The Author is an Extra, The MC is a Reincarnator

Chapter 61 Intense Training [1]

I walked down the first-floor hallway and found two kids sitting on the bench near the entrance while holding a handful of sweets and snacks. They looked happy, and then I remembered that I had yet to give the sweets and snacks that I handed to Chloe to the kids.

However, it seemed like Chloe had handed them to the kids, and she probably asked Tina to help her.

When I passed the kids, they unexpectedly turned at me and smiled brightly.

"Ah! Brother Vincent!" The shorter girl shouted, followed by the taller girl.

"You were right! You've come back, brother Vincent!"

When I heard their squeals, I realized that I had yet to put my mask back on. I quickly put my index finger on my mouth and said, "Shh! It's a secret that I am here, okay?"

"Un! We can keep a secret, right!"

"Yeah!"

The two of them nodded their heads excitedly.

"Alright. Enjoy the snacks, kids. I need to go right now." I pulled on the mask from my magic bag and held it in my hand.

They were only kids. It shouldn't be a problem. Well, those kids were protected by the Darkest Secret and were probably trained to become his hands and legs in the future.

This world was not too kind after all. Those kids were fortunate enough to be picked up by Richard, as he was still kind toward the kids under him. If the Dark Guilds picked them up, no one would know about their fate.

"Yes, brother Vincent! W-We will miss you a lot! So… you will come back again, right?"

"We can play at that time, right?"

The kids looked at me with upturned eyes, and I replied with a smile. "Of course, I will visit again soon."

I spent a few seconds putting the kids at ease before walking away and putting on my mask. While I was at it, I also wore [Horus' Sunglasses] because I needed to look at Tina's status. Although it looked weird because I also had a black eyepatch on my left eye, I couldn't help it. I needed to use it to use the Pry effect.

I spotted Tina and Chloe playing with the kids on the soccer field. Although they were on the soccer field, they played tag instead of soccer. It seemed like Tina was the one who became 'IT' and Chloe was the one she chased.

Using this chance, I used Pry on Tina and looked at her status.

-----

Status

Name: Tina Dihart

Rank: E

Strength: E+

Agility: D

Endurance: D-

Mana: E+

Luck: C

Talent:

- Parkour (A)

- Acting (C)

- Stealth (B)

Trait:

- Easy-going

-----

When I looked at her status, my lips curled into an evil grin as I began to make a slight change in my plan.

'She's good. Her Talents, and especially her Trait, are amazing. So that's why Richard said that she would be useful to me, for my Mercenary Group.'

She was a real information gatherer and a perfect Assassin material. With her Parkour Talent, she could run through any kind of environment with no problem. Even entering a building should be no problem for her.

Though she had no battle Talents, she could still train herself to some point. She would be average, but that was fine; an average skill level was enough.

As I approached them, I took off the [Horus' Sunglasses] and put it back into my magic bag.

"Hey! We are leaving, Chloe! Take Tina with you too. She will go with us!" I shouted at them, causing them to stop in their tracks.

Chloe looked at me and nodded, but Tina had a confused expression.

"Huh? How can I come with you? I still need to work for pops!"

"Father Richard is the one who asked me to take you. Why? Are you dissatisfied with me? Do you want to stay here instead of staying with your brother? I am sad, Tina."

"Huh… No, of course not! No, you shitty brother! If you put it like that, I look like a bad person here! I, of course, would like to stay with you!" She shouted as she approached me with Chloe. Her hands were moving in front of her, waving around, betraying her happy expression.

'Easy.' I thought.

I knew Vincent loved his sister, but the opposite was also true. Tina loved Vincent too.

"So we are going back, Vincent? Will Tina also come with us?" Chloe asked, glancing at Tina.

"Yeah, Pops said that I could take Tina with me. Do you want to come with me, Tina?"

"Of course! If Pops asked me to come with you, he surely has some kind of… vision, right?" She asked, looking straight into my eyes.

"You're correct." I nodded.

"In that case, I will come with you. No, I will follow you even if you refuse it."

"Then that's decided," I said. "But, we need to stop somewhere first before going back."

"Where?" Chloe asked. "I thought we were just here to find your little sister?"

"That's indeed my intention, but… We need to get strong fast. After hiding for a few years, demons begin to make their move again."

"I see." Chloe knew what I meant by just that. "I will follow your decision."

Tina looked between Chloe and me repeatedly before raising her voice. "C'mon! Don't say something that only the two of you understand. Where are we stopping before returning to your… whatever place it is?!"

"Well, it's simple. We hit the dungeon first." I said as I crossed my arms. "It's time for intense training."

***

[The Orphanage Director's Office]

Left alone, Richard looked at Vincent and the others leaving the orphanage's grounds while bidding farewell to the kids through an open window in his office room. He had the kind expression of a father looking at his children who had left their nest.

"They left, huh…" He muttered, a hint of sadness mixed in his tone. "Chris, good job." He said to no one in particular.

No one else was near him, but as soon as he said that, a person appeared on the roof, right above his room. The person was wearing a typical nun's habit while wearing a golden rosary, similar to Richard.

She looked to be in her twenties, had short blond hair, and was kneeling on the roof, hidden from the entrance of the orphanage by a shadow of the window.

"Yes, Father Richard."

"Hahaha. This is a bit sad. My two favorite kids have left us and probably will not come back soon."

"You did it for their sake, Father. However, are you sure you will allow Tina to tag along with Vincent? Didn't you say–" She asked curiously but was interrupted before she finished her sentence.

"I know you consider Tina your little sister, but she also needs to grow up. Besides, she will be safe there. The Hero is with them." Richard narrowed his eyes as he glanced to the side where Chris was.

