I AM EXTRA IN A SHONEN MANGA

Kaen's jaw tightened, fire Shinrei roaring around him.

"…Khael. If you're wrong, Matthew will kill us all."

Matthew's scream tore through the gym.

"AUUURHHHHH!!"

Void surged like a black hurricane, his veins glowing with corrupted sigils. The floor cracked in spiderwebs under his pulse.

Andromeda coughed blood, struggling to rise.

"Shit… he's getting stronger…!"

Khael and Kaen exchanged a sharp glance—then nodded. Both shifted their stance, Shinrei flaring like twin lighthouses against the darkness.

But then—

"Arf!"

A bark cut through the chaos.

From the shattered doorway, a small figure bolted in a dog. Its fur was matted, one leg limping, yet its eyes burned with desperate recognition.

"Doggy, wait!!"

Ceyla Nox stumbled in after it, panting. Her short wolfcut hair clung to her cheeks, silver streaks catching the flicker of Shinrei in the air.

She froze at the sight before her, Kaen and Khael braced for battle, Andromeda bleeding, and Matthew, twisted in Void's grip.

"…Khael?" she muttered, shock and irritation mixing.

Her storm-colored aura crackled faintly at her skin.

"What the hell are you doing here?!"

Khael's gaze flicked to her, then to the limping dog that now barked furiously at Matthew.

"…That dog." His chest tightened. "So you… smelled your owner, didn't you?"

The bark became a growl, teeth bared, tail low but unbroken in spirit.

Matthew's head jerked at the sound. His hollow eyes locked onto the little beast he had cast away. For a moment, his monstrous grin faltered.

"...You…" Matthew's voice cracked, echoing two-toned again, human and Void overlapping. "…Why are you still here… worthless thing…?"

The dog whimpered once, then barked louder, Shinrei flickering faintly around it, fragile, but pure.

The dog barked once more then lunged toward Matthew, not to bite, but to stand between the monster and the others.

The battlefield froze, everyone staring at the little creature shining with the faintest spark of loyalty.

Matthew's twisted arm shot forward, black Shinrei crackling like molten tar.

"USELESS MUTT!!"

The dog yelped as the blow slammed into its side, its small body skidding across the tiles, claws scraping for purchase.

But then… it rose again.

Shaking, ribs heaving, one leg trembling yet its eyes never left Matthew. It barked.

"Arf! Arf!"

The Void hissed and recoiled around Matthew's body, his face twisting with rage.

"Why… why won't you stay down?! I threw you away! You were nothing!"

The dog staggered forward again, fur bristling, teeth bared—not in defiance, but in desperate faith. The faint shimmer of Shinrei flickered at its paws, the echo of a bond refusing to die.

Ceyla's storm aura flared violently, her voice cracking with fury.

"YOU BASTARD!!" She raised her hands, Shinrei stormlight swirling into her palms. "You'd even kill your own Echo Beast?! You're not just corrupted—you're rotten!!"

Andromeda spat blood, struggling upright. His glove artifact dimmed, his voice hoarse.

"…No. Look closer."

Ceyla froze, glaring through her stormlit tears.

"…What?"

Andromeda's eyes burned with realization.

"The dog isn't attacking. It's reminding him. That bond—Shinrei doesn't lie."

Kaen clenched his fists, understanding dawning.

"It's trying to call him back…"

Khael's heart thundered. He muttered under his breath, almost in prayer:

"…Matthew… don't let go. That mutt still believes in you."

Matthew staggered, veins writhing, Void energy screaming in his ears. He clutched his head, roaring.

"SHUT UP!! SHUT UP!! I'M STRONGER WITHOUT YOU!!"

But the dog bleeding, broken kept limping closer. Its Shinrei flickered brighter, silver sparks mingling with the darkness. It barked again.

"Arf!"

A sound so simple, yet it sliced through the roars of the Void.

For a split second, Matthew's monstrous grin cracked. His human eyes flickered through the black haze, trembling.

"…Why… are you still… here…?"

The dog barked again ragged, broken, yet filled with unwavering light.

"Arf…! Arf…!"

The sound echoed, not through the gym, but through Matthew's memory.

A boy's laughter.

A puppy chasing him through sunlit fields.

