Kill The Extra-Chapter 46: Future Plans [3]

The East Garden was quiet now.

But Sasha's mind wasn't. She sat on the low stone bench nearby her head bowed, arms crossed tightly around her body as if trying to hold herself together. The conversation with Ryker echoed in her head, each word laced with venom and clarity. Her lips were pressed into a thin line and her gray eyes stared at the cracked stone path before her but she didn't see it.

She saw Emily.

Her sister's laughter on rainy days, the way she used to braid Sasha's hair and tease her about her scowl. The quiet nights when Emily could not sleep, trembling and refusing to say why. And finally, the blood. She remembered her cold, lifeless body. The smell of it in the bathroom. The letter soaked in tears and regret.

Sasha clutched her arms tighter.

Ryker knew. He knew. Every detail, every failure, every thought she had tried to bury. And worse he used it and She hated him for it.

And yet...

She wasn't walking away.

"Am I a fool?" she whispered aloud, voice hoarse.

The wind answered with silence.

She had spent months planning, watching, trying to find any crack in Lucas's armor that had been placed around him by his family. And now, someone handed her a chisel. Not out of kindness. Not even for shared vengeance. Ryker didn't care. But he offered a path.

Her fingers grazed the hilt of her twin daggers on her hip. The same one she had poisoned in desperation.

'You failed'

The duel had been her moment. She had gambled everything. And she had lost.

"Why didn't you die?" she murmured, eyes burning. "Why did you get to walk away smiling like none of it mattered?"

She stood abruptly, brushing the tears from her cheeks before they could fall. No one would see her break. Not again.

But her heart trembled.

She didn't trust Ryker. She couldn't. But... Did she need to? Trust was a luxury she did not have. Her world had no place for ideals. Only tools. Only outcomes.

She remembered the look in Ryker's eyes.

Cold. Calculated. But not hollow.

He had a purpose.

And that terrified her more than anything. Because she had almost given up on hers.

Her fingers curled into fists.

"If this is the only way," she muttered, "Then I will walk it."

She turned away from the garden, her steps heavy. Each foot step felt like a betrayal. To Emily. To herself. But her mind was already racing. Weighing, planning.

If Ryker could help her hurt Lucas,

No.

If Ryker could help her destroy him...

Then maybe that was enough.

Even if it killed her in the end.

*******

Ryker stepped into his dorm room and shut the door behind him with a soft click.

Silence greeted him, broken only by the faint ticking of the old analog clock on the wall. He stood still for a moment, letting the hush settle into his bones. He exhaled deeply as he loosened his collar, tossing his coat onto the bed. The window was open, letting in a breeze that whispered of victory.

He walked to the mirror. Stared at himself. The faintest smile tugged at his lips.

"Checkmate in five turns," he whispered.

The conversation with Sasha had gone better than expected. She had cracked. She tried to hide it infront of him. She tried to keep that cold front but he saw it. The fire behind her eyes, reshaped.

Still dangerous though.

Ryker poured himself a glass of water and sat down at his desk as he pulled out a small notebook.

Six Months

That the time he had before the entire game changes.

The Midterm Exam would flip the academy's structure. Some will go forward and some will stay behind. After the midterm exams every freshman would be required to become squires. The selection process would open doors to some and close doors to others.

That was when Ryker needed to reach for his sword.

His most important piece in this game.

Not a weapon. A person. A prodigy.

A character who is criticized by their own family and society in the novel. A character that had been sidelined, killed, turned into a villain.

But not this time,

'This time, that character will be mine'

Ryker scribbled through his notes as he made notes,

[Sasha: Unstable, but useful. High potential as a Phantom and exceptional knowledge in toxins. Motivated by justice, buried under grief. Must monitor her closely.

If she goes too far... remove her.]

His pen tapped against the desk as he wrote another name,

[Lucas]

Ryker's gaze narrowed.

He couldn't let Sasha kill him. Not yet.

Lucas was the protagonist of the novel. The heart of the story.

Without Lucas growing stronger, the demons, many other calamities would devour the world.

'But if I push too fast, he will shatter. If I let him go idle, he will rot'

"Balance..." Ryker muttered.

He flipped to a clean page and a list began to form,

[Potential Pawns: Forgotten Characters]

1. Ena Darsel – Sanctorum with stage fright. Could serve as a fake public persona.

2. Tara Yule – Ranked bottom tier esper, affinity with ice. Bullied into silence.

3. Milo Crest – Claustrophobic rune magic user. Obsessive but genius. Needs purpose.

Each one was a failure in the original story.

But Ryker didn't care about their pasts.

He cared about utility.

'I am building a dream team', Ryker thought. 'One that doesn't care about heroes and villains. Just results.'

He reached for the sealed envelope tucked in the bottom drawer. It held the name of the one he would need after midterms.

His sword.

He hadn't opened it yet. He didn't need to.

He already knew.

'They will either follow me... or be broken'

His eyes drifted toward the Academy's towering spire visible from his window.

The Nexus Academy was filled with potential. With dangers. With pawns.

He wouldn't waste this second chance.

Because in six months, when the board reset, he needed to have his pieces in place.

Sasha. Lucas. The sword.

All of them.

He tapped the page once more and whispered,

"Let the game begin."