The Extra who regained his past life memories

After the first duel ended, the entire banquet hall fell silent for a brief moment.

Then, almost instantly, the nobles began whispering among themselves.

The Empress looked pleased as she turned toward Mom.

"Your son has excellent battle sense."

"Every move..."

"Every step he takes..."

"It feels like a trap for his opponent."

She smiled slightly.

"I’m genuinely impressed."

"He knows when to use his power and when not to."

"And throughout the entire duel, he maintained complete control over his emotions while controlling the battlefield with ease."

"He didn’t even use his full capabilities."

Mom nodded quietly.

But deep inside, I knew she was proud of me.

She knew I didn’t care much about reputation or status.

However, when it came to my family...

That was different.

I cared deeply about the reputation of the Starlight Family.

Mom knew that if it weren’t for her and Amy, I probably wouldn’t care about any of this.

The Empress then put on a sly smile.

"I expected nothing less from my future son-in-law."

Luna’s ears immediately turned red.

She quickly composed herself, but the Empress clearly enjoyed every second of her reaction.

Meanwhile, back in the dueling area, I sheathed Eclipse and put it away.

Then I extended my hand toward Cassian.

He looked surprised by the gesture, but he accepted it.

I helped him back onto his feet.

"Good fight."

"You fought well."

Then I smiled.

"One small suggestion."

"You should try combining your Fire and Wind Affinities into a single attack."

"They have a lot of potential when used together."

"If you have some free time, you should experiment with it."

Cassian looked at me in surprise.

Then a smile appeared on his face.

"Yeah."

"That was a good fight."

"I learned a lot from you."

"Your combat style is amazing."

"I hope we can spar again someday."

I nodded.

"I’ll take you up on that."

Cassian seemed slightly surprised by my response before smiling and nodding.

Then he returned to his father’s side.

His father placed a hand on his shoulder.

"You fought well, son."

"But you still have a long way to go."

"Don’t let this defeat discourage you."

"Train harder."

"Next time, perhaps you’ll win."

He smiled.

"And besides..."

"That boy is a genius among geniuses."

"There’s no shame in losing to someone like him."

Cassian nodded.

"Thank you, Father."

His father then looked toward the arena.

"Alright."

"I’ll send the dragon blood to the Starlight Estate."

"After all, it was the wager."

"Your opponent won fairly."

Cassian nodded.

After that, I returned to Mom’s side.

Amy approached me first and patted my back.

"You did well."

"But you still can’t compare to me."

I rolled my eyes.

"Yeah, yeah."

Amy looked at me.

When she saw my bright smile, her own expression softened into a smile.

I then walked toward Mom and immediately began complaining.

"Mom."

"What if I just sit at a table and eat?"

"Then I can watch the other fights instead of fighting myself."

I grinned.

Mom gave me a small smile and gently patted my head.

"You did well."

"But no."

"Go and fight."

"Don’t be lazy."

I stared at her in disbelief.

She clearly knew I was joking.

Yet she still managed to call me lazy in front of everyone.

I looked at her with annoyance.

"Hey!"

"I’m not lazy."

"Amy is the lazy one."

I puffed out my cheeks.

Mom simply smiled and pinched my cheek.

"Yeah, yeah."

"I know."

The Empress watched the exchange.

A sly smile slowly reappeared on her face.

"Gray."

I looked toward her.

"Yes?"

She gestured for me to come closer.

I walked over.

The Empress smiled.

"That previous match was quite good."

"I hope to see more matches like that."

Then she pointed toward several young nobles nearby.

"Look."

"Those boys are practically heartbroken because you became engaged to my daughter."

She looked at my expression with obvious amusement.

"So..."

"You have to take responsibility."

"Good luck, future son-in-law."

Before I could even process what she meant, she gave me a light push.

I stumbled forward.

"W-Wait—"

I accidentally bumped into someone.

When I looked up...

It was Luna.

The Empress immediately covered her mouth.

Her shoulders shook as she tried to suppress her laughter.

I quickly took a step back.

"Oh."

"Sorry."

"You might not believe me..."

"But your mother is responsible for this."

Luna looked at my panicked expression.

She couldn’t hold back her laughter either.

Even the Empress was barely managing to suppress hers.

Luna’s ears turned slightly red when she realized what had happened, but she quickly composed herself.

"That was a good match."

"Even without using your full power, you won."

I immediately corrected her.

"It’s not that I didn’t use my full power."

"Using everything I have would have been unnecessary."

Luna nodded.

"I understand."

Then she gave me a playful smile.

"So..."

"Who are you going to fight next?"

"How about I find someone for you?"

I looked at her.

