Extra in a World of Madness and Lust

Finn didn't understand love at all.

He had spent all his time just trying to survive.

Born into a poor family, he had eaten scraps from the trash, worked day and night like a slave, earned pitiful wages just enough for one meal a day—he'd experienced it all.

His life had been miserable, not even worthy of being called a human life. Maybe calling it a slave's life would've been more accurate.

So, of course, there was no room for love in his life.

But then, at one point, his life slightly improved.

Curious about love, Finn decided to buy a romance game. Yes, a game—not a girlfriend, not a date, just a game. He was a bit of an idiot like that.

The game was called Ecstasy and Madness.

It featured a wide range of playable characters and numerous heroines to choose from. Players could even form harems, or go for homosexual relationships if they wanted.

Finn played it over and over until he could be called a veteran. But even after fully understanding all the heroines and the ins and outs of the world, he still didn't understand love.

"What am I doing wrong?"

Everything! Literally everything!

Ironically, before he ever got the chance to truly understand love, Finn died.

The cause? His unhealthy lifestyle.

But that wasn't the end of his story. Just like any other isekai protagonist, he was reincarnated in another world—the world of Ecstasy and Madness.

Only, he wasn't reborn as the main character.

He came back as a background character.

"I just want to live in this world."

Ecstasy and Madness

Main genre: Romance

Sub-genre: Action

Although it was marketed as a romance game, the world setting wasn't a pretty rainbow-colored place. In fact, it was full of danger—completely at odds with the game's romantic plotlines.

Ninety percent of the world was inhabited by monsters.

Only ten percent were humans.

And the monsters were brainless beasts.

Humans? Their favorite food.

In this world, humanity was a minority—nothing like Earth where humans ruled everything. Here, humans were on the verge of extinction. Even after fighting monsters for millions of years, they had only managed to establish one surviving nation.

Because of the extremely high risk of death and constant threat of extinction, the culture here heavily emphasized reproduction and sex.

In this world, sex wasn't private—it was a social responsibility.

Casual sex wasn't taboo. It was seen as a contribution to the survival of the human race. Love was appreciated, sure—but never prioritized above species survival.

Rejecting reproduction just because you don't love your partner? That was considered selfish or unethical.

Even having your wife impregnated by another man wasn't something shameful—it was celebrated.

"This world is weird."

Of course, to Finn—someone from Earth—it was weird.

But there was nothing he could do about it.

He'd reincarnated into this world, and he was now a part of it. All he could do was live.

Even though he had the privilege of being a player—with tons of knowledge about this world—Finn had no big ambitions.

He didn't want to be a hero, villain, or harem king.

He just wanted to live quietly and peacefully.

He knew how cruel fate could be. The talented would rise to the top, while the untalented were swallowed by darkness.

In his first life, he'd chased so many dreams: becoming rich, becoming a famous actor, becoming a pro footballer with a fat salary. He worked hard, but in the end… it was all failure.

He was tired of chasing dreams.

He just wanted one simple, realistic goal:

"My goal is to become a content creator with a hundred million followers!"

…This guy is actually kind of dumb.

Maybe he was stunted from years of poor nutrition.

[Fifteen Years Later]

Finn Ophis was now eighteen years old, in his second life.

A first-year student at an elite high school.

And still single.

"Why?! Why didn't you choose me?!"

"…I'm sorry…"

"What does she have that I don't?!"

"You're a great person… really."

"Then why her? Not me?!"

"I'm sorry… I just think of you as a friend."

"You promised to marry me!"

"I know… I'm sorry I couldn't keep that promise. But I can't lie to myself. I love her. I could marry you just to keep my word… but you wouldn't want a fake love, right?"

Wait! Don't get the wrong idea!

This isn't Finn talking to his love interest.

Finn was just a bystander—a background character.

It was Sunday. Finn had gone out to look for a nice restaurant to film content. But on the way, he stumbled across a guy and a girl having an emotional argument.

