I activated [Exorcist's Gaze], bracing for the searing pain from before—but this time, it never came.
Instead, a dull, creeping pressure settled behind my eyes, like someone had pressed their thumbs against my eyelids. The world flickered, edges blurring into hazy outlines before sharpening again.
And then I saw them.
Thin, pulsating threads of energy—faint, almost translucent—weaving through the air like veins. Most were scattered, drifting aimlessly, but a cluster of them converged in one direction, taut and purposeful, as if pulled toward something unseen.
There.
I followed the trail, stepping over unconscious students and shattered furniture. Twenty meters in, the threads coiled tighter, knotted around a single point in the courtyard's far corner.
An egg-shaped mass hovered midair, its surface rippling like liquid mercury, except—red. Deep, arterial red. It pulsed in time with the threads, a sickly heartbeat thrumming through the illusion's roots.
Is this the source? The Phantom Heart?
No time to overthink. I reached out—
—and the world swallowed me whole.
And SPAT OUT onto hard ground, I barely caught myself before face-planting. The air here was thick, metallic, like licking a battery.
I blinked, adjusting to the nightmare landscape.
A vast, circular terrain stretched before me, bordered by an abyss of black sky and a swirling red aura that clung to the edges like a dying ember's glow. The ground beneath me was unnaturally smooth, polished obsidian reflecting the hellish light.
And in the center of it all—
Zephyr?
He moved like a shadow given form, his short saber a silver flicker in the gloom. Phantoms swarmed him—skeletal figures wreathed in violet mist, their limbs elongated, claws raking the air—but none touched him.
His style was brutal efficiency.
A pivot, a twist, his blade lashing out in arcs so precise they seemed preordained. He didn't waste motion.
Every strike landed exactly where it needed to: a phantom's wrist, severing its grip before it could swing; a knee, collapsing its charge mid-step; a throat, silencing its shriek before it could sound.
He is cool.
But for every phantom that fell, two more clawed their way from the ground. And standing atop a jagged outcrop, just beyond the fray, was the real problem.
A wraith.
Tall, skeletal, its tattered robes billowing in an unfelt wind. A crimson crown hovered above its hollow eyes, and in its bony grip, a staff crackled with violet red energy. It raised the weapon, and a bolt of searing light lanced toward Zephyr.
He dodged, barely, but the distraction cost him. A phantom's claws grazed his shoulder, drawing blood.
Shit.
I took a step forward—then froze.
Thankfully, the wraith hadn't noticed me yet.
But if it was the guardian of this place…
The we probably have to defeat it, that hidden objective is probably this too...
But... I don't have the blessing now.
Right now, I am just an ordinary background character individual with a few useful skills.
Wait, come to think of it, Exorcist's Gaze's active effect evolved after leveling up, right?
I quickly searched my mind, the contents instantly reappearing.
Exorcist Eye.
The words flashed in my mind like a neon sign.
The target's spirit erupts in silver-blue fire which deals continious damage.
And... Works especially well against evil and spectral entities.
A grin tugged at my lips.
Perfect.
A plan was quickly forming in my—
CRACK!
A bolt of violet-red energy tore through the air, aimed straight at my skull.
"Shoot!"
I barely had time to curse before [Interception Step] kicked in, my body flickering three meters to the right. The attack seared past, close enough to singe my hair.
But the wraith wasn't done.
Its hollow eyes locked onto me, staff raised—
WHOOSH! x 5
Five more bolts lanced out, cutting off every escape route.
Tch. So you won't show any mercy to extras like me huh?
I braced for the impa—
—but a hand clamped onto my collar, yanking me backward.
I didn't resist. I knew that presence.
The world twisted, and suddenly, I was somewhere else—a portal snapping shut in front of me as the attacks detonated where I'd just been.
I would really die... I gulped inwardly.
Zephyr's voice, colder than a winter grave:
"Do you want to die?"
...He's worried about me, right?
I muttered, already falling into step beside him as we sprinted. "No, I still want to live."
"Then why are you here?"
Another phantom lunged. I sidestepped, feeling its claws graze my sleeve. "Because I want to live."
Zephyr didn't dignify that with a response. Instead, he grabbed me again, and another portal spat us out on the far side of the battlefield.
This time, he turned, eyes narrowing. He was giving me a strange look.
I held back my lips from twitching and said. "I have a way to completely catch that wraith's attention—and make it lose focus for five seconds." A phantom's swipe nearly took my head off. I ducked. "Can you take it down?"
Zephyr's gaze flicked to the wraith, then back to me.
A beat.
Then—a single, sharp nod.
Good enough.
I exhaled, rolling my shoulders.
Time to light this skeleton up.
"Can you get us closer," I said, keeping my voice low. "Somewhere with a clear line of sight to that wraith, but not swarmed with phantoms."
Zephyr's eyes narrowed—suspicious, assessing—but he gave a curt nod.
Just as another wave of phantoms surged toward us, he slashed a hand through the air. A dark rift split open beside us, and we dove through without hesitation.
The world twisted, then settled.
We reappeared on a raised platform of black stone, maybe twenty meters from the wraith's perch. No phantoms here—yet.
"Distract it," I said, already feeling the pressure building behind my eyes. "Just for a second."
Zephyr studied me for a fraction longer than necessary, his gaze lingering on my face—no, on my eyes. Then, without another word, he was gone.
One moment, standing beside me.
The next—
SHING!
His saber carved through the air, a silver streak aimed straight for the wraith's throat.
The wraith recoiled, its staff swinging up to block—
Perfect.
I took a deep breath.
And unleashed the-
[Exorcist Eye]