The Extra Who Inherited Ragnarok

The roar beneath the ruins had silenced everyone.

For several seconds, nobody moved.

Then the chamber shook again.

BOOOOOOM!

A crack raced across the ceiling.

Laura looked upward.

"We need to leave."

Damien nodded.

"Agreed."

Noah stared at the three medallions.

Balgard.

Sylthin.

Flaros.

They were no longer glowing.

But the strange pressure remained.

Something beneath them had awakened.

And it wasn’t going back to sleep.

The communication crystals across the ruins suddenly activated.

"ALL CONTESTANTS, EVACUATE THE RELIC CHAMBER!"

"THIS IS NO LONGER A TOURNAMENT EVENT!"

The announcement repeated.

Panic spread through the ancient structure.

Students who had entered expecting a competition now ran toward the exits.

Some were carrying relic fragments.

Others had abandoned everything.

The tournament officials were desperately trying to organize the evacuation.

But the structure wasn’t cooperating.

A massive tremor struck.

CRACK!

Part of the corridor collapsed.

Laura grabbed Noah’s arm.

"Move!"

They sprinted.

Luna and Damien followed closely.

Behind them, stone crashed down.

Noah looked over his shoulder.

Something was moving beneath the floor.

Not a person.

Something enormous.

"Keep going!"

They reached the central chamber.

Several squads were already there.

Reinham stood with Elementro’s group, his uniform covered in dust.

Jordan and Christina emerged from another passage.

Volstra contestants followed.

Everyone was looking toward the massive doors.

The Dragon.

The Serpent.

The Bear.

All three symbols were glowing.

Jordan frowned.

"What the hell is happening?"

Nobody answered.

Then the floor split.

BOOOOOOM!

Everyone jumped backward.

A huge black fissure opened between the three doors.

A wave of energy erupted from it.

Several contestants were thrown across the chamber.

Noah raised both hands.

Fire exploded outward.

WHOOOM!

His flames shielded Laura, Luna, and Damien.

The force still pushed him backward.

His feet carved lines through the stone.

"NOAH!"

Laura reached for him.

"I’m fine!"

His flames flickered.

For a moment...

Maroon appeared.

Noah’s eyes widened.

The familiar voice returned.

"Let me out."

Noah clenched his teeth.

"No."

"They are coming."

"No."

"Then I will protect you myself."

Noah’s eyes widened.

The voice disappeared.

His flames returned to normal.

A shadow emerged from the fissure.

Everyone went silent.

It wasn’t a creature.

It was a figure.

Humanoid.

Covered in ancient armor.

Its face was hidden behind a cracked mask.

Three glowing marks covered its chest.

Dragon.

Serpent.

Bear.

Reinham stepped forward.

"What is that?"

Daniela activated her perception.

Her expression immediately changed.

"I can’t see its power."

Jordan looked at her.

"What?"

"Nothing."

Daniela’s eyes narrowed.

"I can’t perceive it."

The figure slowly lifted its head.

A voice echoed through the chamber.

"The guardians have been disturbed."

Nobody understood.

The figure turned toward Noah.

"The flame bearer."

Noah froze.

Laura immediately moved in front of him.

"Don’t."

The figure’s head tilted.

"You carry what should never have been awakened."

Noah stared.

"What are you talking about?"

The figure raised its hand.

The entire chamber trembled.

Then...

A black-orange streak flashed through the darkness.

BOOM!

The figure was struck.

Joseph landed between Noah and the ancient entity.

His hand was still glowing.

Everyone stared.

Jordan shouted:

"Joseph?!"

Joseph didn’t look back.

His eyes remained fixed on the figure.

The creature slowly turned toward him.

Joseph’s expression hardened.

"Stay away from him."

Noah stared.

"Joseph?"

Joseph ignored him.

The black-orange energy around his body intensified.

For the first time, the quiet Asgard contestant looked genuinely dangerous.

The ancient figure raised its hand.

Joseph disappeared.

CRACK!

He reappeared above it.

His fist struck its mask.

BOOM!

The creature staggered.

Joseph landed.

Then turned toward Noah.

Their eyes met.

For a moment, Noah saw something strange in Joseph’s expression.

Not hatred.

Not fear.

Confusion.

As though Joseph himself didn’t understand why he’d just protected him.

Then the voice returned inside Joseph’s head.

"Do not interfere."

Joseph froze.

His fingers trembled.

The black-orange glow flickered.

Noah noticed.

"Joseph..."

Joseph looked away.

Then the voice came again.

"Kill Noah Blackwood."

Joseph’s eyes became cold.

He slowly turned toward Noah.

Laura immediately stepped forward.

But Joseph didn’t attack.

Instead, he whispered:

"...Not yet."

Then he vanished into the collapsing chamber.

Noah stared after him.

"What’s wrong with that guy?"

Laura tightened her grip.

"I don’t know."

Behind them, the ancient figure began rising again.

The evacuation bell screamed.

And above Hildgard...

The three moons had begun glowing in broad daylight.

