00:00The fourth season of Asterisk Rank Up Anime Asterisk has finally arrived.
00:03The Problem Children never in their wildest dreams imagined that there was actually a 13th student in their class.
00:08This time, in order to avoid attracting attention, the entire Rank Up Legion has employed a perception-blocking technique after
00:14all.
00:14Their leader is now a minor king, and if they were to be discovered, they would undoubtedly be mobbed by
00:18crowds.
00:19To retain access to the king's classroom, the Problem Children's class has been assigned a related trial.
00:23Every student must reach the fourth rank before the start of their second year.
00:26Failure to do so would result in their expulsion from the king's classroom.
00:30Now, they are down to their very last opportunity for promotion, the Music Festival.
00:34This is a no-holds-barred event featuring choral performances and stage plays.
00:37As long as the participants enjoy the music, any type of act is permitted.
00:41Only the most outstanding performance will be crowned the winner in this musical showdown, which pits six different classes against
00:46one another.
00:47The group initially lined up according to their current ranks, but they were immediately shooed away by Jazi,
00:51who deemed their formation completely incompatible with the standards of the fourth rank.
00:55Simply put, their mission is to devise a strategy, by any means necessary,
00:58to ensure their big sister takes center stage and steals a spotlight during the music festival,
01:02thereby facilitating a grand operation to help everyone else ascend to the fourth rank.
01:06Consequently, they must conceive a performance piece that not only features their big sister as the central protagonist,
01:11but also provides ample opportunity for the other members to deliver dazzling, standout performances.
01:16Iruma suddenly felt something was off, as if he had forgotten something important.
01:19Just then, Caligo appeared, wearing a grim expression.
01:22He was annoyed that they were making such a racket so early in the morning.
01:25Couldn't they go even a single moment without causing a disturbance?
01:28Unexpectedly, however, Caligo suddenly raised a point.
01:31What were they going to do about the remaining person?
01:33Wasn't there still one other student in the second rank?
01:36When the figure who had appeared just as suddenly vanished again, the students thought they were seeing a ghost.
01:40Iruma was the first to recall his name.
01:42Person, Caligo helped jog their memories, running through every event from the class sorting ceremony to the flying competition,
01:48the execution cannonball challenge, and the weekend exam to unlock the Royal One Classroom.
01:52Person had participated in every single one.
01:54Only after this recap did the students manage to form a vague impression of him.
01:58In any case, since he, too, was a second ranker, they decided they had to make him stand out just
02:02as much as big sister.
02:03Caligo, however, poured cold water on their plans.
02:06That would likely be quite difficult, especially the standing out part, because person's innate ability was cognitive interference.
02:12He was a demon who lived by the creed of asterisk never asterisk drawing attention to himself.
02:16Consequently, the moment classes ended, the students all gathered around Suar.
02:20Yet, the instant they asked him what his interests were, Suar fell silent for two and a half seconds.
02:24Seeing signs that he was about to vanish again, the students, growing increasingly flustered, hastily apologized for speaking out of
02:30turn.
02:30Only then did Suar's figure fully materialize once more.
02:34All in all, they decided to formulate a proposal first, and asterisk then asterisk try to persuade person to take
02:39the lead role in the music festival.
02:40Next, Sabnock stepped forward.
02:42He argued that music alone wasn't enough to provide the necessary oomp.
02:45They absolutely had to go with a Demon King musical, a format that had already received rave reviews during their
02:50division party.
02:51Using songs to dramatize the spirit of the Demon King would be a truly thrilling spectacle.
02:55And naturally, the role of the Demon King should go to asterisk him star.
02:58However, before he could even finish his sentence, he was immediately reminded that the lead role was reserved for person.
03:03Flustered, Sabnock sheepishly retracted his proposal, pretending he had never said a word.
03:08Asmodos looked on in exasperation.
03:10Everyone else was an idiot.
03:11They couldn't even manage to persuade a single person properly.
03:14Unlike them, asterisk he asterisk would accomplish any task, even if it meant risking his very life, provided it was
03:19for the sake of Lord Iruma.
03:20The others, exasperated in turn, urged him to play a tune for Iruma, knowing that once he started gushing about
03:26their master, he wouldn't stop for 60 hours straight.
03:28Ultimately, when it came to music, they decided the best approach was to form a band.
03:31Having both big sister and person serve as dual lead vocalists would surely be incredibly cool.
03:36The eldest sister had no objections.
03:37She felt she would be quite happy if she could sing alongside Poulsen.
03:41Seeing Poulsen hesitate and turn his head, the others immediately swarmed him.
03:44They felt disappointed.
03:45Sensing they had been on the verge of a breakthrough just moments ago, they decided that if they ever spotted
03:50him again, they would have to tie him up securely first.
03:52They couldn't shake the feeling that he had been toying with them all along.
03:55It was high time to let him experience the legendary Tickle Master.
03:58Otherwise, they would have to consider resorting to more forceful measures, perhaps even magic.
04:02Nukon felt that such tactics were inappropriate.
04:05Suddenly, a noise came from the direction of the door.
04:07Everyone assumed Poulsen had made a getaway, so they all rushed out in pursuit, leaving Nukon standing there alone and
04:13bewildered.
04:13He tentatively called out, asking if Poulsen was still there, and to his surprise, he actually was.
04:18However, the very next moment, he vanished once again.
04:20Nukon told him that it didn't matter if he didn't want to listen, he could just regard it as Nukon
04:24talking to himself.