Soft hands scratching fur behind the ears.

A promise whispered: "I'll always keep you by my side."

Matthew's vision blurred. The Void shrieked at the back of his skull, whispering crush it, kill it, erase it. But the warmth of that bond pressed harder, cracking the black fog.

His clawed hands trembled violently.

"What have I… done…?"

The Shinrei corruption pulsed, veins writhing, but his voice broke through, fragile and raw.

"I… I'm no different from my father…"

That name alone, the father he hated, feared, and swore never to become was enough to hollow his chest.

The dog whimpered once, then barked louder, defiantly. Its Shinrei flared pale silver, brighter than ever, refusing to abandon him.

Andromeda, bleeding on one knee, clenched his teeth.

"He's… fighting it. He's clawing his way back!"

Ceyla's storm aura pulsed, her eyes wide, jaw tight.

"…Matthew…"

But the Void wasn't done. The black tendrils around his chest lashed out violently, screaming with distorted voices. His body jerked, torn between collapse and rebirth.

"NO!" Matthew howled, clutching his skull as the dog limped closer, refusing to let go.

"GET AWAY… BEFORE I…!"

The ground cracked, tiles splitting under the pressure. His Shinrei was a warzone—light clashing against abyss.

The dog staggered forward on shaky legs, blood matting its fur. Each step was a defiance against the abyss.

Matthew's claws twitched, frozen mid-air. His Shinrei, once pitch black, began to ripple—threads of pale light pushing through the cracks of corruption.

"Haaah… haaah… nghhh—!!" Matthew clutched his chest as if something inside was tearing apart. The Void screamed, You belong to us! Yet the faint silver flame of his true Shinrei pushed back, straining to close the gnawing wound in his soul.

The dog pressed its head against Matthew's trembling hand. No words, no grand power—just warmth.

Matthew's voice broke into a whisper.

"...I don't deserve you…"

The black tendrils recoiled, shrieking. His face flickered between monster and boy, the human side fighting to surface. His Shinrei flared unsteadily—half void-stained, half his own.

From the sidelines, Khael's eyes widened, his dragon-blood veins resonating instinctively.

"...He's… closing it. He's really trying to seal the Void back…"

Kaen clenched his fists.

"If that dog can reach him… maybe we don't need to kill him yet."

Andromeda, still kneeling, spat blood but forced himself upright. His gaze hardened—not with hate, but grim acknowledgment.

"Tch… damn mutt. You might be the only one keeping him human."

Ceyla's storm Shinrei swirled, unsettled, but she looked away sharply, hiding her trembling lips.

"…Idiot. Crying over a dog…"

The battlefield stilled, everyone holding their breath as Matthew clung to a shred of himself. His trembling hands pressed against the dog's fur, his Shinrei flickering silver and black.

"…Help me… before I slip again…"

Then—

SHNK!

A sharp impact. The sickening sound of something piercing flesh.

Matthew's body jerked. His eyes widened in disbelief as a blade of obsidian light erupted through his chest.

"MATTHEW!!!" Kaen, Ceyla, and Andromeda shouted in unison.

Slowly, Matthew turned his head. Behind him, gripping the hilt buried in his back, was none other than Professor Lok. His hunched figure no longer seemed frail—his shadow writhed unnaturally, his face twisted in fury.

"...Tsk. To think my plan almost failed…" Lok hissed, voice dripping venom. His glasses slid slightly down his nose, revealing eyes too dark, too empty.

Matthew coughed blood, his knees buckling. "P…Professor…? Wh-why…"

Lok sneered.

"You were supposed to be my vessel. The Seal was primed, the hatred was ripe… and then that dog had to ruin everything."

The Void in Matthew convulsed, roaring awake as if called by its true master. His Shinrei wavered violently, the silver almost snuffed out.

Khael's dragon veins lit up, his rage boiling over.

"YOU BASTARD!!!" His voice thundered, shaking the gym's broken walls. Shinrei surged around him, scales faintly etching across his arms.

The dog growled, teeth bared at Lok, but its small frame trembled before the crushing aura.

Lok twisted the blade, forcing Matthew to scream as Void energy flared outward like a hurricane.

"Yes… scream. Break. Collapse. The more you shatter, the purer the Void becomes…"

To be continue