AThousandCurses

Iris Ascendis

Chunji's personal feelings did not resonate with his peer's enthusasim in choosing sides. Perhaps he was too nihilistic or pessimistic about the entire event, but he couldn't understand their passion. From what he saw from his eyes, it was little more than spectacle that would turn into a ticking time bomb with the actors he'd seen throughout the school.

What he saw from the world...

It was indescribable.

The moment someone attuned with the golden pillar, it started many intricate processes. The identifying, authenthicating, assimilating, tethering, imprinting, and many more. It was only simple conjecture that Chunji had formulated, what was actually unknown to him. A present magnum opus of essence that-

The scent of iron interrupted Chunji's thought process. A burning sensation ruminated in his head that lead Chunji to impulsively wipe his nose. A brief touch gave him a quick answer.

Blood.

Chunji immediately withdrew his Ethos and stopped usage. "Hmmm." A new limit had been discovered. A new limit to be tested. Another subject to be studied at a later time. His compact had been called and Ms. Ventaura had declared her afflilation. An unexpected designation, but something that wouldn't have bothered Chunji.

Finding himself next in line, Chunji walked up to take a spot at the pillar. His hand grazing his pillar itself. Chunji had reminded himself of what the pillar was.

An precipice of knowledge that build its base through blood, sweat, and tears from a suspicious source. He wouldn't stop it from connecting with him, but he could restrict what would it access.

Chunji tried his best to guide the pillar on where it could attune. It was an instinctual process, but one Chunji tried his hardest at. The pillar reached out and Chunji met it halfway. The pillar of the Primal didn't come, as expected, but the others did. One by one, he guided them to only assimilate at his hand. Perhaps it was pointless, but Chunji felt that he needed to try.

Isolating the place of contact to his right hand, Chunji called out his side.

"Sword of Wund."

The delivery in tone left much to be desired.

Iris Ascendis

Got it, okay.

Iris Ascendis

@Nanaya

Chunji would like to observe the process of attunement. Would his Ethos perceive it?

Iris Ascendis

Perhaps it was the norm to have inexplicable entrances that Chunji wasn't aware of. From the auditorium to the leylines, there was now a fountain that Rio had disappeared into. It did stoke curiosity but also made Chunji more cautious about his future activities, from Rio and Chloe's secret to Davil's incompetence to his other classmates' eccentricities.

A sigh escaped before Chunji turned and headed back to the Attunement Zone. He'd make it in time if he started walking now.

There were a few things that perturbed Chunji. One was the lack of address regarding potential problems. If Principal Raja had been informed and aware of everything, Chunji did not perceive a reaction on her part. The woman was an enigma to the school's slogan. At the end of the day, her tenure as Principal may be just another step in her career. Chunji was sure that Rio would have a snarky remark or two about her.

However, what happened next at the Attunement Zone would no less lead to unnecessary conflict that Chunji would seclude himself from. Whatever rivalries may develop, Chunji had no interest in them aside from making Rio's life a little harder than usual.

Iris Ascendis

Snakes were said to be cold-blooded creatures, and folk tales of the Yi Family lineage often spoke about how closely connected they were to the Great Serpent. Oddly enough, Chunji felt that his blood was boiling underneath his skin. He was starting to understand Emelie's feelings at the library when he minced words at her. The insinuations, the accusations, and the amount of slander that Rio had thrown were burning the bridge faster.

"Ho... I apologize in that case. I mistook an aspect of your character," Chunji coldly said.

Projection was something Rio was most apt at. Approval? If Chunji could tilt his perspective to a degree of bias like how Rio was doing, wasn't beating Alto's challenge nothing more than a way to exceed expectations? It was just to satiate one's own pride.

Why would he spill blood, sweat, and tears for a cause that didn't even interest him? To achieve a momentary relief that would prove inconsequential in the future?

Chunji refused to partake such tasks.

Though Rio had been right to a certain extent, Chunji did have something to prove. Rio's target for that approval, however, was extensively mismatched. Any insult directed towards himself was okay, but an indirect one to his parents was one that he would not have tolerated. The grip on his sword tightened. He would have liked nothing more than to draw his blade.

"As we have discuss the crux of the issue, there is nothing more to be said." With that said, Chunji turned and left the area. Once he felt Rio was also going, Chunji would have stepped aside and hid. The heat from his blood still resonated in him. He couldn't return to the ceremony like this.

If he had been the blood of a dog, he'd happily tear out Rio's throat then and there. However, Chunji had a cold bloodline.

He'd wait, and he'd strike.

"透过现象看本质"

The world revealed itself to Chunji's eyes. There were enough coincidences for Chunji to connect the thoughts between Rio and Steeler. Enough of that warranted Chunji staying a little longer and observing from afar.

Clearly, Steeler had gone off by herself and got caught along with Hildegrunde in some accident. Now Rio was going off by himself, and Chunji wasn't interested in being the Hildegrunde of the situation.

Now what will happen to Rio?

It was clear to Chunji that he involved himself with more trouble than it was worth.

Iris Ascendis

When Chunji's Charm Stat is at 1.

