Ex Rank Supporting Role’s Replay in a Prestigious School

Within the hologram, the Sovereign of Scarlet Flame and the Azure Dragon made their proclamation.

The press had tried to silence them and turn attention elsewhere, but the public abandoned everything and focused on their uprising.

The clues they had desperately gathered to defend Yeom Jun-yeol’s honor all led back to a single individual.

It turned out that those who had assassinated Yeom Jun-yeol that day were mercenaries hired by the government, and these mercenaries were not stationed on Jeju Island permanently but had lain in ambush timed to the school trip schedule.

A certain member of the National Assembly had intervened in the process of hiring them, and that same man had proposed and pushed forward the Player Assassination Act.

Furthermore, comparing his assets and those of his family before and after becoming a lawmaker, their wealth had increased more than tenfold.

Gwak Gyeong-gu thought to himself.

‘It all fits, but it’s not the smoking gun. And a single lawmaker couldn’t have done this alone. So they’re going straight at the member to dig out the real mastermind.’

The strategy adopted by the Sovereign of Scarlet Flame was reckless, but it was certain.

If they could actually seize him, they could dismantle the Dream Auction, capture Choi Pyeon-deuk, and even expose the Jin clan behind it all.

They could also reveal the existence of the drugs driving people to rampage and completely turn public opinion against the Player Assassination Act.

Jo Yi-shin, before that man could seize power, had shattered the Dream Gate, chosen to gather clues through Choi Pyeon-deuk—yet if he had been digging for the mastermind in this situation, he would have used the same method.

Only, like the Sovereign of Scarlet Flame, he would have avoided the reckless demand for custody from the front lines in order to publicize Yeom Jun-yeol’s exoneration far and wide.

[What we want is that one man.]

The Sovereign of Scarlet Flame gave them twenty-four hours.

But during those twenty-four hours, neither the government nor the Assembly prepared to hand him over; instead, they readied their counterattack. Too many had taken bribes from him and received favors; beyond Yeom Jun-yeol’s assassination, he was entangled in far greater schemes, so they could not bring themselves to surrender him.

In the meantime, the true mastermind made its move—as though it had been waiting.

Before the allotted twenty-four hours had even passed, Cardmos quietly withdrew behind the riot shields, moving past the police riot squad and the National Assembly guard who surrounded the building.

Watching the scene unfold on the screen, Gwak Gyeong-gu thought,

‘Who is that foreigner? A negotiator? The police are letting him through—he must be one of theirs.’

At the head of the allied forces stood the Azure Dragon and the Vermilion Dragon.

They recognized him as of the Jin clan and stayed on guard.

Yet their vigilance was imperfect. They were confident that no one would dare strike at them head-on while they were in full battle readiness.

Above all, these two dragons had lived among humans for so long that they had come to trust and even love this society.

So, with time still available for negotiation, they could not fathom that someone would mercilessly target their lives in a brutal fashion.

Not until Cardmos’s draconic fang was poised to pierce their throats.

[Guhk... Azure, Vermilion Dragon!]

As soon as the Azure Dragon’s scream rang out, the live feed was cut.

Even in a live broadcast, there was a delay of a few seconds between filming and transmission; the camera operator, seeing the Vermilion Dragon’s throat being pierced and him dying, hastily cut the feed to prevent a broadcast disaster.

However, on personal streams, viewers witnessed Vermilion Dragon’s final moments, and the half-severed throat of the Azure Dragon, who had barely saved himself by protecting himself with mental power, screaming in agony.

Then the empty-headed breaking news headlines began to pop up in rapid succession.

[Breaking News] Vermilion Dragon Dead

[Breaking News] Azure Dragon Critically Injured

One after another, alerts announced the deaths or injuries of every notable dragon as well as unfamiliar dragon descendants.

Names continued to scroll until Yeom Bang-yeol—who had stepped away to take an urgent call from a high-ranking Player Association official—returned to watch.

Then the desperate battle to capture Cardmos began.

Cardmos used mental power to summon soldiers born of draconic fangs—creatures that appeared as enemies—and continued the fight.

If the Azure Dragon wove himself into the flow of mental power, Cardmos instead ripped apart the earth to squeeze out energy, calling forth his minions.

The allied forces had to defend the surviving dragons and descendants while fighting Cardmos’s legions.

‘There was no declaration of war!’

Watching the panicked anchor’s voice and the red-tinted, mosaic-blurred feed, Gwak Gyeong-gu despaired at the malice toward the Players.

But an even greater evil he had not foreseen was about to strike them.

When Yeom Bang-yeol, to maximize his output, surrounded himself only with those blessed by the Dragon King’s favor and unleashed the Scorching Flame, the blessings vanished all at once—as if by design.

Normally, when someone uses destructive supernatural powers, they instinctively cloak themselves in a protective aura.

Yeom Bang-yeol, trusting only in the Dragon King, had suppressed that instinct to unleash the Scarlet Flame with greater force.

By this point, however, the Dragon King’s place had already been usurped by the Imugi Deity, and the Dragon Palace—with its new priestesses and the Yellow Dragon—lay in their hands.

Even as Yeom Bang-yeol stared, unable to believe that the blessings had disappeared, he watched those once blessed by him writhe in the sea of fire, commencing a one-sided slaughter and desecration.

‘The government even deployed Player troops?’

With the main forces neutralized and the situation overwhelmingly one-sided, the government believed it could carry out a massacre while minimizing its own casualties, so it dispatched the Player battalions.

Most civilians, although fearful, regarded them as a reassuring presence.

The rebellious Players had been suppressed, and it was proven that even greater forces stood with the government.