The relics had awakened.

And the tournament would never be quite the same again.

The three moons were still visible.

That was impossible.

Hildgard’s morning sky should have been bright, yet the Crimson Moon, Blue Moon, and Scarlet-Violet Moon remained suspended above the city.

Their light washed over the arena.

Every contestant had stopped.

Nobody knew what to say.

Then the ancient structure collapsed.

BOOOOOOM!

A section of the relic chamber erupted behind them.

"Move!"

Damien shouted.

The remaining contestants scattered.

Stone rained from above.

Reinham grabbed Flora and pulled her away from a falling pillar.

Jordan released a burst of lightning that shattered several pieces of debris before they could hit Christina.

Laura raised a defensive barrier.

Luna disappeared into the smoke.

Noah stood in the center of the chaos.

His flames were burning.

But something felt wrong.

His body was hot.

His heart was racing.

And beneath all of it...

That presence was awake.

"NOAH!"

Laura reached him.

"You okay?"

He nodded.

"Yeah."

She looked into his eyes.

Normal.

For now.

"Your flames..."

Noah looked at his hand.

The fire was orange.

But tiny strands of maroon occasionally flickered through it.

"I know."

Laura lowered her voice.

"It’s reacting again."

"I know."

Noah closed his fist.

"But I’m controlling it."

A tremor shook the ground.

Laura looked toward the ruined chamber.

"Are you sure?"

Noah hesitated.

"No."

Laura stared at him.

At least he was honest.

The Hildgard officials began forcing everyone away from the ruins.

"All contestants outside!"

"Move!"

"Don’t remain near the structure!"

The headmasters were gathering on the upper platform.

Even the most composed among them looked concerned.

The headmaster of Asgard stood with his arms folded.

"Why did the relic chamber awaken?"

The Hildgard government representative shook his head.

"We don’t know."

"Then why was it included in the tournament?"

"It wasn’t supposed to react."

That answer made several headmasters turn.

One of them stepped forward.

"Explain."

The representative swallowed.

"The relic chamber has existed beneath Hildgard for centuries. We’ve used the surrounding area for historical trials before."

He looked toward the three moons.

"But nothing like this has ever happened."

Daniela stood among Elementro’s contestants.

Her perception remained active.

She looked at the moons.

Then toward Noah.

Then back toward the ruins.

She couldn’t see the ancient figure’s power.

She couldn’t properly read the relics.

But Noah...

She could still see him.

And his energy had changed.

Again.

Daniela whispered:

"What are you hiding?"

Reinham looked at her.

"Daniela."

She turned.

"You alright?"

"Yes."

Reinham looked toward the ruins.

"Whatever that thing was..."

His fist tightened.

"...I want to fight it."

Flora sighed.

"Of course you do."

Reinham looked offended.

"What?"

"You’ve been looking for something to punch since we arrived."

John laughed.

"She’s not wrong."

Reinham crossed his arms.

"I simply believe strength should be tested."

Daniela smiled faintly.

But her attention remained elsewhere.

At the edge of the evacuation zone, Noah noticed something.

A figure standing among the smoke.

Joseph.

He was watching the ruins.

Noah approached him.

"Joseph."

Joseph turned.

His expression was unreadable.

"What?"

"You saved me."

Joseph’s eyes narrowed.

"I didn’t."

"You attacked that thing before it could reach me."

"I attacked it because it was in my way."

Noah studied him.

"Then why did you tell it to stay away from me?"

Joseph didn’t answer.

For several seconds, they stood in silence.

Then Joseph looked toward Noah’s hand.

The faint maroon flame flickered again.

Joseph’s eyes sharpened.

"You really don’t know."

"Know what?"

Joseph shook his head.

"Nothing."

He walked away.

Noah watched him.

"That’s twice today."

Joseph stopped.

Noah continued.

"Twice you’ve acted like you know something about me."

Joseph didn’t turn around.

"I don’t know anything."

"You’re lying."

Joseph’s hand tightened.

Then he quietly said:

"Maybe."

And walked away.

Noah remained still.

That night, the tournament grounds were unusually quiet.

The relic event had been suspended.

The contestants had been ordered back to their academies’ temporary residences.

But nobody was sleeping comfortably.

Noah stood by his window.

The three moons remained above Hildgard.

He looked at his reflection in the glass.

Normal eyes.

Normal hair.

Normal face.

Then...

For half a second...

His reflection smiled.

Noah froze.

The reflection’s eyes became maroon.

A whisper came from the glass.

"You saw me."

Noah stepped backward.

The reflection returned to normal.

His heart hammered.

"No..."

A notification appeared.

[Ragnarok Dead Zone: Dormant.]

Then another.

[Unknown external resonance detected.]

Noah stared at the words.

The first time, Dead Zone had been something inside him.

Now...

Something outside him had recognized it.

And beneath Hildgard, the three ancient relics continued glowing.

Balgard.

Sylthin.

Flaros.

The tournament had been interrupted.

But whatever had awakened beneath the city...

had only just begun.