The Nameless Extra: I Proofread This World-Chapter 22: Will You Trust Me?

Suddenly, Droiger went silent. The quiet swelled and filled the warehouse entirely, allowing an eerie presence to parade in from every shadowed corner of the warehouse.

Even his vicious smile finally gave way.

Obviously, no one in their right mind would be joking under these circumstances. But Ruvian knew exactly what he was doing. There was something to be gained from making that sort of provocation.

And thus, in its own morbid fashion, it seemed his actions were finally beginning to bear fruit.

"What is happening..." Silvena muttered.

Even Vible and Lenwick could only stare, confused, robbed of speech. Only Irene and Ruvian remained calm and observed.

What they were witnessing was something profoundly bordered on the unnatural and the farcical. Droiger, who had been so at ease a moment ago now twitched his head with disturbing relentlessness.

He sank his teeth into his own lips until crimson seeped from his mouth. And even in that wretched state, strange, unfathomable words continued to slip past his bloodied teeth.

A language that was never meant to be understood.

"Irene... what’s with him?"

"I... don’t know, my lady."

Even Irene didn’t have the answer to that.

Eventually, the man grew still, the spectacle ending with a sharp crack of his neck. His vicious smile returned as though nothing had happened, then paired with a maniacal laugh.

"A generous offer, you say? Hahaha!! It has been ages since I was last amused. That was marvelous, truly. I never anticipated such an answer from you."

"However, on second thought, I’ll be withdrawing my offer."

He folded his hands behind his back.

"Every concession that we have... consider them null and void. Negotiations, you see, only have meaning when both parties are worth the trouble, so when they are not, I believe there is no need for any conversation anymore."

His eyes narrowed, the amusement within them curdling into something cold.

"Ah... and witnesses are an unnecessary risk. And risks must be eliminated. So I’m afraid none of you will be leaving this place."

As the last words left his mouth, something changed. A dull crimson bleed through his skin. Wisps of red smoke leaked from his arms and his neck, coiling outward in slow spirals.

It did not rise like ordinary smoke, but crawled, heavy, pooling along the floor before climbing the pillars and swallowing the air itself.

Ruvian leaned just enough toward Irene and Silvena for his voice to reach them alone.

"Stay sharp," he whispered, calm to the point of eeriness.

"He’s about to strike soon."

Even without the need of Ruvian telling them, they were already aware of it. But Ruvian just had to make sure.

Straightening, Ruvian lifted his gaze, unbothered by the crimson haze curling ever closer.

"Withdrawing our negotiations already?" he said mildly. "Why calling everything off before we’ve even had the chance to haggle properly?"

He let out a small, almost disappointed sigh.

"That feels rather premature. We’re still in the negotiation phase, aren’t we? Just a sudden withdrawal without any breakdowns or revised terms is hardly fair, don’t you think so?"

He allowed a sharp smile.

"Perhaps, is this because you didn’t like how a human handles a bargain?"

The dangerous man suddenly twitched again.

"What’s with the reaction? Did I hit a bullseye? Oh wait, that’s not quite right..."

Ruvain eyes sharpened.

"Honestly, Dogger, I’ve been meaning to ask since the beginning..."

"Are you actually human? Because judging from it, you look very hideous now. Do you realise that some parts of your face are peeling off now?"

But of course, that was a lie. The mysterious man’s face was still perfectly fine.

However, his gaze darkened after hearing those words from Ruvian.

"That’s such a good expression, anyway, let’s cut the chase shall we?"

"Dogger..."

"It’s Droiger." the man replied.

"Yeah, whatever you want..."

Then, Ruvian exhaled.

"Tell us the truth... you’re a demon in disguise, aren’t you?"

After Ruvian had said that, the man finally lost his vicious grin, and finally, his face slowly distorted.

Then the others’ reaction was immediate.

They all froze, confusion flashing across their faces before giving way to disbelief. Even Irene stiffened subtly, her focus snapping back to the man as unease crept into her expression.

’...Demon? What did he mean by that?’

Silvena stood rooted in place, caught in a state of paralysis, her thoughts refusing to align no matter how desperately she tried to command them.

