The Extra is a Genius!?
Chapter 207: I’m Back

Chapter 207: Chapter 207: I’m Back

The air beneath the academy was thick with heat and the tang of mana. The underground training grounds — vast, humid, and echoing with footsteps — buzzed with the usual energy of Class S. Sparks crackled, sweat dripped, and the stone floor radiated warmth from a long day of combat drills and elemental refinement.

Today, however, someone unexpected had returned.

"Noel!"

A voice rang out. Then another.

Several students turned, eyes widening with surprise and relief. Although many had visited him during his recovery, seeing him back in uniform, weapon at his side and aura steady, brought a new kind of reassurance.

"Took you long enough," Marcus said with a crooked grin, walking up with a towel slung over his shoulder. "You good?"

Noel nodded. "Good enough, at least."

He didn’t say much else — most of them already knew he wasn’t one for small talk. Still, the atmosphere lifted noticeably as he passed through, shoulders brushing those of the strongest students in the academy.

From the far end, Selene stood alone near one of the empty circles, practicing silent footwork with twin daggers. She didn’t look at him, didn’t say a word — but her eyes flicked briefly in his direction as he passed.

’Even she noticed. Guess I really was gone for a while.’

Later, Noel stood face to face with Daemar. The heat was even more suffocating here — made worse by the static in the air.

Daemar folded his arms, eyes scanning Noel up and down.

"You look steady," he said simply.

"I want to control Stormpiercer," Noel replied.

They began with the basics — mana flow regulation, short bursts of lightning through each hand, and resistance focus to avoid burnout. The room buzzed with energy, heat sticking to Noel’s skin like a second layer.

When the real part began — attempts to summon Stormpiercer — everything slowed down.

Noel inhaled, focused, and shaped the mana along the blueprint he’d memorized: sharpened flow, density compression, then ignition.

A pulse. Sparks flared.

But nothing took form.

Just static and a faint flash of blue, which vanished the moment he tried to solidify it.

Daemar didn’t speak. He only gestured for him to try again.

Noel growled under his breath. "I summoned it once. Just once, yeah — but it was real. It wasn’t a fluke."

He tried again.

And again.

Each attempt drained him more — his control was better than ever, but Stormpiercer remained out of reach. The shape hovered, but never locked.

An hour passed. Then two. Noel’s shirt clung to his body, soaked in sweat. Sparks ran down his forearms with each breath.

When his fingers began to twitch from overuse, Daemar finally raised a hand.

"Enough."

Noel stood still, chest rising and falling, eyes on the scorch mark he’d left on the floor.

"It’s close," he muttered. "I can feel it. The structure’s there. I just can’t lock it in."

Daemar walked forward. His expression remained neutral, but his voice dropped slightly in tone.

"You’re forcing it. That weapon isn’t just lightning — it’s you. The flow will match you when you stop trying to mimic what you felt the first time."

Noel blinked. "You’re saying I’m chasing a memory?"

Daemar’s gaze locked with his. "I’m saying you’re smarter than that."

He turned and walked away without waiting for a response.

Noel stared at his own hands, the smell of ozone still clinging to his skin.

’One clean summon. That’s all I need.’

—--------

The sparring ring beneath the academy pulsed with residual mana. The stone floor was scarred from previous battles, lines of ice and scorch marks crisscrossing like a battlefield map. The air was thick with heat and tension.

Noel stepped onto the platform, Revenant Fang in hand, sparks dancing along his fingertips. Across from him stood Selene, her expression unreadable, her posture flawless. In her right hand, she held a wand of translucent cyan, glowing faintly — as if carved from solid ice and threaded with mana.

She didn’t speak at first.

Then, in a low, steady voice:

"Gravitational Hold."

A pulse of invisible force slammed beneath Noel’s boots, dragging his body toward the ground. He grunted, bracing against it, then shot forward.

"Ignition Surge," he growled.

Revenant Fang burst into flame, the black blade igniting with a violent surge of heat. He slashed at her from the right.

Selene raised her wand swiftly.

"Frost Wall."

A solid sheet of ice exploded between them. Noel’s blade smashed through it on the second strike, sending jagged shards flying — but she was already gone.

Noel pointed two fingers.

"Voltage Needle."

A narrow bolt of lightning launched across the arena.

Selene spun to the side, her braid trailing behind her.

"Ice Spike."

Three sharp stakes erupted from the floor beneath Noel’s feet. He twisted midair and barely cleared them.

Still airborne, he extended his arm.

"Fire Arc."

A crescent of flame burst downward in a sweeping curve.

"Gravitational Veil," Selene said quickly, her wand glowing violet-blue. The arc slowed midair as if falling through syrup, and she calmly sidestepped before it hit the ground.

From the sidelines, Marcus muttered, "They’re gonna break the floor."

Noel grinned and surged forward.

"Chain Flash."

A lightning spear shot from his hand and split into three forked blasts.

Selene lifted her wand.

"Glacialis."

The first bolt froze solid and shattered midair. She ducked the second, took a light graze from the third — but her eyes didn’t even flinch.

She inhaled once.

"Frost Mist."

A wave of cold vapor rolled toward Noel. His vision went white with snow.

He clenched his jaw. "Flamethrower!"

A roaring stream of fire cut through the mist, turning it into hissing steam. Noel pushed through the fog with Revenant Fang still burning — but the platform behind him cracked.

"Gravitational Hold."

Her voice came from behind.

His body sagged as the spell took hold again. He reacted on instinct, spinning to block — but she was already there.

A clean tap to his chest.

Match over.

Selene lowered her wand and stepped back, saying nothing more. The glow faded from her cyan wand.