"My apologies. I am just worried." Chris apologized, bowing her head. "The Hero, huh. I wonder how Vincent managed to ask her to stay with him."

"That, I don't know either," Richard answered, with an amused smile. "However, that proves one thing: Vincent is growing without our knowledge. I can't help but be proud of him as his father."

"I am also proud of them as their sister. I still remember when they came to the orphanage ten years ago. Vincent is trying his best to protect Tina. He even attacked you, Father Richard." Chris chuckled, remembering the day when Vincent arrived at the orphanage ten years ago.

"That's true. He was like a wild dog protecting a puppy. But, he has become dependable." Richard said, reminiscing while looking at the sky. "I just hope he won't encounter a strong enemy soon. He still needs some training."

Richard then looked at the side where Chris was kneeling and said, "Anyway, Chris. Any further information about those Witches?"

"Yes, I found a clue about them."

"Good." He nodded. "Keep it a secret for now. The world is not ready to know about their existence. Not yet…"

"Yes, Father Richard."

***

[22 April 2023, 02:10 PM]

[C-Rank Plain Orc Dungeon, Los Angeles]

After we left the orphanage, we boarded the plane and returned to Los Angeles. As soon as we arrived, we didn't return to our house. Instead, we went to Mount Olympus, where a C-Rank Plain Orc Dungeon was located.

The Plain Orc was different from the normal Orc. They were considered C-Rank because they were bigger and stronger. On top of that, they were also deadlier and smarter than normal Orc, which was considered a D-Rank monster.

The dungeon was located in Manhattan Beach. More specifically, it was located on the south end of the pier on Manhattan Beach. Some fences were built surrounding the dungeon's entrance to keep the civilians from accidentally entering the dungeon, as the beach was crowded during the day.

Tina had also been registered as an Awakener in the Association, so we could enter the dungeon easily.

Unlike the cave scenery like F-Rank Goblin Dungeon and the Trial Dungeon, where the mutated Hobgoblin beat up Zaiden, this Orc Dungeon was a plain. The Orc also didn't bring any weapons except for a wooden club.

It had only a floor, but it was big, and the area was spread into two sections. Firstly, there was a plain where most Awakeners hunted the Orcs. It was located on the left side of the entrance.

The other was a prairie located on the right side of the entrance. Few Awakeners hunted in this section, mainly because of the uneven terrain. They wanted to avoid some accidents because the terrain made it so one could easily be tumbled if they were not careful.

However, that didn't matter to us, considering our party and Talents composition.

Swoosh!

My arrow severed the wind and hit an Orc's leg that stood on top of a prairie, causing it to fall on its knee and shout.

"Graaa!!"

"Tina!" I shouted.

"On it!"

Tina sped up from a distance and lunged at the Orc with an iron sword I gave her before entering the dungeon. She also wore the enhanced [Party Bracelet], so we could share the Mana we got from killing the monsters.

Her speed was impressive for an E-Rank Awakener, and she wasn't scared of the Orc, which stood 2 meters tall.

I could rest easy asChloe followed closely behind her, ready to strike the Orc after Tina landed a blow on it.

I wanted to see Tina in action. Surprisingly, Tina was able to fight rather decently, considering her age and Rank.

She swung the sword horizontally, aiming at the Orc's neck.

Swish– Splurt!

The sword severed the neck cleanly, making the Orc bleed, but the wound was not deep enough to kill it. She lacked the strength to kill it in one swing, considering the Plain Orc was a C-Rank monster, but it was good enough. Her movement was swift, and she didn't hesitate to swing her sword to kill monsters.

"Grr! Gaaa!" The Orc shouted, picking itself up and raising its club, aiming to smash Tina.

However, before the Orc could swing its club, Tina smiled and said, "Chloe, switch!"

Did she think it was a game? She even said 'switch' before stepping to the left, allowing Chloe to pierce the Orc's head with her Gae Bolg. She was so easy-going. Well, that was her Trait, after all.

Thud!

The dead body of the Orc fell to the ground heavily, and Tina approached Chloe for a high five.

"Nice one!"

"Un. Good job, Tina."

They had rather good chemistry and managed to work together after just a few hunts. I approached them while looking around the area to make sure it was safe.

"Oh, brother! Is this our fifth Orc?" Tina shouted as she crouched near the Orc, pulling its fangs, which could be sold for money.

"Yeah, you are unexpectedly good at this even without combat Talent."

"Fufufu! Chris has trained me in swordsmanship! So even without Talent, I know how to swing a sword!" She proudly puffed out her chest, causing them to bounce.

"Yeah yeah, you are good." I praised her half-heartedly, making her pout at me.

The training had gone smoothly. If we did something like this for a week or two, I believed Tina would be able to advance to D-Rank in no time. I'd like to give her a Mana Breathing Method too, but sadly, I didn't think she could do Mana Breathing Method, considering she had no Talent in Magic or Mana Manipulation.

Either Talent was necessary to avoid some incident. The Mana Breathing Method was hard for those without Talent and caused a lot of incidents in my novel. The worst of them made a person unable to use Mana for the rest of their lives, which I would like to avoid. One of the reasons why Zaiden didn't try to explore Mana Breathing, I guess.

But, even without the Mana Breathing Method, I believe Tina would be able to grow at a fast rate. Because… We had an overpowered Hero with us.

"Let's continue our hunt. We will stop after 6 PM. Is there any objection?" I asked, looking at Tina and Chloe, respectively.

"None here!" Tina raised her hand as she answered, while Chloe just shook her head and muttered, "No."

"Alright. Let's kill those Orcs." I announced while grinning under my mask.

"Yes!" Both of them answered at the same time, full of spirit.