An Extra’s POV

"Shouldn't you be in a hurry? You have to pick up some people, right?"

Esme's voice echoed in Rey's ears as they neared their Inn. Despite hearing it, Rey hardly reacted or changed the steady pace at which he walked.

"It's fine." He simply responded. "I sent a Duplicate a while back."

"R-really? I didn't notice!" Esme expressed surprise, to which Rey chuckled and shrugged.

"Yeah. I did it pretty quickly. Hid it well too."

With his wide array of Skills, it wasn't a difficult thing to do. In any case, the only reason he was able to talk to Noah for so long despite his busy schedule was due to that arrangement.

"I wanted to pick them up myself, but I guess plans change." He smiled softly, shrugging again.

Something about the atmosphere felt moody for some reason. Rey didn't even know why, but he suddenly felt a lull within him.

Perhaps a moment of silence was what he needed.

"Friend of yours?" Unfortunately, Esme wouldn't let him have that.

"Yeah. You could say that."

Rey didn't think he treated Noah as well as he should have treated a friend, but he genuinely considered him one.

After all, he was the first and only person who he revealed his secret to.

"Has he seen your face behind the mask?" Esme's question made Rey laugh a little.

He replied still.

"For him, and the people we had in common, the mask was my secret."

It was pretty ironic how the opposite was true for Esme. Regardless, he could say that Noah was the only one who knew both sides pretty well.

'Back then, I didn't think Ralyks would up playing such a big role. If I had known that, would I still have exposed my identity to him?'

Rey wasn't sure. All he knew was that Noah was incredibly useful at the time, and it would have been difficult to achieve the things he was able to without his help.

Difficult, not impossible.

is safe with him?"Esme probed

met him. What do

Her response was blunt, but the

he chose

my secret. Besides, I could

would have been the safest bet, right?" It felt like

ignored the subtexts

on coming clean to the rest of my friends once this entire

to do

exposed is because I don't want

the

He appeared tired.

also going to get problematic explaining why Ralyks

"You mean 'your' power."

know what I mean…" Rey sighed in exasperation, to which Esme just chuckled

told them the truth. I don't want to limit my

so he quickly added something else. "That doesn't mean

"C-come on!"

You look cute when you pout like that." Rey

since I

shrugged. "So there's no

after hearing what Rey said. She clearly didn't want

you, right?" As usual,

how she was so skilled at conversing, but he liked that aspect of

staring high into the starless sky. "I didn't think I made such a strong

"…"

soak in the quietness around him. It allowed him to think really

wanted to tell him

"So why didn't you?"

barely audible answer danced in his ears, Rey parted his lips and let words accompany the

and this new life suits him. I

"I see…"

"Yeah…"

still, Rey looking at the blank sky while Esme stared at him with

silence for an unknown period of

But, someone finally spoke.