Support Ex-Rank
Central area, around the Exit 1 of the Student Association Hall.
After ten hours of the studentsâ perceived time, things still didnât seem to progress much.
Enemies appeared sporadically even after they defeated Invidiusâ priest and the demon minions.
The situation somewhat subsided, but the students were exhausted from the continuous battle.
The Student Association organized groups for each exit so that students could rest and prevent complete exhaustion of energy waves and physical strength, but mental fatigue accumulated over time.
Students who were heading to the hall to rest talked about the current situation.
âIsnât it about ten hours after this started? Iâm hungry. Are there any cup noodles left?â
âThereâs a lot of food earlier, so I bet yeah. Has it been ten hours already? It mustâve been around an hour outside.â
âShouldnât reinforcements have come by now? I saw a lot of people waiting outside. At least one of them wouldâve reported it to the associationâ¦â
The students had some understanding of the crisis in Eungwang High.
Former student representative Do Wonwoo announced through an on-campus broadcast that the flow of time is different inside and outside the schoolâs boundary, informing them of the possibility of a prolonged situation.
Some students almost panicked when they heard that the time difference was ten hours, but most of them were freshmen who had little experience dealing with otherworlds.
The sophomores and third years who were somewhat accustomed to targeting high-rarity otherworlds know about the SSR-rank otherworlds where time and space are distorted.
The situation quickly settled as the seniors calmly soothed their juniors and voluntarily took charge of the defense lines until the freshmen calmed down.
Of course, not all freshmen panicked.
There were students who faced the situation more resolutely than their seniors.
The students of Year One Class Zero.
They headed outside as if they had waited long for their turn to take charge of defense at Exit 1.
âItâs finally our turn! I wanted to find fragments of Lenaâs energy violin.â
âLetâs go. The scroll was still intact so I bet weâll find it right away.â
âWe canât leave our designated areas, right? The debris mustâve flown far awayâ¦â
The students of Class 1-0 in charge of defense were Saeum of April, Mok Wooram, and Min Geurin.
While they were moving with students of other classes who were also in charge of defense, they decided to scope where to search around Exit 1 for fragments of Kwon Lenaâs energy violin.
They couldnât collect much of the debris after the battle with the Demon Race since enemies continued to attack.
They decided to find more pieces when it was their turn to take charge of defense.
âIâll take a look from above while Iâm flying just in case some flew up!â
âYou shouldnât fly too high though, you might encounter enemies.â
âI heard from Euishin that flying in the sky is dangerous! But wouldnât around three meters high be okay?â
âI donât think itâs a problem. If a flying enemy approaches, Iâll take care of it. Go to a tree nearby and attack it as support.â
âYou must be good at climbing trees and walls, Wooram.â
While Saeum of April flew in the air and looked around trees, Min Geurin and Saeum of April searched the ground.
It was to protect Saeum of April in case of emergency.
What they were doing was less of maintaining the defense line, which was their original task, but the other students in charge of defending Exit 1 didnât call them out.
This is because most of them watched Kwon Lenaâs choice.
They saw her unhesitatingly throw the precious energy violin to save her classmates.
It wasnât easy to find the debris around the exit messed up from the aftermath of the battle.
Mok Wooram seems to have found a thin, long piece of otherworld ore believed to be a violin string.
ââ¦I feel sorry that we left Lena behind.â
âItâs okay, sheâs with the members of the string club. Lena might find it burdensome if she came along.â
Min Geurin replied as she brushed off the dust of the debris she found with a wide flat brush.
Kwon Lena is currently staying in the Student Association Hall with the string club members.
Perhaps the student association excused her because of her low combat abilities, or perhaps in consideration of her situation.
In any case, the students of Class Zero didnât protest because they wanted Kwon Lena to rest.
Mok Wooram felt relieved to see Kwon Lena resting, but he was worried to be moving separately like this.
Throughout their search, Mok Wooram kept voicing out his worries, and it all ended in self-blame.
âItâs my fault. I was weak, so the Vice President was forced to save me and Lena had to throw the energy violin to protect the VP. Thatâs why the violin broke like that.â
ââ¦If you put it that way, then I feel the same. I was next to you too. Itâs my fault too.â
Mok Wooram and Min Geurin blamed themselves together.
If Kim Yuri and Jo Euishin were there, they wouldâve tactfully changed the topic to prevent them from having such thoughts.
If Song Daesok were there, heâd scold Mok Wooram for saying things that made Min Geurin feel guilty.