04:25First, he apologized for having completely overlooked Poulsen until now.
04:29Despite being in the same class, they had never exchanged a single word.
04:32He admitted that earlier, everyone had been unsure how to communicate with him, which was why they had so blindly
04:37and desperately begged him to participate in the music festival.
04:39However, if Poulsen wasn't willing, if he didn't want to step onto the stage, that was perfectly fine, too.
04:44After all, turning down a request from others isn't exactly an easy thing to do.
04:48Yet, it is equally important to stay true to one's own desires.
04:51If he didn't want to do it, he could simply say so directly.
04:54There was nothing wrong with being a little selfish.
04:56Nukon noted that he himself had only recently learned this lesson.
04:59Therefore, he simply wanted to know, what did Poulsen asterisk himself asterisk truly want?
05:03Unexpectedly, the very next instant, Poulsen reappeared in a different spot and immediately launched into a machine gun performance, asterisk
05:10ratatatat, asterisk although they were technically participating in the music festival together, it all felt a bit rushed.
05:15No sooner had Poulsen vanished right on cue than the others returned empty-handed.
05:19Who would have thought that just moments before, Liu Jian had been speaking with Poulsen, remarking, in fact, on how
05:23surprisingly verbose the man was?
05:25My own writing, by comparison, feels like childish drivel, a bizarre hallucination the likes of which I've never encountered, even
05:31in the ramblings of Ilma Charo.
05:33In short, Poulsen simply did not wish to draw any attention to himself.
05:36The group was now truly at a loss.
05:38It seemed that trying to force him into the role of the music festival star was an utterly unreasonable demand,
05:43leaving them with no choice but to be.
05:45After reluctantly bidding farewell to the royal teacher, Liu Jian sensed, however faintly, that Poulsen seemed to harbor a certain
05:50interest in the music festival.
05:52Little did he know that, at that very moment, Poulsen was inwardly trembling with anxiety.
05:56Perhaps it had been too long since he had spoken to anyone outside his immediate family, he simply couldn't help
06:01but chatter away to Liu Jian.
06:02This was a rare lapse.
06:03For the Poulsen clan, the family into which he was born, was a lineage of demons that absolutely asterisk must
06:08not asterisk draw attention to itself.
06:10Their innate family ability was a form of cognitive interference, ensuring that the clan's demons remained perpetually inconspicuous, a long
06:16-standing lineage of lone wolves.
06:18Even his dashingly handsome father typically went unseen and unheard in his daily interactions.
06:23On the surface, the family dedicated itself to developing tools that manipulated perception, yet beneath the surface they contributed to
06:29the demon world by executing covert missions.
06:31They were a neutral, auxiliary force that refrained from interfering in any affairs, simply because their abilities were far too
06:37dangerous.
06:38If unleashed without extreme caution, they could potentially shatter the very balance of the demon world.
06:42For instance, his older brother had vanished without a trace, rendered utterly unfindable, because his powers had grown too potent.
06:48Consequently, his father had charged Poulsen with a duty of upholding the family lineage, taking on his brother's share of
06:54the burden as well.
06:54His mother understood that the family's strict requirements weighed heavily upon him.
06:58She knew how agonizing it must be for a natural chatterbox like him to be forbidden from speaking.
07:02Yet, his father acted solely for his own good.
07:04He had told him, whenever you find yourself bursting with words, whenever you feel an overwhelming urge to find a
07:09place to vent your heart out, channel that impulse into your music.
07:12And so, every day at 5 p.m., Poulsen would make his way to the rooftop to play.
07:16Those unaware of his true identity simply referred to the mysterious performer as a musician.
07:21This unique form of self-expression, this musical voice, was met with unanimous acclaim.
07:25Anyone who had ever heard him play agreed 100% that his talent was sublime.
07:29The problem children of the class were now convinced that if they could just recruit this fairy to join them
07:33for the music festival, victory would be absolutely guaranteed.
07:36Meanwhile, on the rooftop, Poulsen felt as though he had a thousand things he wanted to scream out into the
07:40sky today.
07:41In short, he could not let anyone discover his musical talent after all.
07:44He was merely a bat drifting through the world, one who was never meant to interfere in anything.
07:48Yet, unexpectedly, Asterisk Rugen Asterisk was standing right at the entrance at that very moment.
07:53He hadn't realized just how sharp Asterisk Rugen Asterisk was.
07:56The timbre of his playing, specifically the 888 motif, had been truly stunning.
08:00Asterisk Rugen Asterisk had intended to feign ignorance and simply slip away, but Asterisk Rugen Asterisk grabbed him directly from
08:06behind.
08:07Asterisk Rugen Asterisk began apologizing profusely.
08:10Although I don't know exactly what you're trying to do, and you did mention that your family must avoid drawing
08:14attention, I imagine it must have been quite difficult for you when everyone asked you to participate.
08:18So, if you truly don't want to join in, please don't feel compelled to force yourself.
08:22However, seeing you perform just now truly moved me deeply.
08:25I know it sounds incredibly selfish of me to completely disregard the difficulties you face, but I really was profoundly
08:30moved.
08:31Even though saying this is born purely out of my own whims, I can't help but wish that everyone could
08:35hear your music that you would play for them in a more formal setting.
08:38I want to see you being praised by everyone.
08:40In the end, Asterisk Rugen Asterisk could not resist the temptation of that inner impulse.
08:44He subconsciously agreed, reasoning that simply pointing out the source of the sound would likely be acceptable.
Comments