Ex-Rank Awakening: My Attacks Make Me Stronger-Chapter 82: EX . It’s Huge

A full day had passed since the cadets had chosen their deployment bases, and now, the time had finally come for the deployment.

The arena grounds, once filled with the thunder of combat and echoes of ceremony, now bustled with roaring engines and the rhythmic clanking of gear being loaded into armored transport trucks. Rows of sleek military vehicles, bearing distinct base numbers on their sides, lined up like obedient warhorses awaiting their riders. Uniformed personnel moved in disciplined synchronization, barking final instructions and cross-checking manifest logs.

But amidst the organized chaos, all eyes were drawn to a single vehicle.

A black-armored, reinforced military transport stood at the center of the grounds, its sleek frame polished to a mirror-like sheen, the number 01 boldly painted in silver across the side, as if it were daring the rest to catch up.

A murmur spread through the watching cadets like wildfire.

"I can’t believe it... I thought it was a glitch."

"The top 12... they really all joined Base 01."

"At this rate, Base 01 might rank first in this year’s base rankings, before they even lift a finger."

"I wonder if I dye my hair white, I’ll be half as strong as Leon..."

"Keep dreaming."

It was unprecedented, twelve of the highest-ranked cadets all willingly joining one base. And the reason behind it, the gravitational center of this talent-storm, sat inside that vehicle.

Leon Kael.

He was reclined comfortably in the back cabin of the transport vehicle, legs stretched out, eyes glued to his phone screen. His thumb scrolled lazily, completely detached from the buzz of awe outside.

The interior of the transport was expansive, clearly modified for elite deployments. Behind the driver’s cabin, the seating area was lined with two long, parallel cushioned benches running the length of the vehicle, wide enough to seat twenty soldiers, though only twelve were present.

The soft hum of the vehicle’s systems blended with the muted sound of boots on gravel outside.

To Leon’s left sat Adrian Peer, arms folded, eyes closed, saying nothing. Across from them, Eden and Eleanor sat side-by-side, silent but focused. The remaining cadets, each one at the peak of the selection rankings, sat in a mix of tense silence and quiet observation.

This was it.

They were headed to the battlefield now, to Base 01—a front-line military stronghold on the Federation’s border, where demon incursions were frequent, and survival was far from guaranteed.

The silence inside the cabin was almost sacred.

Almost.

Because it was consistently interrupted by the sound of muffled laughter coming from Leon.

"Pfft—how did they make the cat dance like that?" he chuckled, shaking his head as another video played on his phone.

The other cadets turned to him slowly. A few blinked. One or two raised an eyebrow. But none dared speak.

Is this guy serious?

Do all strong people act like this...?

The aura around Leon didn’t match his power level, it eclipsed it entirely. A casual unpredictability, like a storm that smiled before it struck.

Just then, the front door of the vehicle slammed shut.

A man with a chiseled jaw, shaved sides, and a scar running across his temple turned around from the driver’s seat. His tone was gruff, but his presence commanding.

"I’ll be in charge of your transit today. Sit tight."

Without another word, he turned the ignition. The engine roared to life with a deep growl, and the vehicle rumbled forward, pulling away from the arena and onto the road that led out of the capital.

Their destination: the Federation’s outermost edge.

The Border.

And at the very edge of that war-scorched land—Base 01 awaited.

****

The journey was long and quiet, with the armored transport humming steadily across vast stretches of land. The cadets had passed hills, forests, and the occasional watchtower, but for most of the trip, their minds had been left to wander, each of them mentally preparing for what lay ahead.

But all idle thoughts came to a halt when the driver suddenly spoke.

"We’re almost there."

The words cut through the silence like a spark in dry grass.

Instantly, the cadets leaned toward the armored windows, curious to see the place that would shape their futures. And what they saw was enough to make even the most stoic of them go wide-eyed.

"It’s... huge," Eleanor breathed, awe painting her voice.

None disagreed.

Stretching across the horizon was a sight so grand it defied belief, a titanic wall of black steel, rising like a mountain of metal and defiance. It soared upward, higher than twenty Blue Wales stacked one atop another, blotting out the sun from certain angles. The cadets felt like ants in its shadow.

This was The Federal Great Wall, the colossal perimeter that marked the boundary between civilization and chaos. fɾēewebnσveℓ.com

A fortress in its own right, the wall encircled the entire known border of the Federation, standing as both shield and spear. It was here, where the demons surged from the unknown and humanity pushed back just as hard, that the tides of war were shaped.

But there was more.

As the vehicle approached, the cadets could now make out massive, tower-like structures embedded at regular intervals along the wall. These weren’t mere battlements, they were bolts. Strategic, mobile fortresses engineered to detach, shift, and reform the wall’s perimeter whenever a new region was conquered beyond Federation land.

Eleanor’s eyes sparkled.

"So those are the bolts..."

These giant bolts served as the Attack Branch military bases, the spear points of human expansion. Every time the Federation claimed new land, one of these bolts would be unsealed, moved forward, and anchored into fresh ground, extending the Great Wall’s reach. It was a monumental effort, requiring thousands of workers, elite squads, and months of strategic planning.

The last expansion?

Two years ago.

And now, their vehicle veered toward one of those very bolts.

Its designation was emblazoned across a steel-plated banner hanging above the reinforced gate:

BASE 01 — Crimson Fang Stronghold

This was no ordinary base.

This was the spear’s tip.

And the cadets inside the vehicle... were its newest sharpened edges.

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