Side Character Who Became the Pseudo-Protagonist

Chapter 31: The Wrong Person

[Archive]

[Material Sight — 20 CC]

[Purchase?]

[Y/N]

Well of course, the price was literally everything I had.

I was starting to get the feeling that the system was dangling a carrot in front of me, and once I took a bite, it would inevitably be yanked right out and I would be forced to chase it again.

Still, it was stupid for me to save the points and not use this opportunity. Besides, if the option was only available now, then it meant this was some kind of special deal or sale.

And I’m one to gobble deals up, regardless if I knew if it would be a bait or not.

[Installing Spell Sequence]

[Material Sight — Innate Material Perception Type]

Suddenly, the world turned colorless, like those old black-and-white films that I used to watch.

Even my hand had become the same gradient, dull and gray, causing me to flinch a little bit at what was going on.

Yet instinctively, I managed to catch onto something.

Through the haze of the red smoke, which had turned completely transparent now, I could sense movement.

The outline of two people, and they seemed to be...fighting against another group? But upon closer inspection, I could tell who they were.

It was Cecilia and Lohan.

’Not good.’

The figures were running around, trying to protect what looked like another group of cadets who were unable to fight because of the red smoke.

And within the group, trying her best to hide herself...was Claire.

"We need to get in there! Claire needs help!" I yelled, already running into the smoke.

Grant looked like he wanted to say something, but decided to run right after me instead. The both of us ran in first, followed by the rest of the Disciplinary Committee forces and part of Grant’s personal guards.

Lohan, the other owner of [Material Sight], noticed us instantly.

With a paper talisman, he slipped under one of the attacker’s strikes, sticking it on the man’s shoulder.

A few seconds later...

BZZZT—!

Electricity buzzed through his body, causing the man’s muscles to lock up. His entire body dropped onto the floor and the paper burned away until it was none but ash.

’Ancient Magic, huh? I might’ve underestimated its potential...’

Cecilia was nearby as well, but it seemed like she was using a different kind of Spell to detect movement.

[Tremor Sense], a Spell that allowed her to feel the movements and physical shifts in the ground, a pretty useful one that she also had access to in the game.

Using this, she managed to dodge one of the attacker’s ambushes from behind, catching his hand and flipping the man over her shoulder.

THUD!

The man slammed into the ground before she delivered a finishing blow to his face, knocking him out.

As soon as the rest of our team realized what was going on, a few Barrier-type spells were cast around the group of scared students, allowing us time to regroup inside.

"Nolan! Aidan!" Lohan said between heavy breaths. "What the hell is going on? Why are we being attacked?!"

[Firebolt]

I shot the Spell at someone running in our direction, causing the explosion to burst in front of his face, sending him flying.

"Long story...Student Council President should be with you, isn’t she?"

"Yeah," Lohan nodded. "She insisted that the entire situation was an emergency, and rounded everyone still at the western dorms to head to the bunker."

"But well, we got caught here before that happened."

"Nolan..." Cecilia said from my side, clearly exhausted. "Where’s...Colette? Wasn’t she with you?"

I held back the urge to say anything, gritting my teeth. It was my fault she got captured in the first place.

At this point in time, I still had no idea where she was. But with Grant’s team sweeping the abandoned mall and still not finding her, she could be anywhere.

"I’ll explain later."

It was the only explanation I could give, and definitely not one that put Cecilia’s heart at ease. But it was better than lying to her.

"Claire!"

Grant’s voice called out from the center of the group of cadets.

My attention turned over there as well, finding the Student Council President crouched on the floor in an exhausted heap.

My question of "why" was answered quickly, as her fingers moved rapidly on the Bracelet-type Spell Driver on her wrist, manually pressing a sequence to maintain some kind of Spell.

But that was when I realized, that it was Claire all along that made the Red Logicite smoke somewhat tolerable.

[Local Frame — Tier 3 Boundary Creation Type]

It was a Spell used by a few characters within the game.

Created in an attempt to recreate the Midgard’s [World Frame] to varying levels of success, the spell allowed its caster to impose a simple condition into an artificial boundary of their choosing.

Even as a replica, that amount of power came at an immense cost, which was why it was dubbed a Tier 3 Spell. And someone like Claire Vanaris, an heir of the Nines comparable to Grant, was struggling this hard to maintain it.

’Damn it, could the situation be more grim than I thought?’

"Go...to...Mimir," Claire spoke in between heavy breaths.

"What? Why?" Grant kneeled by her side, supporting her body upright with his arm. "We should be protecting you here, no? How would they get inside without your access?"

"They’re...using...Colette..."

The moment she said the name, everyone within the protective dome froze.

’What? Colette? What does Colette have anything to do with the Mimir Database? And why the hell is Tina Valentine taking her there?’

But by looking at Grant’s grim expression, something must be up. So I asked quickly.

"Why Colette? What does she have to do with anything?"

"Every year, the Student Council President picks out one freshman to join them as a secretary. This year, Colette was selected, largely as a gesture of trust between Ygg and Astaron."

"No...does that mean—?"

"Yes...a secretary is authorized to enter the chamber housing the Mimir Database."

"So they still don’t have access? Aren’t we fine then?"

Grant’s expression darkened, furrowing his eyebrows before responding. "That’s the part I’m worried about. It depends on if the Mimir Database has updated with her permission in it or not..."

BANG—! BANG—! BANG—!

Gunfire erupted from somewhere beyond the smoke.

"CONTACT!"

Bullets hammered against the Barrier-type Spells surrounding us, sending ripples across their translucent surfaces.

CRACK!

My head snapped toward the sound. One of the barrier panels had already begun to fracture.

"Reinforce the eastern side!"

"I can’t! My Spell won’t initialize!"

"Then use another Driver!"

"It’s the smoke!"

More gunfire tore through the haze.

The Disciplinary Committee members scrambled to hold the perimeter, but they were exhausted. Some of them had already been fighting long before we arrived, and even with Claire’s [Local Frame], the Red Logicite smoke was still interfering with their Spell Sequences.

Then Claire suddenly coughed, blood running down her lips.

"Khh—!"

And with her moment of weakness, everything else collapsed with her.

The scene after...could only be described as a massacre.

From what anyone else could see, black figures twitched inside the red smoke. But these eyes of mine had turned into a curse, as I saw the Disciplinary Committee members drop like flies.

Bullets dug through their flesh and came out the other side, their bodies dropping to the floor lifeless.

"No...no..."

The more their plan began to unfold in my mind, the more I wanted to punch myself for being so stupid.

Their key had been Colette all along, and still I decided to let her waltz into danger. I practically handed her to them on a silver platter.

And now people were dying because of me.

It was all my fault.

All of it.

All because I thought my knowledge of the game was enough to save everyone.

...

I’m not cut out to be this world’s protagonist.

After all...

I had become the very thing I loathed the most.