EX rank supporting role's replay in a prestigious school

Chapter 994

Eungwang Global Stadium's audience seats.

The 2nd-year 0th class students, who had arrived early and were waiting in line, checked their tickets and found their seats.

"Is this our seat? It’s practically in the front row. We’re going to be on camera a lot!"

"What a great spot. It’s perfect for us to show off our amazing cheering."

Two attention-seekers, wearing flashy and eye-catching outfits themed around summer sunlight and auroras, rushed to their seats and began setting up various cheering tools.

Song Dae-seok, who had barely managed not to disturb the people around them, seemed like he had a lot to say, but seeing Min Green holding an aurora-colored cheer stick with an excited face, he swallowed his words.

Min Green wasn’t the only one excited.

Kwon Lena, who had recently been feeling sluggish due to the heat, was also happily fiddling with her cheer stick.

Every time she pressed the button on the cheer stick, holograms of Dokgo Mi-ro, Maeng Hyo-don, and Jo Yi-shin’s names appeared in their respective ability colors, and Kwon Lena kept pressing the button, seemingly satisfied with the colors.

Seeing Kwon Lena like this, Mo Gooram, who had been paying closer attention to her than usual, looked at her with a relaxed face and spoke.

"This seat is even better than the one we had at the opening ceremony. It looks like all that practice with ticketing paid off."

"Right? I think I can now handle ticketing for Kwon Je-in’s concert too."

"Let’s do ticketing together for that too! Oh, Jeong Muk, want a drink?"

Kim Yoo-ri, who had picked the coldest ion drink from the icebox, offered it to Kwon Lena.

Today, Jeong Muk was still wearing his black martial arts uniform.

Currently, Eungwang Global Stadium was maintaining a comfortable temperature with air conditioning, as the dome roof was closed, but that was only true for those wearing summer clothes.

Also, Jeong Muk was skilled enough to wrap his body in his ability energy to protect himself from the heat, but he didn’t particularly like his ability color, so instead of using it, he was just enduring the heat.

Jeong Muk, who was fighting the heat alone, received the drink with a grateful expression.

"Thank you for the consideration."

"Yeah, I prepared it with plenty of time. Let me know if you want more!"

Kim Yoo-ri smiled and looked around at the class.

The unique 0th class students each kept their own concept while enjoying the atmosphere of the stadium.

‘Yi-shin isn’t here, so I need to look after everyone well! They’re all having fun, so I’ll support them without disturbing them, and cheer in line with the mood... Ah, the seniors from the Cheon Sol group are doing unique cheering, so the attention that was on Lewis and Seulbi will shift to them. I’ll make sure to give extra praise so they don’t feel left out.’

Thinking like the class president of the 0th class, Kim Yoo-ri waited for the right moment to hand drinks to her classmates, starting with Jeong Muk.

Soon, it was In Seon-o’s turn.

"Yuri, I’ll drink it well."

In Seon-o greeted her with a soft smile.

Kim Yoo-ri smiled back and looked at In Seon-o.

In Seon-o had been a good classmate who got along well with everyone, except for the fact that she hadn’t attended school much lately.

It would be a lie to say there was nothing bothering her, though.

"Se-eum isn’t here yet. I thought she’d come early since she was looking forward to today’s match."

Holding the drink, In Seon-o casually started the conversation.

In Seon-o had blended in with the class so well that it was hard to believe she hadn’t been attending school for long.

Normally, when a new student joined, Kim Yoo-ri and Jo Yi-shin would quietly help them adapt, but In Seon-o didn’t need such help.

Maybe that was why Kim Yoo-ri was more concerned about something else than In Seon-o’s adaptation.

‘It’s good that Seon-o is opening up and making friends with the class, but...’

Kim Yoo-ri subtly noticed that In Seon-o had been keeping an eye on Jo Yi-shin.

In Seon-o had quickly become close with Sa Wol Se-eum, who loved talking about Jo Yi-shin.

Kim Yoo-ri debated whether to intervene, but decided to just observe for now.

There were more classmates paying attention to In Seon-o.

"Sa Wol Se-eum is currently helping with the black market ticket crackdown."

She thought it was rare to find so many people with such an ability, and it made her suspect that it might all be the work of just one person.

And now, those trolls had suddenly quieted down, which made her suspicious.

‘I don’t think they’ve run out of things to say. Maybe they’ve stopped because there’s no need to spread rumors or post hateful comments anymore.’

At that moment, the Korean team was seen warming up and walking toward the stadium.

Although there was still time before the match started, they were moving around, probably to check the venue.

When the students noticed familiar faces, they stopped what they were doing and cheered.

"They’re here! They don’t seem nervous at all!"

"Time’s getting closer. The cameras will definitely catch us, so get ready!"

"Even with so many people, our flashy cheering will make sure they see us!"

As the 0th class students cheered, the Korean team entered.

As expected, Dokgo Mi-ro and Maeng Hyo-don immediately waved at their classmates in the cheering section.

But one face was missing.

Jo Yi-shin wasn’t there.

Not everyone was immediately satisfied with the offense and defense team formation.

Especially, Jeong Hae-on, being the 0th class senior, was particularly complaining.

He seemed especially unhappy about not being on the same offense team as Dokgo Mi-ro.

―Ah, if I’m not going, who’s going to take Mi-ro’s picture!

―There will be cameras for the live broadcast. They’ll film both the offense and defense teams. Also, the otherworld simulator has a recording function. You can request the footage later.

―Doesn’t that make it the same as taking a picture directly?!

With so many outstanding players participating, the exchange event had gained significant attention.

Moreover, since the opponents were China and Japan, there were far more media personnel than expected.

This reminded her of the interview requests and increased coverage during the Korea-Japan matches.

‘I didn’t have many opportunities to compete against Japanese players, but there were always so many hassles.’

Matches against Japanese players often attracted high viewership, and that kind of attention was inevitable.

Despite all the cameras, Jeong Hae-on still complained, unwilling to give up on direct photos.

In the end, Cheon Dong-ha had to do some convincing on behalf of Hae-on, who was left unsatisfied.

―If you’re in the same offense team, there won’t be time for photos. If you really want one, you can wait as a substitute and take a picture when entering.

―...That makes sense. I guess I’ll take the substitute position.

This was how one of the 0th class seniors was calmed down, but there were still issues.

―...It’s disappointing.

―The defense team is a meaningful role, but still...

―Is the offense team really just five people? What about me?

When I mentioned who I had considered for the offense team, Jo Su-hyeok, Ahn Da-in, and Maeng Hyo-don were especially disappointed.

It would be an honor to fight alongside them in such an event, but since I had my own plan, it was difficult to fulfill their wishes.

"It’s almost time to start. Let’s go around the stadium and greet the people who came to cheer."

At Yeom Jun-yeol’s suggestion, everyone agreed and began to move.

I had planned to walk slowly at the back, away from Ahn Da-in, to ease suspicions from the Japanese team.

As I took a step late, someone called my name.

"Yi-shin."

It was Hirano Seiji, wearing the lotus flower-themed team uniform.

"Can we talk for a minute?"