It was not that she lacked the will to act, but rather that the situation itself defied the instincts she had honed over years of command.

For one, she could not sense a trace of mana from the man before them. Not even the faint distortion that appeared around those adept at concealment.

Nothing...

And the absence itself was obscene. To stand before someone so utterly empty, or worse, something that merely appeared empty, was enough to send a chill crawling up her spine.

And yet, what unsettled her most was not the man wreathed in crimson smoke.

It was the one standing beside her!

The young dark-haired man had stepped seamlessly into the role of authority, his composure unbroken, as though he had anticipated this turn long before it ever occurred.

There was no hesitation in him, and no uncertainty clouding his judgement.

Silvena glanced at him.

Honestly, she found it astonishing that he was capable of this, that he could seize control of the situation so effortlessly, set the tempo so decisively, while everyone else, herself included, was left struggling just to keep up.

Yet more than his composure, what truly unsettled her was the accusation itself.

What did he mean by demon?

Why would he say that?

The question tugged at her thoughts, threatening to pull her deeper, but she never had the chance to follow it.

’Huh!!?’

A firm grip closed around her arm and waist.

"My lady!" Irene’s voice cut through her spiraling thoughts.

Silvena barely had time to register what she was seeing before the world tore forward.

Where she had been standing moments ago, a crimson spike now jutted from the ground—tall, jagged, and gleaming like polished glass.

Had she remained there even a second longer, she knew that she would have been skewered clean through.

The realization came only after her body did.

Thankfully, Irene was quicker.

One arm was wrapped firmly around Silvena’s waist, lifting and carrying her without hesitation, while the other dragged the four bound thugs along the ground in a single brutal pull.

They were little more than dead weight, tied together and left to scrape helplessly across the concrete as Irene repositioned them behind a collapsed pillar.

"Ow! Ow! Hey, pull us properly, by the void!"

"Just what’s that... our boss? No, that’s not him."

A second later, Ruvian landed beside them, and he didn’t waste any time.

"Listen," he said sharply, low but still commanding.

"We don’t have the luxury for explanations, so I’ll keep this brief. Do not question anything."

His eyes flicked to Irene first.

"If you have a spell that increases resistance against mental interference or intrusion, cast it now. On all of us. The three of us."

"W-what about us!?"

Ruvian ignored them with a frown.

Then he looked at Silvena.

"And Silvena, cast a wind spell to keep that smoke away from us. Whatever you do, never inhale that crimson mist."

His tone hardened.

"Better yet, don’t let it touch you at all."

Both Silvena and Irene stared at him, utterly stunned.

’Huh!!??’

’Did he just call me... by my name!?’

Her face was full of bewilderment. For a moment, her mind went blank. The very sound of her name coming from his mouth had struck her harder than any blow.

She was in disguise, her appearance altered. No one here should have known who she was except for Irene. And yet he had spoken her name with complete conviction.

No, how did he know her name in the first place!?

’How?’

But before she could voice it, Ruvian continued, already moving his gaze back toward the writhing crimson haze in the distance.

"He’s not that strong, but you all needed to be aware of his illusion magic."

Silvena’s gaze followed to where he was looking.

’Keep your head calm, Silvena. Focus on what is more important at the moment. You can ask him that later.’

She cooled her thoughts.

"Do you have a plan?" Silvena asked him.

"My lady..."

Honestly, Silvena still could not grasp the full shape of what was unfolding before her. Everything was moving at a fast pace.

Yet when it came to standing at a crossroads and weighing trust against doubt, she always had the right answer.

That was her blessing.

And as her gaze returned to the young man beside her, the answer came to her.

Her choice was clear.

Soon, the man smiled knowingly and said:

"I do, but..."

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[Chapter 22: Will you trust me?]

A/N: Two Chapters for today as a small gift :)

Btw, woohoo! This book is finally contracted!

So here is the plan. Updates will continue at one Chapter per day until March 30th, with some occasional days getting two Chapters. (maybe 1 today, 2 tomorrow ahh)

After that, I have something special planned. In April, there will be a full week with three Chapters released daily as a thank you for your patience.

But other than that special week in April, updates will be two Chapters daily :D

Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed the Chapters so far.

Thanks for reading!