I'm A Sucker For Extras - Chapter 15

Chapter 15

To live properly, one needs money.

A place to wash! A place to eat! A place to sleep!

In the South, Brody sold some simple fruits and bought new clothes.

The local attire, suitable for the hot weather, was thin with short sleeves. Brody wore light clothes inside and covered her face with a cool fabric.

Was it to avoid the sun, or did she not want her face exposed for some reason?

Was she afraid someone might be following her?

No, she honestly wasn’t too worried about that. She knows about Aidan’s mysterious tracking technology, but why would he bother coming all the way here? Besides, she had left medicine to relieve headaches, so there was probably no need to look for her for a while.

He had mentioned something about taking responsibility and making her his wife, but he would probably forget about it if he met another woman.

“So, no need to worry.”

Brody nailed that idea into her mind as if it were a fact, as if she wanted to believe it.

“I have to hide my identity because of… this.”

“Miss, how did you come across so many of these rare things?”

“Oh, that’s a trade secret. Won’t you buy it? Then don’t drink it…”

Brody brought a rare plant called “Torobit” to sell, and it was an expensive one. In Korean terms, it was a plant with a value similar to ginseng.

It is quite impressive for a lone woman to trade such valuable items. She might be attracting attention as a target.

So, she kept her appearance tightly concealed.

After completing several transactions safely, Brody’s hands began to pile up money one by one.

Whistling happily, she headed to an inn. Of course, it had to be a place with a bathroom where she could easily access water.

But after a few days of trading like this, some troublesome guys started sticking to her.

“Hey, miss. Let’s live sharing good things.”

Four thugs cornered Brody, pushing her into an alley and threatening her.

‘Oh, I can’t believe the day has come when I hear cliché lines in novels like this.’

She was a bit nervous, but she executed the plan she had imagined so many times.

Plants rapidly grew from the dirt floor, entwining the thugs’ bodies.

They were full of terror and shock, shouting incoherent words, but they eventually became completely bound and unable to move a finger.

Brody took out a plant with purple leaves and brushed it against their faces. As she did, they started to faint.

“This convenient plant…”

The plant with purple leaves was called “Dreamspot.” If you smelled its fragrance up close, you would faint and fall into a dream, making it difficult to distinguish reality from the dream, and memories would become muddled.

Once she confirmed they were all sound asleep, Brody removed the plant that bound them and calmly left the scene.

“It’s really amazing, Brody. Such an ability.”

She admired Brody’s ability and the knowledge accumulated by the previous Brody, who had worked hard on research.

Given its versatility, she realized she needed to continue her research now that she had become Brody.

❖ ❖ ❖

Thinking she would easily establish herself and become rich, Brody faced four approaching thugs and bit her lip.

“As expected, nothing in life is easy.”

Feeling a deep frustration, she used plants to tie them up and, with the Dreamspot leaf, made them faint.

Now that her body had become accustomed to these actions, it felt like a routine.

“How many times is this?”

With a thud, the last guy fell to the ground, and Brody clapped her hands.

Since these troublesome guys had come about five times in the past two weeks, she realized that even if they lost their memory with the Dreamspot leaf, someone might catch on if this strange event kept repeating.

“I can’t go on like this.”

Brody headed further south. Staying in one village for too long seemed like a bad idea.

And rather than an inn, she decided to establish a dwelling in the forest.

Doyeon wasn’t very accustomed to nature, but Brody was different. As the possessed Brody, being surrounded by dense vegetation instinctively made her feel comfortable.

It felt as if everything around her was on her side.

So, she became accustomed to her daily life in the deep forest. Living like this for the rest of her life didn’t seem like a bad idea.

As long as she didn’t feel that longing and loneliness again, it would be fine.

❖ ❖ ❖

“By the way, Duke, do you love her by any chance?”

“….”

He ran the horse day and night without replying, but the Jax was not tired and was followed by Aidan.

Aidan attempted several times to shake him off, but Jax was not an easy person. After all, he was the most capable knight in the capital.

Aidan, feeling the stifling air of the increasingly humid and hot southern region, glanced irritably at Jax, who insisted on sitting in front of him and striking up a conversation in the tavern.

Aidan moved and sat at another table.

But he ended up sharing a seat with the stinging eyes of the bustling store owner.

‘Why did he sit separately when they knew each other’

Aidan did not respond to his question, but Jax was quite adept at talking on his own.

“I suppose so. Or there will be a Duke here who must go back to the North for being crazy now. Alas, love. It drives people crazy.”

‘Oh… Please, keep it down a bit’. People glanced at them as they listened to their exaggerated gestures and noticed their looks.

Aidan spoke in a hushed voice, low, only heard by Jax.

“Don’t call me Duke; if you say anything that reveals my identity, I’ll see the end here. There’s no reason to go with you anymore.”

“Oh, oh, I see. I see what you’re concerned about. Then what should I call you?”

“Call me Dan.”

“Okay, but call me Jax.”

Aidan didn’t nod his head, seemingly unwilling to acknowledge any connection.

“Dan, I am genuinely worried. The more sincere your feelings, the deeper your pain will become.”

With a serious look on his face, Jax said it as if he were giving unparalleled advice.