"No, thanks."

"I’m good."

"Half the people here are already looking at me like they want to punch me."

Luna laughed.

"That’s a good way of putting it."

Before we could continue talking, another girl approached us.

She had long green hair and striking yellow eyes.

She stopped in front of us and looked directly at me.

"I saw your previous match."

"It wasn’t anything special."

"Your opponent was weak."

"That’s the only reason you won."

Her eyes narrowed.

"I’ve come to challenge you, Gray Starlight."

"If you have the courage..."

"Come and face me."

I frowned.

What’s with her arrogant attitude?

Does she really think she can just walk up to me and talk like that?

I shrugged.

"Whatever."

I stepped forward.

"Let’s go."

"I just hope you have more than your mouth to back you up."

Her expression immediately darkened.

"What did you say?"

I looked directly into her eyes.

"I said I hope you have the ability to back up your arrogance."

"Can’t you hear?"

"Or are you deaf?"

The entire area suddenly went silent.

Even the nearby conversations stopped.

Amy covered her mouth.

Then she gave me a thumbs-up.

"Good one."

She mouthed the words without saying them aloud.

Elena looked at me with slight surprise.

She had rarely seen me respond so directly.

But she understood.

If I became too soft, people would eventually think they could walk all over me.

Even Luna looked surprised.

She quietly watched as I made my way toward the dueling area.

The girl followed behind me, practically seething with anger.

I’ll make you pay for that.

Just wait.

Once I stepped into the arena, I drew Eclipse.

Then I looked at her calmly.

"Five hundred thousand credits."

"That’s my wager."

"Do you accept?"

I looked at her as though the amount meant nothing to me.

Her expression became even more irritated.

She glanced toward her mother for confirmation.

Her mother gave her a small nod.

A confident smile immediately appeared on her face.

"Fine."

"Free five hundred thousand credits for me."

I said nothing.

I simply looked at her.

Emotionless.

The Empress stepped forward.

"Very well."

"This will be the second duel of today’s banquet."

"Take your positions."

She raised her hand.

"Begin."

The moment she gave the signal, Isolde moved.

Vines erupted from the ground around me.

I immediately activated my perception.

Every vine.

Every movement.

Every trajectory.

I could see them clearly.

I knew exactly where they were going.

I smiled faintly.

Then I pushed myself forward.

Gravity reinforced my movement as I accelerated toward her.

I aimed for her arm and swung Eclipse.

She immediately created a thick vine to block my attack.

Slash!

Eclipse cut through it as if it were butter.

Isolde took a step backward and narrowly avoided the slash.

She didn’t give up.

More vines immediately shot toward me.

One wrapped around my arm.

Another caught my leg.

She had prepared them in advance, expecting me to become trapped inside her vine barrier.

But I cut through them effortlessly and stepped forward.

She redirected the remaining vines toward me.

They wrapped around my body.

Isolde smiled.

"Oh?"

"Look at that."

"So the cold and emotionless Gray Starlight can actually be trapped."

I said nothing.

I simply looked at the vines around me.

Then I released my Ice Affinity.

Cold spread through the surrounding area.

In an instant...

The vines froze solid.

I punched forward.

Crack!

The frozen vines shattered.

I stepped free.

A slight annoyance appeared inside me.

So you want to bind me?

Then I’ll show you how binding is really done.

My expression remained completely emotionless.

I raised my hand.

Several Ice Spears formed around me.

But this time...

Darkness Mana flowed through them as well.

The Ice Spears became coated in darkness.

I released them.

Whoosh!

They shot toward Isolde.

She immediately summoned a massive wall of vines.

The Ice Spears slammed into it.

Boom!

The vines shattered.

Water Spears immediately flew toward me from behind the broken barrier.

I easily avoided them.

But I wasn’t interested in the Water Spears.

I was watching the darkness spreading through the shattered vines.

Darkness seeped into the remains of the vines.

Then...

They began to move.

Thick, dark vines erupted from the debris.

Isolde’s expression changed.

"What—?"

The Darkness-infused vines shot toward her.

She tried to retreat.

Too late.

The vines wrapped around her arms.

Then her legs.

Then her body.

Finally, one wrapped tightly around her neck.

She struggled.

But she couldn’t move.

I walked toward her calmly.

Isolde tried to summon another spell.

I didn’t give her the chance.

I accelerated forward.

Eclipse flashed.

I stopped the blade directly against her neck.

A tiny line of blood appeared.

My expression remained completely emotionless.

Isolde stared at the sword pressed against her throat.

Then she finally shouted,

"I give up!"

The moment I heard those words, I immediately withdrew Eclipse.

The duel was over.

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