Looked like the girl was getting dumped. Poor girl.

But Finn knew who they were.

'Arnold and Ariel,' thought Finn. 'The first main character and the first losing heroine.'

In Ecstasy and Madness, there were several playable main characters. One of them was Arnold. If the player chose Arnold, they had three options:

1. Date Ariel, the childhood friend.

2. Date Elena, the noble girl.

3. Date both of them.

But officially, Arnold would always choose Elena.

"I see," Ariel whispered sadly. "Thanks for being honest."

"I'm really sorry, Ariel," Arnold said, bowing his head.

"Go after her. Before Elena moves to another city."

"Okay… thank you. And… I'm really sorry."

Arnold ran off after the girl he loved, leaving Ariel behind.

Tears welled in her eyes. She covered her face, trying to hide her sobs, then collapsed to the ground—overwhelmed by heartbreak. Rain began to fall, as if the sky itself was weeping for her.

'What am I supposed to do now?'

Why did this all have to happen right in front of Finn?

It was so awkward.

"I'm just a background character…"

He looked around. The area was pretty quiet, even on a Sunday. Probably because of the rain and how far out of town it was. Across the street was a family restaurant with a decent crowd.

He walked past Ariel and went to the restaurant.

'I didn't see anything.'

He decided to pretend nothing happened.

But suddenly, Ariel started walking beside him.

'Why?' he wondered, shocked. 'If you're headed to the restaurant too, couldn't you walk in front of me? Or behind me? Why next to me?'

Still, he stuck to his original plan. 'I saw nothing.'

He entered the restaurant, took a seat in a quiet corner like the introvert he was, and was about to call the waiter when—Ariel sat across from him.

'Again—WHY?'

"Arnold and I were childhood friends."

'She's trauma-dumping already!?'

"When we were kids, he gave me a toy ring and said he'd marry me someday." Her eyes welled up again. "But now… that's just a memory. It'll never happen." She started sobbing.

Finn just sat there in silence, annoyed, confused, and… kind of sympathetic.

"So what do you want me to do?"

It was the first time Finn said anything.

"Nothing. I just needed someone to listen. You just happened to be nearby. And please… don't tell anyone about this. I don't want people to know I just got dumped."

"Fine." It's not like he had friends to gossip with anyway.

The waiter came. Finn ordered food. Feeling a little sorry for her, he ordered for Ariel too. She took out tissues to wipe her tears and snot.

"Didn't expect you to be such a nice guy," Ariel smiled.

"It's just one meal."

Ariel smiled sadly.

"You're just like Arnold…"

A vein popped in Finn's forehead.

For some reason, he was really annoyed being around her sadness. It felt like the gloomy atmosphere was soaking into his peaceful little bubble. He wanted to kick her out, but didn't have the heart to do it.

"In this world… even if you're not the first wife, you could still be the second. No need to get so down, right?"

"Arnold's a monogamist." Ariel sank even lower.

"Oh… I didn't know that."

His attempt to comfort her totally failed.

As a player, Finn had information on all the heroines—but not the main characters. After all, players became the main characters in the VR game.

"If I remember right, your name's Fan Tropics, right?"

"Who the hell is Fan Tropics?! My name is Finn Ophis! How can you not know my name but still dump all your emotional baggage on me?!"

"Ehehe, sorry," she giggled cutely, scratching her head. "Your name's hard to remember."

"Finn! It's short and easy! Finn! How is that hard?!"

"But I know we go to the same high school, right?"

"Yeah, but I bet you didn't know we're in the same class."

Ariel flinched. "Wait, seriously?"

Finn slammed the table in frustration.

"You didn't even know that?!"

"Ehehe, sorry. No wonder you looked familiar."

"Huhhh... it's okay, I'm just an extra after all."

Then Ariel leaned close and whispered in his ear—

"By the way… wanna have sex with me after this?"