If Hani were there, she wouldâve distributed snacks she always carries around to soothe the kids.
Hwangho would laugh and say that itâs Kwon Lenaâs choice and it should be respected.
However, only the three of them were there.
Saeum of April was flying around trees and couldnât hear their conversation.
The two repeatedly blamed themselves, and the seemingly endless self-criticism between the two ended abruptly at Min Geurinâs words.
ââ¦Werenât you making a violin?â
ââ¦â
Mok Wooram fell silent.
The two of them seem to be incompatible at first glance, but both of them were great artists and craftsmen who made brilliant works.
Making souvenirs and stage decorations for class events, the two acknowledge each otherâs talents and sometimes exchange creative opinions.
Mok Wooram once consulted Min Geurin about the energy violin that he was making.
He had sufficient knowledge of how to make one, but it wasnât perfect.
Mok Wooram thought that one of the things he lacked was his aesthetic sense.
No matter how much thought he put into designing, he couldnât produce a design of a violin suitable for Kwon Lena.
So Mok Wooram asked Min Geurin for advice.
âYou were sleepless making it during the finals. You returned to your normal lifestyle now, so did you complete it?â
Mok Wooram stayed in his studio throughout the final exam and devoted himself to making the energy violin.
The reason why he rushed its production was because of what happened during their preparation for the exam.
While practicing in the simulator room, Kwon Lena tried to use her energy violin against an enemy, but the violin refused to sound.
The energy violin is influenced by the performerâs energy waves.
Kwon Lena was incredibly nervous and frightened during that time, preventing her from using the violin properly.
Mok Wooram was shocked to see the scene.
The energy violins made by Mok Wooramâs master were all great works and played the best sound.
But Mok Wooram resented the violin that didnât respond to Kwon Lenaâs performance.
That made him hurriedly make an energy violin during the exam period and he lost his sleep.
ââ¦Yes, I wanted to make a violin for Lena that would sound whenever she wanted. And I finished it.â
Mok Wooram took out an item card from his holster.
The item card he pulled out had a violin drawn on it.
The item being cardable was evidence that the violin was high-ranking.
Min Geurin looked at the card, her eyes wide open.
âI couldnât make a very satisfying work with my current skills, but I did the best I could.â
Itâs never easy to make an item card.
Itâs also the case with rare item cards such as energy instruments.
In addition, the border of the item card indicates that it was SR-rank.
Itâs lower than the SSR-rank violin that Kwon Lena uses, but it was still amazing.
A freshman student making this high-level musical instrument is worthy of a documentary film.
Min Geurin spoke after carefully observing the item card.
âI donât think itâs bad. No, I think itâs good.â
She wasnât just saying that because her classmate made it.
The design of the energy violin that Mok Wooram made was good in her eyes.
She didnât know much about energy instruments, but she found that the drawing was quite valuable.
However, Mok Wooramâs expression remained dark.
He didnât give it to Kwon Lena even after he completed it, so he doesnât seem to be satisfied.
âDidnât you make it to give to Lena? Isnât this violin better because it makes a sound whenever Lena wants to play?â
Despite a slight lack of eloquence, Min Geurin kept asking questions.
Mok Wooram was just speechless, but he finally spoke with much difficulty.
âBut giving Lena an energy violin isâ¦â
Before Mok Wooramâs answer was completed, something came down in front of them.
It was Saeum of April who suddenly descended.
He suddenly spoke in a bright voice that didnât match the twoâs atmosphere of conversation.
âI-I thought of something!â
Min Geurin and Mok Wooram paused and looked at Saeum of April.
Saeum looked at the twoâs faces alternately and blinked.
ââ¦?â
âOh, nothing. What is it?â
Min Geurin asked Saeum of April.
âAh, right. I thought of something while looking at the sky.â
Saeum of April pointed at Yong Jegunâs miracle that protected Eungwang High.
If Jo Euishin hadnât warned him not to fly, Saeum of April wouldâve flown up high to observe it.
âAbout the boundary up there, thereâs a strange snow falling outside Professor Yong Jegunâs boundary right?â
âI guess soâ¦?â
Min Geurin spoke in a tone of disbelief.
Saeum of April looked at the cyan-colored boundary that seemed a little darker than earlier.
âSo what happened to the accumulated snow?â
No one could answer Saeum of April.
Support Ex-Rank
Comments(0)
Join the discussion — sign in to leave a comment
Sign In to CommentNo comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts!