Is It Wrong for an Extra to Steal the Protagonist's Harem?-Chapter 87

The rules of the Spire’s evaluation were brutally simple.

Inside the massive, rectangular combat hall on the 12th floor, we had to face a magi-tech artifact known as the ’Arc-Cannon.’ It was designed to fire highly compressed, non-lethal mana bolts at speeds simulating Ivan Baker’s Flash acceleration.

To pass, a student had to successfully intercept and suppress the incoming magic before it hit them.

"The evaluation for Emily von Frits and Ren Montclair is complete." The mechanical voice of the Spire’s automated system echoed through the hall.

I stood near the heavy blast doors, watching their evaluations come to an end. Behind a massive wall of black, one-way mana glass on the far side of the room, Professor Cassandra and the Tower staff were observing us.

I had to admit, based on the standards of this world, both Emily and Ren were exceptional talents.

Emily had instantly coated her side of the room in a thick, jagged glacier of Tier-3 Ice Magic, creating a physical barricade that slowed the Arc-Cannon’s bolt just enough for her to shatter it. Ren had relied on his innate Light element, manifesting a brilliant, heavy Aura shield that absorbed the high-speed impact perfectly.

They had both succeeded in stopping the magic. But that was the problem. They had merely stopped it. They had acted like stationary targets, throwing up walls and bracing for impact.

It was defensive. It was exactly the kind of passive, reactive mindset that got Mages butchered in close-quarters combat against a Knight. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

’They are just unpolished gems right now,’ I thought, analyzing their breathing patterns. Ren was panting slightly, his mana reserves taxed by the heavy shield. ’A mage who only knows how to build walls will never break the hierarchy. There is no way Cassandra selects either of them as the Champion after that display.’

Emily walked out of the center ring, her pale face tight with a displeased, perfectionist frown.

Ren walked over to me, wiping a bead of sweat from his forehead. He offered a gentle, slightly exhausted smile.

"I did my best," Ren said, looking back at the scorch marks on the floor. "But I’m still disappointed. My casting speed barely kept up with the third round."

"Reflect on your flaws, Ren," I replied smoothly, crossing my arms. "A shield is just a delayed defeat. If you only play defense against a speed-type, you lose the moment your mana runs dry."

Ren blinked, digesting the harsh advice, before nodding obediently. The protagonist had a terrifyingly good attitude toward self-improvement.

"You’re right. I need to rethink my formula," Ren chuckled softly, looking at me. "But Alex, you don’t seem nervous at all. Facing that kind of speed... it’s intimidating."

Nervous?

I had never been nervous a single day in this world. I didn’t rely on archaic, inefficient chanting, and I wasn’t bound by the physical limits these nobles thought were absolute.

I didn’t answer him with words. I just looked at him with a calm, utterly detached gaze.

Ren let out a short laugh, shaking his head. "Don’t misunderstand, I’m not mocking you. I just like your confidence. The way you stood up to Professor Cassandra and declared you’d be the Representative... I personally thought it was incredibly cool."

"Final Candidate. Alex Edelhart, please step into the evaluation ring." "Good luck, Alex," Ren stepped back. "Show us what you’ve got."

I nodded lightly and walked toward the center of the scorched stone floor.

As I walked, I pulled up my mental interface. I had been hoarding the rewards from my recent harem management, and it was time to cash out before I stepped into the line of fire.

’System. Open Store.’

[Current Lust Points: 430] My [Calculation Power: 28] was high enough to process the trajectory of the high-speed bolts, but my physical [Agility: 8] meant my body couldn’t react fast enough to move out of the way. I needed a bridge between my brain and my reflexes.

’Purchase Stat Upgrade: Agility +5. Purchase Sub-Skill: Vector Sight.’

[Deducting 400 Lust Points.] [Agility increased to 13.] [Sub-Skill Acquired: Vector Sight (Passive) - Allows the user to visually perceive the structural kinetic flow and weak points of incoming energy.]

A sudden, sharp heat washed over my eyes, followed by a rushing sensation in my leg muscles. The world instantly felt lighter, crisper.

I stopped in the center of the ring, fifty meters away from the massive, glowing barrel of the Arc-Cannon.

Fast magic manifestation. One-hit suppression. Those were the conditions I had set for a true Representative. Since I had demanded the standard, it was time to demonstrate it.

