Transmigrating as an Extra, But the Heroine Has Regressed?!

Edwin grabbed the last of the terrified children. Blood streaked on his face, and his uniform was shredded from claw marks.

"Hang on!" he shouted, swinging the small boy over his shoulder. With one last burst of strength, Edwin hurled the child across the gap to the safer side of the bridge where earlier survivors were huddled.

The boy landed with a cry, immediately pulled to safety by Alina's healing assistants.

Edwin staggered and turned back toward the battlefield.

"Kael Ashford," he said through clenched teeth and with anger, "we will talk later—after we finish every last one of these."

Kael didn't respond.

He grabbed his weapon and the weapon felt like a slab of iron.

The first wave came, a mix of lean, wolf-like fiends and hulking, horned brutes. Their claws slashed through the air with a sound like tearing metal.

Edwin, stepped forward with a sharp shout. Sparks burst as steel met claw, and three demons fell in a single arc of his weapon.

But for every demon he cut down, two more lunged from the shadows.

"Haah!" Jin roared beside him, his twin blades spinning in a deadly swing. He twisted between lunges, slashing across thick hides and leaving trails of black blood on the ground.

Within moments, more than ten demons lay writhing on the dirt, but Jin's shoulders were already trembling from the relentless assault.

Kael tightened his jaw and surged forward, the tungsten blade raised high.

(Strike hard, break their line…) he told himself. He swung with all his strength, the heavy sword cleaving through a demon's chest with a crunch.

Black blood sprayed across his cheek. The force of the swing shook his arms and nearly wrenched the weapon from his hands.

His second strike came slower, the weight of the weapon dragging him down. By the third swing, his breathing turned ragged.

(Too heavy…) he thought, gritting his teeth.

"I can't keep this up."

"I will need to use my own blood on this sword".

Before he could catch his breath, a clawed demon leapt at him. Kael tried to raise his sword, but the tungsten blade was too slow.

The beast's talons scraped across his face, tearing a gash from his brow to his cheek.

Hot blood ran down his jaw, blurring his vision. He stumbled back, barely dodging another swipe.

"Kael!" Elysia shouted.

She darted past him like a streak of silver, her Oath Blade singing as it sliced through the demon's neck.

The beast collapsed in a spray of black mist.

But even Elysia's strength had limits. For every demon she felled, three more replaced it. Sweat rolled down her face, her arms trembling from fatigue.

Her strikes grew slower, the once-sharp rhythm of her blade beginning to falter. A horned brute charged her from the side.

She turned too late, the impact knocked her off her feet, sending her crashing into the dirt. Her sword skidded out of reach.

"Elysia!" Selene shouted, rushing forward.

She skewered the brute before it could finish the attack, but the effort left her open to another beast that clawed across her back.

Selene gasped, dropping to one knee.

Behind them, Jin and Edwin fought like men possessed. Edwin's single sword carved through demon after demon, but his breathing had turned ragged.

Jin's twin blades were streaked with black blood, their once-clean edges now chipped from constant clashes.

Their movements slowed as exhaustion set in.

A massive, ape-like demon slammed Jin into the ground with a backhand swipe, leaving a deep gash across his chest.

Edwin tried to cover him but took a heavy blow to his side, blood soaking through his uniform.

Alina, positioned behind them, clenched her teeth as she knelt beside the injured.

Her healing magic flared bright green, sealing cuts and closing wounds, but the magic drained her quickly.

"Stay with me!" she shouted.

"I can't keep this up if you keep charging in!"

Kael staggered to Elysia's side, raising his heavy sword despite the blood dripping from his brow.

He swung again, cutting down a lunging demon, but the effort nearly made his knees buckle.

Every muscle screamed for rest, yet the endless tide of monsters left no room to breathe. His skill—Dark Edge, the deadly technique he had trained for—remained dormant.

He simply didn't have the energy to channel it. His swings grew slower, each one weaker than the last.

Kael wiped blood from his eyes and risked a glance at his team.

Elysia lay on one knee, gripping her blade with trembling fingers.

Jin and Edwin, despite heavy wounds, were forcing themselves to stand again.

Alina's face was pale from overusing her magic. Selene and Isolde barely held their ground, and their weapons shaking in their hands.

And then,

A heavy, deliberate set of footsteps echoed through the chaos.

The demons suddenly slowed, forming a wide circle around a single figure emerging from the forest.

A man—no, a demon in human form strode forward.

A cruel smile tugged at the stranger's lips as he stopped a few feet away.

"Do you remember me?" the demon asked.

Edwin froze, his eyes widening in shock.

"You… you're that man who appeared before the midterm. Damn it!"

Kael's grip tightened on his sword, memories flashing in his mind.

"You're the demon from before midterm," he said hoarsely.

(What the hell is going on?) Kael thought, heart pounding.

(He wasn't supposed to appear until next year's event… the novel is changing the story.)

The demon's smile widened.

Around them, the remaining beasts crouched low, ready to strike.

"Who is the strongest hero in here?" the demon asked.

Elysia, her sword arm trembling and blood streaking her cheek, slowly raised a finger.

She pointed toward Kael, who was crouched on the ground just in front of her, struggling to catch his breath.

The demon's eyes locked onto Kael. He tilted his head slightly, almost curious. "Are you the strongest hero?"

Kael's heart lurched. He could barely stand; his body ached from the countless blows he had endured, and blood dripped steadily from a gash above his eyebrow.

"No," he croaked, shaking his head. "I… I am not the strongest one."

(Why the hell is she pointing toward him… he's damn weak!) Edwin thought, biting back a curse as he tightened his grip on his sword despite the throbbing pain in his arms.

"I am the strongest here!" Edwin cut in sharply, stepping forward despite the blood soaking his torn uniform.