Iris Ascendis

No words left the reticent boy's mouth. From one perspective, people may infer that he was formulating a proper response to his peer's outburst. Another would be that his peer's outburst didn't warrant a response, as Chunji must have concluded it to be incredibly childish. The answer was simple.

Chunji froze at the unexpected outburst that Rio leveled onto him. How did such animosity build up over the course of two days? Any actions that may have involved Rio were purely inconsequential. If Rio wasn't going to attend the first important ceremony, what was the point of attending the academy in the first place? Furthermore, what was with this random accusation of being a teacher's pet? Knowing more about your surroundings and ethos was crucial for future reference, but even then, Chunji stood with an adamant demeanor when dealing with things that didn't interest him.

Now for the fight on the bridge? It was simple. Rio and Chloe were in the way, so Chunji remove them from his path. If anything stood to obstruct his goal, Chunji would find the proper procedure to excise that obstacle.

These reasonings would sound like excuses to Rio, so Chunji didn't bother to explain himself to his classmate. His well-meaning concern only stoked the indiscernible fumes that had rested within Rio. It would be best to address Rio's statement before explaining why he had followed in the first place.

"I was not aware that I had aggrieved you so, Rio. Though I won't apologize as it comes off as insincere." Chunji emphasized. A frown broke out on his face as he continued his dialogue. "Honestly, I wouldn't have cared that much about your activities. What you do does not pertain to me, but on this occasion, I found it warranted my intervention." Dayin popped up beside them, and with a snap of Chunji's fingers, the pages started to turn.

A list of messages from Chunji's contacts appeared.

"Otis had sent me a message regarding Ms.Steeler and Ms. Nachtenbel's whereabouts. I only told him I remembered Nachtenbel following Steeler out of the classrooms after class. Now..." Hildegrunde's latest message glowed to signify the importance of its contents. "Surely, you can connect the dots yourself, can you not?"

Whatever bridge that Chunji had been hoping to build was put into jeopardy. How Rio would respond to this could vary in two extreme ways. Either he attacks, or he runs towards the forest. Any result was fine.

Chunji had given up the idea of forging a rapport with Rio. Having friends was not a long-term goal Chunji envisioned for himself.

Iris Ascendis

Okay Rio, go off.

Time for haphazard bomb defusal.

Iris Ascendis

The take-off made Chunji's bangs flutter. Chunji looked up to see the disappearance of two classmates and a third who had decided to follow. All attention to their idle chatter disappeared. "I received a distress message from one of my classmates. I now know I wasn't the only one who received it." Principal Raja most likely wouldn't be pleased by the turn of events. She was watching everything unfold, which was fairly odd, though she must have some sort of invisible automaton following the situation. Her inaction spoke volumes to Chunji.

"Ms. Nachtnebel's message was sparse but conveyed a clear message. She was in the forest, and she needed help. I assumed she only sent it to my classmates as all except me were recently absent from the ceremony." Rio and Chloe weren't unaccounted for, however. Davil was still in the infirmary; Hildegrunde followed Chloe, but Rio...

At that moment, Chunji spotted Rio moving further away from the crowd. Chunji's eyes held perplexity as Rio was going in the opposite direction of the discord. Where was he going? "It seems today will be more troublesome. Please inform Principal Raja about what's happening and tell her I will be late in attendance. My classmate seems to be directionally impotent." With that, he got up and sprinted after Rio.

Why was Rio heading in the opposite direction of the commotion? Given the sparse contents of her message, Hildegrunde must've sent the message to everyone she was associated with. Rio must've gotten the message, but he didn't care enough. That or he wasn't aware that Chloe was currently in danger.

If he were to catch up in time, Chunji would've called out to his peer. "Rio, the attunement ceremony is going to start. It would be impractical to miss an important event." Chunji was on guard at the time. Hildegrunde had been attacked on school grounds. Now that the academy's security was questioned, he needed to be on full alert.

Expedition to Isekai

Nothing seen except for the feces of creatures five times her size and claw marks reminsicient of a cat scratching a pole. Shun couldn't bare the smell as well as the boredom the accompanied with it. Either way, she had accomplished her goal. They needed to on alert and find a way to evacuate the camp if it became necessary.

Without much of a word, Shun decided to continue her treck back to the camp. Every so often, she would turn her head and tried to see if anyone was following her. The last thing she needed was to get ganked against by a pack of animals. There wasn't enough energy or craze in her to fight another brawl by herself after all.

It took her approximiately an hour later to return back to camp. She had been a little lost, but managed to navigate her way back to the camp after finding a few familiar trees. "Everyone, I have potentially bad news." Shun announced in a cheerful way in an attempt to deliver this information as fluidly as possible. "I came across some monster feces and scratch marks that were this big!" Shun stretched her hands out to emphasize the size.

"I couldn't find them, but the group of monsters was bigger than the last one that ran into us. So, I'd like us to come up a run away plan in case that happens~" Of which she wasn't going to participate in. Shun knew that she'd be one of the few having to fight back the monsters while Masato ran away with the others. It'd probably be fun though.