them. I have to get everyone out before Clark blows the town to dust.'

With a flick of his wrist, he and the remaining glowing bodies vanish, reappearing back in the forest camp.

He sets the last bodies gently down. "These are the last ones I could find, around a thousand more."

"Thank you, Monsieur Maurice," the same teacher says, bowing her head in gratitude. She turns to go, then hesitates. "Have you managed to reach help from the Verdant Haven Arcane Constabulary?"

Maurice nods. "Yes, they're on their way."

"Thank you," she says again, hurrying back to her work.

Maurice is about to assist when something catches his eye, a flash of black hair, a body he recognizes all too well. He stops in his tracks, his heart seizing.

He rushes over, dropping to his knees. It is Celine. Her lifeless form glows faintly with residual mana.

Maurice's breath hitches. He presses trembling fingers to her neck, hoping, just hoping for a pulse. But there is nothing.

"Celine…" he murmurs, his voice cracking.

He hasn't been as close to her as he is to André, but she has always been kind, always gentle. And to André, she is everything.

Memories surge—his childhood with André, the days they spent together, the laughter, the plans for the future.

Maurice's eyes burn. 'André, I'm so sorry. I was too late. Too late to save her, too late to save your family…' He rises unsteadily to his feet. 'But there's still Clark. If I can—'

His thoughts shatter as the sky erupts with thunder.

A pillar of darkness and lightning bursts from the center of Eñeforte, filling the sky with terror. The ground trembles, and fear sweeps through the camp. Survivors scream as teachers and students cling to each other while the shockwave shakes the forest.

Maurice's head whips toward the explosion, his eyes wide with dread.

"Clark…" he whispers, his fists clenched in helpless anger and grief. "Not you too."

He watches the sky burn, his heart sinking, wondering if anything, or anyone, will survive the night.

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André flies high above the damaged land, his black wings slicing through the clouds. The wind roars in his ears as he looks down at the broken railway tracks below.

"The train line to Eñeforte is suddenly closed… But why?" he mutters, anxiety gnawing at his chest.

A gnarled, grinning mouth twists open on his cheek, Baal's voice hissing with glee. "Heh, looks like something bad is happening in your precious territory."

André scowls, his eyes narrowing. 'Shut up, Baal.'

Baal only laughs, his teeth flashing. "Hahahaha! I'm just telling you what's coming next, boy."

André grits his teeth and presses onward, the landscape rushing by beneath him.

Suddenly, the horizon tears open. A massive pillar of darkness and lightning bursts from the center of Eñeforte, blocking out the sun and shaking the land with its force.

He shields his eyes as the blast hits him in the air. When he looks again, his hometown is hidden behind a tower of shadow. Fear twists in his stomach.

"That explosion… It came from the town- NO!"

He beats his wings faster, silently begging, 'Dominic… Celine… be safe. Please…'

Baal cackles, his voice dripping with mockery. "See? I was right, André. Your happy little family, all gone in a blink, how tragic!"

"Tch!" André snaps, shoving the demon's laughter aside.

He rushes toward the town, his fear growing with each second. Below him, what used to be a lively community is now just a smoking, ruined crater. The homes are crushed, the streets have vanished, and all the memories have been wiped away in one terrible moment.

His mind spirals. 'What if they're all gone? What if Celine, my son, everyone…? I wasn't here to save them. I failed. I—'

Baal's cruel laughter gnaws at his spirit. "Should've listened, André. Should've let me take the reins."

Ignoring the demon, André dives toward the heart of the crater. There, at its center, is a figure, motionless, barely visible amid the dust and ruin.

He lands hard, his knees buckling, and rushes to the body. It is Dominic, unconscious, battered, his skin blackened as if burned from within. Blood stains his lips and eyes, and every breath rattles with agony.

"No… Dominic…" André's voice breaks.

He kneels and gently holds his son. Dominic feels cold now, and a dark curse throbs under his skin. But his chest still moves up and down, a rough and desperate sign that he is alive.

"At least… at least he's alive…"

The words taste bitter, half gratitude, half anguish, weighed down by all he has already lost.

André gathers Dominic into his arms, holding him tight as if the strength of his embrace can will him back from death. Tears well in his eyes.

"André!"

André spins around, startled, and sees Maurice descending from the sky. Maurice's cloak flutters behind him, and his eyes are red with grief and exhaustion.

"Maurice…" André calls out, his voice rough.

Maurice lands gently, his eyes moving to Dominic, who is lying battered and broken. He hesitates, struggling to speak, but finally manages to steady himself.

"I evacuated the survivors," Maurice says in a quiet voice. "They're safe, camped in the nearby forest." His eyes show that he is hiding something—something André is afraid to ask.

"Take me to them, Maurice," André pleads, his voice trembling with hope and fear, holding Dominic tightly as if to shield him from whatever truth Maurice might reveal.