It had taken time, but they had succeeded in portraying the Players as a privileged, antisocial group wielding dangerous power, making it seem only natural that even beloved star Players were fair game for assassination.

Some surviving allies waged guerrilla warfare, but as the news grew tiresome and was no longer covered, the world quieted—until it erupted again.

“You said before that the Demon Race would move. They’ll soon issue a declaration, threatening to turn Gangwon Province into the Demon Realm.”

One night, at the martial hall, Iron-Blood Twin Blades spoke with a grave expression.

The Jeolheukpoongrim had reacted swiftly to the news Gwak Gyeong-gu brought, but they could not stop it.

One Demonic God alone might have been manageable, but the Palmon God Alliance—joining forces with the Seven Deadly Sins and the Death God—was vast and reached places beyond their influence.

In the end, Jeolheukpoongrim chose to gather all righteous forces and respond en masse if the demons should move.

But even a student like Gwak Gyeong-gu knew the truth.

‘Almost all the true Players are dead or have left the peninsula. Where will they find troops?’

With the Yeouido inferno, not only the dragons but also the Sovereign of Scarlet Flame had died, and almost all the Players united under him were gone.

One pro-Player rescue team had stayed behind to save lives, but named the “Hangang Cycling Team,” they hardly seemed battle-ready.

A few groups with concepts similar to Jeolheukpoongrim had called for the eradication of the Demon Cult, but their numbers were small and their strength meager.

And the few teams that remained were dwindling—how could they gather any real force?

“Don’t worry, Gyeong-gu.”

As if understanding his despair like a parent, Iron-Blood Twin Blades spoke.

Sitting upright with the hall’s plaque behind him, he said,

“This land has not been broken by storms or trials. Again and again, darkness has tried to swallow the peninsula, yet every time a righteous one has appeared, ended the night, and opened the dawn. I believe this nation’s destiny stretches beyond the heavens.”

Gwak Gyeong-hun, who had seemed listless after the string of disasters, shone like a blade honed to the name Iron-Blood Twin Blades in that moment.

But Gwak Gyeong-gu couldn’t help but recall his friend’s father.

Coldly speaking, the Sovereign of Scarlet Flame had been stronger than Iron-Blood Twin Blades, wielded greater power, held loftier ideals, and commanded vast support—yet he had fallen in vain.

Gwak Gyeong-gu said with biting irony,

“What if that righteous one never appears?”

“Then we will open the path ourselves tomorrow. If we cannot, we will pave the way until he comes. That is how we ended the age of darkness.”

Even after hearing this, Gwak Gyeong-gu remained skeptical.

His father did not try to force understanding upon him.

That was the last conversation they ever shared.

Soon the Demon Race issued their declaration of war, and the government abandoned Gangwon Province, issuing an evacuation order.

They framed it as the result of negotiations and consultations.

They also claimed that their forces had been depleted suppressing the rebellion of lions and dragons, blaming the Players for even this.

‘They boast of a great victory with almost no friendly losses, then say this!’

Some were swayed by the propaganda, but this time it was hard to secure the people’s unanimous consent.

Those who understood what ceding land meant rose in protest, calling it a humiliating surrender and raining down fierce criticism.

Local governments and residents in Gangwon Province especially revolted in unison.

Those with deep ties to the government tried to flee secretly, only to be caught and dragged out by the townspeople.

Yet the government remained immovable.

The forces that had moved without hesitation to kill lions and dragons would not budge this time.

‘Relatives or safe havens in other regions have begun to evacuate. Soon this land will become a battlefield.’

Though the Demon Race had set a deadline, no one trusted the Players.

Having massacred people in front of the Assembly without waiting the promised twenty-four hours, there was no reason to believe the demons’ words.

In fact, the demonization of the land was already underway, the first phase in progress.

After confirming the government’s firm stance, Jeolheukpoongrim declared the formation of a Demon-Cult Extermination Corps, and Iron-Blood Twin Blades joined them.

Gwak Gyeong-gu also took action.

Because the acting student council president acted as if the demonization hadn’t happened, Gwak Gyeong-gu issued a statement in his name and began gathering people.

A few teachers and students joined him.

Among them were Heo Chae-a and No Young-mi, who had been Joo Suhyuk’s homeroom teacher in first grade.

Everyone Joo Suhyuk had gathered was there—except for White Tiger.

“.......”

“Joo Suhyuk, who are you waiting for?”

“For Ji-ho and Teacher Gong Cheong-hwan.”

“The 0th class’s Hwang Ji-ho and the Taeho-kwon club adviser?”

“Yes.”

Gong Cheong-hwan had intended to join but was blocked by Choi Pyeon-deuk’s gang’s schemes.

They planned to include him in the Extermination Corps to eliminate several teachers and students, but they had to leave Gong Cheong-hwan out—because they could not allow someone with spirit-arts power to join.

Gong Cheong-hwan was prepared to give up his teaching career to join, but when threatened with the fate of the Taeho-kwon club and its students, he had no choice but to carry out the tasks foisted on him.

“In fact, it’s for the best. The enemy won’t focus on only one place. They might reach for the school during demonization. If Teacher Gong and Ji-ho and White Tiger remain, we can go safely.”

Andain and Joo Suhyuk thought it fortunate, fearing the school itself might come under attack.

Gwak Gyeong-gu didn’t fully understand, but it seemed they did not regard the 0th class students as enemies—despite their apparent close ties to the school’s director, who had allowed things to reach this state.

‘But why isn’t that White Tiger here?’

White Tiger could not leave Eun Gwang District, so he was naturally excluded—but Gwak Gyeong-gu did not know this.

And then, a butterfly appeared before them.

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