“I know her well. I’ve grown up with her since childhood. So, I can be sure of where her heart lies. Oh, Dan. It might be unfortunate for you, but I can’t stay silent. Her heart belongs to me.”

Aidan frowned and gulped down the beer brought by the employee.

“I can’t deal with that deep, heavy heart either. I can’t go into detail, but it was for me that she went north. She must be sorry for me that she can’t come back. I’m going to find her myself like this to say it’s okay and bring back the poor Brody. If I don’t tell her myself, she won’t believe it.”

Aidan did not answer.

“I may be of help to you, Dan. But if we find her, what will happen when the three of us face each other? She’ll choose me. It would be too cruel for you, wouldn’t it?”

However, Jax’s words gradually weighed heavily on his chest.

The poison of fancy speech from Jax, sincere or intentional, made Aidan’s heart die.

He seemed to be right.

Despite the differences, the fundamental truth was spoken.

He never felt that Brody wanted him. No. He never even felt that she wanted something from him.

It would not have been that she disliked him. Then, she would not have embraced his lips with such warmth, covered his neck, or given such a sweet sigh. Nor would she have asked him to sleep like a relieved squirrel by his side.

But that didn’t mean she wanted it. She just lived her way. It was Aidan who always wanted her. Perhaps his earnest desire made him think that she wanted him too.

Maybe, being the Northern Duke, he had pressed her, a war captive, too much. That might be the whole truth.

Yeah, he couldn’t think of a reason for her to like him.

But he continued to run south.

Even if he heard a refusal, there was no reason not to see her again.

‘Let’s ask for forgiveness for past misunderstandings. Let’s convey that he didn’t want to make her suffer. At least, let’s say goodbye…’

A lot of things to do came to mind, but in the end, there was one reason.

He just missed her.

❖ ❖ ❖

Late at night, under the deep moon.

Brody woke up from her sleep at the sound of the nightbird chirping.

In the cozy space built on a large tree, lying down and looking up at the sky, she could see the stars pouring down.

‘Why did I wake up?’

Brody, who stared blankly at the sky, suddenly felt a sense of loss and turned her gaze.

She turned to lie on her side, curling her body.

‘Has my life ever gone so well? I can have as much money as I need if I want it, and I like this space. I also can protect my body.’

However, in reality, her desires were only at level two, just enough to satisfy the need for safety.

Since becoming a character in a novel, she has only run with the sole goal of ‘survival.’

There were some difficulties, but the goal was easily achievable.

Once the goal was achieved, it disappeared.

Now that the goal had disappeared, other things kept coming to Brody’s mind.

‘Will the army of the Northern Duke in the original novel survive?’

The novel had already been set.

How influential was the original story?

Surely this world wouldn’t kill the Northern Duke for the sake of the original work, right? Even though she didn’t kill him?

‘Think about it for once. For leaving him for freedom. It’s fortunate if he doesn’t strangle me the moment we meet again. Well, he won’t go that far, but anyway.’

If he wasn’t the Duke of the North, if he were someone else… Would she have made a different choice?

The smile that he had always secretly shown her in the place where only the two of them were, his true appearance without status or obligation, was surprisingly kind. Moreover, he was handsome, had a great physique, and exuded a charming atmosphere. No corner didn’t make Brody flutter.

Just one thing: if he weren’t the Duke of the North…

Brody must have made a great effort to gather her thoughts.

So, with various thoughts, Brody spent the night unable to sleep.

After spending the night with a blank stare, Brody decided to go out to the village when morning came.

“Let’s go buy desserts! Hmm, I should buy a few more clothes too.”

By now, there will probably be rumors circulating about the outcome of the war. Well, let’s ask while going out. Since we’re going out,

She rationalized her feelings in a way that had nothing to do with Aidan as she moved her steps.

She was most curious about whether he was alive and well.

Fortunately, when Brody went to the village market, she could easily hear about the results of the war without even needing to ask.

It was a hot topic among the people.

“A ceasefire?! Ah, we couldn’t win. Still, seeing that the North has gained independence means the Duke should be alive.”

Feeling a bit lighter, Brody headed to a dessert shop.

And there, in the dessert shop, she found a very welcome item on the menu.

“Oh my goodness! Iced coffee!”

With a joyful heart, she ordered a large glass of iced coffee.

“Puh-ha!”

Slurp. As she happily sipped through a straw made of sugarcane stalks, the refreshing feeling reached her chest.

It wasn’t an iced Americano with an espresso extraction method, but a coffee brewed from ground beans. Yet, on such a hot day, it was refreshing, icy-cold coffee!

It was so delightful that she couldn’t help but appreciate it.

‘I want to buy a lot and keep them, but it’s useless because the ice melts anyway. Ha ha… There’s no refrigerator.’

Brody felt regretful as she sat at a table in the store and enjoyed that fleeting moment.

That’s when it happened.

Something warm approached her from behind, wrapping around her shoulders and waist.

Startled, Brody, trying to defend herself, stood up, causing the glass to topple over.

“Ah!”

Regretfully watching the spilled coffee and melting ice, Brody reflexively wrinkled her brow.

But there was a bigger problem than that.

Brody, determined to retaliate against the bad guy, was about to turn her head.

“Bree…”

However, at the sudden voice in her ear, Brody was left frozen, unable to move.