"The evaluation will begin." I didn’t take a defensive stance. I didn’t raise my hands to cast a barrier. I simply stood there, my hands resting casually in my pockets. I channeled my dense, friction-heavy mana, letting it thrum quietly just beneath my skin.

"Round One. Firing." BOOM.

The magi-tech cannon fired. A compressed bolt of blue mana tore across the room at terrifying speed.

To a normal student, it was a blur of light. But to me? I wanted to go beyond their archaic understanding of speed.

My newly acquired [Vector Sight] activated in perfect sync with my [Calculation Power: 28].

The world seemed to lose its color, washing out into a muted grayscale. The incoming mana bolt slowed down drastically in my perception. It wasn’t just a ball of light anymore; it was a cluster of pulsating white lines—a complex wireframe of kinetic energy built around a single, unstable central core.

’There it is.’ I didn’t need to block the spell. I just needed to break its structural integrity.

I pulled my right hand from my pocket and lazily flicked my index finger. A tiny, highly compressed bullet of kinetic friction shot forward.

Crack.

My kinetic bullet struck the exact structural weak point of the incoming spell. The massive blue bolt instantly destabilized and shattered into harmless sparkles of light, fifteen meters away from me.

Silence flooded the evaluation hall. Behind the one-way glass, I could practically hear the faculty’s jaws dropping.

’Two more times?’ I thought, lowering my hand.

"R-Round Two. Firing." The staff member’s voice over the speaker sounded distinctly shaken.

The cannon roared again. The speed and density of the second bolt were nearly doubled.

It didn’t matter. The physics remained exactly the same. The world slowed, the white wireframe appeared. I took a single, casual half-step to the left with my newly upgraded [Agility: 13], letting the bolt pass within inches of my shoulder. As it passed, I slapped the side of it with an open palm coated in friction-mana.

The kinetic disruption tore the spell apart mid-air. It dissolved into mist behind me.

"Round Three. Firing!" The third bolt was blindingly fast, meant to simulate Ivan Baker’s absolute maximum sprint.

I didn’t even move my feet this time. I raised my hand and snapped my fingers, generating a localized kinetic shockwave right in front of my chest. The incoming bolt hit the shockwave and collapsed in on itself, imploding with a dull thud.

’Is this it?’ I frowned, genuinely disappointed.

If this was the peak of the Knight’s ’Flash’ speed, it was pathetic. Was the Spire’s equipment just outdated, or was Ivan Baker’s reputation severely exaggerated? Either way, I had finished the evaluation in three effortless rounds without taking a single step backward. The Representative spot was mine.

I turned around, preparing to walk back to the lounge.

"WARNING. Manual Override engaged. Launching Round Four! Maximum Output!" Suddenly, an enthusiastic, highly unauthorized voice blared over the speakers. Someone in the observation deck—likely Cassandra testing my absolute limits—had bypassed the safety protocols.

The Arc-Cannon whined, glowing a blinding, volatile red.

KRA-KOOM!

The fourth bolt didn’t just fire; it detonated out of the barrel. It was a massive, highly lethal sphere of condensed energy traveling at Mach speed.

Ren yelled a warning from the sidelines. Emily’s eyes widened in horror. It was too fast to dodge, and too dense to deflect with a simple flick.

I turned back to face the rushing death.

"...Whatever," I muttered, a dark, arrogant smirk spreading across my face.

I didn’t use Vector Sight. I didn’t cast a spell.

I stepped forward, raised my right hand, and caught the blazing red spell bare-handed.

The impact was equivalent to being hit by a freight train. The stone floor beneath my boots instantly shattered into a spiderweb of deep craters. But the lethal kinetic energy didn’t crush my bones.

The [Heart of the Spellsword] pulsing in my chest flared to life.

[Passive Trait Triggered: Kinetic Resonance]

My body rapidly absorbed every single ounce of the spell’s concussive force, eating the impact and storing the violent energy in my core. The red mana bolt fizzled and died against my palm, completely drained of its momentum.

I stood in the center of the shattered stone, my hand smoking, my body thrumming with a terrifying, explosive surplus of stored kinetic power.

I slowly lowered my hand, looking directly at the black one-way mirror where the faculty was hiding.

"If you’re going to test an apex predator," I said, my cold, echoing voice dripping with absolute disdain, "don’t use a toy. You insolent fools."