"A saint? You're exaggerating. That's just how a typical background extra would think."
That was the truth. Cid genuinely believed this was the mindset of a proper extra.
In a way, being an ordinary extra was actually quite difficult.
An extra is neither a hero nor a villain. An extra is just a passerby. And what counts as an "extra" changes depending on how the world defines an ordinary person.
Everyone is the protagonist of their own life, but whether you end up as a supporting hero or a supporting villain is decided by others.
It's not about acting like an extra. It's about making others see you as one.
Give in to greed or jealousy, and an extra becomes a villain. Show kindness and courage, and you become a hero.
Staying indifferent, not swayed by gain or loss, and being content with being ordinary. That is what makes an extra.
"Besides, how do you know I wasn't lying just now? Maybe deep down I'm actually extremely jealous of my sister, and that carefree attitude was just an act."
Cid curled his lips slightly and joked with Giada.
As for what he said earlier, it was only half true at best.
His natural talent was honestly pretty poor. He still remembered when Claire dragged him out to fight bandits at the age of six, and he nearly got himself killed. So saying he didn't envy those who could grow strong just by relying on their bloodline would be a lie. If he had that kind of bloodline back then, he would never have ended up in such a miserable state.
Everyone's potential has both a lower limit and an upper limit. If you think of it as a container, some people are like water tanks, while others are like cups.
How much water you can fill depends on talent and effort, but no matter what, it can't exceed the size of the container.
That said, the container isn't fixed. It gradually expands as a person grows, only stabilizing once they reach their peak.
Back then, when Claire sent him to deal with bandits, there was a second-rate Magic Swordsman hiding among them, which nearly got him killed. With no other choice, he forced magical power into his body to gain strength, almost causing his body to collapse.
That experience made him realize just how poor his talent really was.
He was confident that if his body back then had been as strong as Claire's, he could have taken down that Magic Swordsman without getting injured.
But there are no "what ifs." Even though he had trained his body with magical power since childhood, his "container" was still easily surpassed by his sister.
He could say it was because he was younger, but in theory, if he ignored the advantages from his past life, like his natural control over magical power and the boosted growth from strengthening his body, and only followed the training arranged by his family, he would have needed until age ten to reach a level where he could defeat that second-rate Magic Swordsman without his body breaking down.
Claire had already reached that level at eight.
And that was just by following the family's standard training.
When he realized this, he really did feel a bit discouraged. It wasn't that he couldn't improve through greater effort, but even by his own estimates, if he continued down that path, his peak would only reach around SSS rank.
So after realizing his talent was lacking, he chose a different path.
Body modification.
It was a dangerous path. One mistake, and he could easily turn himself into something inhuman. But the rate of improvement was incredible. It was like forced growth without the usual drawbacks. There was no fixed peak or decline. As long as he kept modifying himself, he could keep getting stronger. The only limitation was whether he could keep finding new ways to improve.
Cid didn't consider himself stupid, but he didn't think he was especially brilliant either. He couldn't rely on constantly discovering new methods.
So to avoid hitting a dead end, he decided to let his body figure it out on its own.
He would push it to the limit.
The Magic Power Tempering Method. He would use high-density magical power to continuously destroy his own body, while simultaneously healing it with magical power, forcing it to regenerate instantly.
Through endless cycles of destruction and rebirth, his body would keep growing stronger.
Compared to a method that let his body evolve on its own like this, those minor side effects were nothing worth worrying about.
Thinking about this perfect training method, Cid could not help but smile in excitement.
For once, he really had been clever.
"If that's how you define an ordinary person, then this world probably wouldn't be in such chaos right now."
The exasperation in Giada's voice made it clear just how surprised she was by what Cid had said.
"No, the world as it is now is just fine. A sense of superiority is both what drives humans to climb higher and what gives rise to human malice."
"Fine, let's leave it at that. We should get back to the main topic before we drift too far off…"
Putting on a casual air, Giada leaned forward across the table, her emerald-like eyes fixed on Cid.
"Young man… do you desire power?"
What kind of NPC are you? Once the event starts, I can't leave until I finish the dialogue?
The corner of Cid's mouth twitched. He glanced at the huge crater in the wall behind him and let out a helpless sigh.
"Why do you have to pick me? I do want power, but I think my values are pretty solid. There's no way I'd ever use some kind of power that harms the world or twists the mind, and I definitely wouldn't agree to some heartless demand in exchange for it."
"What do you mean? Why are you so convinced I have bad intentions toward you?"
Giada raised a brow. Her hand stopped moving, and she looked at Cid in confusion.
"Aren't you trying to bring out the darkness inside me, then hand my corrupted self enough power to go do evil?"
"No, you're overthinking it. I may not exactly be justice itself, but I'm definitely on the side that maintains order."
"Huh?!"
Cid put on a shocked expression, widened his eyes at Giada, and immediately complained.
"A second ago you were acting exactly like some evil final boss tempting an innocent young man, and now you're telling me you're one of the good guys? You seriously expect me to believe that?"
"Well, never mind that. Just tell me whether you want power or not."
Seeing Giada brush the topic aside so casually, Cid's eyelid twitched. Then he straightened his expression and answered seriously.
"If this power doesn't come at the cost of betraying who I really am, then yes, I want it. I want any power."
No matter which identity he was using, Cid would have given the same answer. More than anyone else, he desired power.
"OK, then let's make a deal."
The corners of Giada's lips curled up. A trace of coldness flashed in her eyes as she snapped her fingers.
"Give me your blood, and I'll give you the power of the legendary Vampire Primogenitor, the Fourth Primogenitor."
...
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