I'm an Extra, so What?

"Um, Young Master… I think you're heading the wrong way…," Serene stopped walking as she spoke up hesitantly, watching as they had been going in circles around the estate.

"Ah…" Luka let out a small laugh, finally stopping himself before turning to face her. "Yeah, like I said earlier, I'm a little out of it. So, could you lead the way, please?"

He then stepped to the side, motioning with his hand for her to take the lead.

"Of course, Young Master..." Serene curtsied gracefully before moving, but a flicker of concern crossed her face.

She hesitated, then glanced back at him. "Forgive me, but… your memory has been quite poor as of late. Should I summon a healer to examine you?"

"No, that won't be needed. I'll admit, my memory has been a little hazy, but I just need some time for it to come back to me…" Luka replied, lying through his teeth.

Now, a new worry crept into his mind—what if anybody found out he wasn't actually the original owner of this body?

In hindsight, trying to gather information from the maids outside was a reckless idea, and he was relieved this woman had stopped him before he could dig himself into a deeper hole.

Silence…

No words were exchanged between the two as they continued their short walk to the training yard.

However, just before they reached the entrance leading outside, Serene suddenly stopped.

Seeing this, Luka halted his steps. "What's wrong—…?"

Serene hesitated for a moment before turning around, her expression wavering.

This caught Luka off guard.

"Do you remember my name, at least?" Serene asked softly. Small tears threatened to form in her eyes as she tilted her head.

It felt like a punch to the stomach. Luka couldn't help but look away—lying to such a cute woman would be committing a sin!

A sin beyond sins! Right?

And so, of course, Luka answered with conviction. "What!? How could I not know your name?" He quickly turned back, locking eyes with her, his expression full of exaggerated confidence.

"You do?" Serene sniffled, her eyes shimmering with hope. Then, almost instantly, her expression shifted to pure happiness as she let out a relieved sigh.

"Thank the Goddess Lucia… I was so worried," she murmured, placing a hand over her chest as if a great weight had just been lifted.

"Yep, okay, well, I'm going to go workout!" Luka said quickly, eager to escape the conversation.

He lied because he didn't want to deal with the emotional weight of the situation.

Dealing with her sadness felt like a monumental task…

One he couldn't afford to take on at this moment.

And with that, Luka escaped.

▬▬ι═══════ﺤ

"Kill... Me..."

Luka's legs were barely able to hold him up.

His chest heaved with each breath, sweat dripping down his face. Every muscle screamed in protest.

"Open Status…" Luka muttered, his voice barely audible, thick with exhaustion. His eyes went over to the specific system window.

—————————

[Quests]

Daily Quest: (Train to Survive)

Time Remaining: 13 hours

Running (10 miles): Incomplete (5 / 10)

Squats (100 times): Incomplete (0 / 100)

Sit-ups (100 times): Incomplete (0 / 100)

Push-ups (100 times): Incomplete (0 / 100)

Reward: 1 Skill Point - 1 Attribute Point

Warning: Penalty for not completing this daily quest is becoming fully disabled.

—————————

"13 hours left? And I only got halfway done with the running? I can do this! I gotta keep pushing through," Luka told himself, taking a few steadying breaths.

Of course, he jogged most of it, taking short breaks whenever he felt his heart rate rising too high.

Just as Luka was about to force his body to run again, he suddenly heard a familiar voice.

"Young Master, wait! I have water for you!"

Serene, holding a large cup of water, ran over to him. She stopped right in front of him and handed the cup out with a bright smile.

"Here you go! I don't want you to get thirsty!" She offered him the drink.

"Ah, thank you," Luka said, swiping away the system windows as he grabbed the cup of water.

Without hesitation, he took a huge sip, swallowing it down in one swift motion.

The cool, cold water rushed down his throat, and he realized just how thirsty he was.

Luka had been so focused on his workout that he'd completely forgotten about hydrating.

With only a little left, Luka raised the cup and poured the rest over his head.

The cold water soaked into his hair and dripped down his skin, the refreshing chill instantly making him feel a lot better.

He handed the cup back with a grateful smile.

"That felt good. Thank you again," Luka said, then, without missing a beat, he started his run.

Serene giggled softly to herself as she watched him. "Fighting, fighting, fighting!"

She couldn't help but feel a sense of joy seeing him so much more upbeat and not so downcast like before.

She really liked this sudden change in him.

With a smile on her face, Serene turned and made her way back inside, determined to get more water ready for him, just in case he needed it again.

Two hours later…

Luka was still running when, suddenly, he heard the system's voice in his head:

[Ding! Running (10 miles): completed (10 / 10)]

At the sound, his legs gave out, and he collapsed to the ground.

"I need a nap... a long one... like... forever."

Luka lay on the packed dirt, utterly spent, his back pressed against the earth as his glasses hung crookedly on his face.

"Young Master, I'm coming!" Serene called out, rushing over from the bench where she had been sitting.

When she reached him, she crouched down and extended the cup of water. "Here you go."

Luka, barely able to lift a finger, weakly waved her off. "Just pour it on me…" He opened his mouth.

"At once!" Without hesitation, Serene followed his request, tilting the cup and letting the cool water cascade over him, mostly splashing onto his face and into his mouth.

Luka coughed and sputtered, water splashing everywhere as he struggled to catch his breath.

Despite that, he gave her a thumbs up, flashing a smirk before finally catching his breath:

"Well, that was the most refreshing near-drowning I've ever had."