"Dammit!"
Cyno's expression was quite grim. He had intended to gang up on Liyue, but the result was a disaster: Liyue hadn't lost a single man, they had secured the resources, and four of his own soldiers had been knocked off the Sky Island.
Worse yet, back at headquarters, their sub-island was already under attack by Mondstadt. This was the textbook definition of a double loss.
He gazed toward the Liyue base in the distance. Xiao and his team were busily organizing their resources while dozens of Millelith stood at the front lines, staring them down. If anyone thought they could take advantage of the window before Liyue converted those resources into combat power, they were dreaming.
Apart from Xiao's slightly reckless opening move, Liyue's playstyle was now as steady as a rock. They had guards on the sub-island, miners working at high speed, patrols on the main island, and engineers setting traps. They were far more "turtle-like" than Mondstadt.
Furthermore, Liyue had been part of the MC World for much longer. Things that took Sumeru four or five people to figure out were handled by a single Liyue citizen in seconds. Pursuing them now was impossible; anyone who tried would likely be swallowed whole. This was no time for emotional outbursts.
As for the remaining chests...
Cyno's eyes flickered as he bit his lip. He likely couldn't touch those chests either. With his sub-island under siege by Mondstadt, if he dithered here over loot, Childe and Kujou Sara would certainly not mind switching targets. They could trap him here, preventing his retreat. If that happened, Mondstadt would surely ramp up their aggression, and Sumeru would become the first team to be eliminated.
Don't be fooled by the fact that Mondstadt only sent twenty people: they were a team second only to Liyue. Moreover, the people of Mondstadt had studied Bed Wars even more than Liyue had. When it came to "dirty" tricks and advanced maneuvers, Mondstadt had as many as anyone.
Besides, the bridge between Sumeru's main island and sub-island had been built as a single-lane path for the sake of efficiency. Reinforcements would move far too slowly. Dehya was currently fighting a desperate battle. He had to consider whether Mondstadt would send even more reinforcements.
Judging the situation, Cyno's heart grew heavy. He gave the surrounding soldiers a subtle look, signaling a slow retreat. He had begun to understand the nature of this match: except for your own teammates, everyone else might collaborate with you one second and stab you in the back the next. Even Cyno had to admit that if Childe or Kujou Sara had slipped up during their earlier cooperation against Xiao, he would have been more than happy to thin out those two top-tier combatants.
With his thoughts moving like lightning, Cyno reached a conclusion. He couldn't be greedy! He had to retreat from the center before Childe and Kujou Sara realized what was happening. Otherwise, they would turn around and coordinate with Mondstadt!
"Cyno! Move!" Alhaitham's voice rang out.
In the next instant, Cyno rallied his men and quickly retreated out of the attack range of Snezhnaya and Inazuma. By the time Childe and the others realized they wanted to intercept him, Cyno's team was already on their bridge, and they had severed the link to the center as they went. By the time Snezhnaya and Inazuma could react, the Sumeru team had already returned to their main island. The two leaders could only shake their heads in regret.
"Oh?" Ryen nodded with approval and continued his commentary. "A wise choice. With the sub-island under attack, Cyno immediately abandoned all plans for the center island. That was the most correct decision. If he had delayed any longer, I'm certain Snezhnaya and Inazuma wouldn't have minded taking the opportunity to pin him down, making his retreat impossible. If that happened, Sumeru, already naturally low on manpower, would be even less capable of resisting Mondstadt's onslaught. The best-case scenario would have been their sub-island being wiped clean, leaving them trapped on their main island."
"The match has progressed to the point where two small-scale battles have already broken out. Clearly, everyone is rapidly familiarizing themselves with the essence of Bed Wars. In this game, there is no such thing as friendship! Everyone's goal is to defeat the enemy by any means necessary! This is war! This is what true war looks like!"
Ryen, dressed in a well-tailored brown casual suit, spoke with high energy from the commentary booth. Although he couldn't compete, being a commentator was proving to be quite fun.
Suddenly, a dragon's roar echoed from the horizon. Ryen turned and saw Kaeya and the others landing and walking over in a hurry. He gave a slight nod and returned his focus to the arena. Kaeya and the others quickly checked the progress. Seeing that Diluc's team hadn't even touched the center but had instead successfully begun pushing into the other teams' sub-islands, they let out sighs of relief. The match was reaching a fever pitch.
"Cyno: fast-bridge, reinforce! Protect the resources and the men! If you see an opening, thin out the Mondstadt members!" Alhaitham quickly pointed toward Diluc's team on the sub-island.
With Diluc leading a raid, Alhaitham didn't dare leave the main island. It wasn't that he was afraid he couldn't win: someone had to stay behind to guard the base! It wasn't unheard of for a main force to leave the base, only to have someone bridge over and sneak-attack the bed the next second. The main island required constant supervision. Alhaitham and Tighnari had to stay with thirty men to watch the base at all times.
Cyno didn't say much; he nodded and quickly led his men to begin bridging toward the sub-island. However, Diluc clearly heard their movements. He traded a punch with Dehya, used the momentum to step back, and said firmly: "Team one: increase the pressure and stall their army! Team two: retreat, immediately gather and transfer the Sumeru resources!"
"Dammit! Don't you dare!" Dehya's face was dark as she closed in, her fist aiming straight for Diluc's opening.
Under normal circumstances, Diluc would have been more than happy to duel a top-tier powerhouse like Dehya for hours. But now, he had no interest in getting bogged down. He decisively changed his fighting style, fighting and retreating simultaneously. He kept a constant eye on Cyno's movements from the main island.
Cyno's team was fast; in the blink of an eye, they had bridged halfway. Seeing that they were about to reach the sub-island, Diluc no longer hesitated.
"Those at low health: cover the retreat, light it up! Mutually assured destruction! Transfer the resources and retreat to Mondstadt! Sever the path! Quick, quick, quick!"
Dehya was shocked. Looking closely, she saw four or five Mondstadt members pull out flint and steel, setting fire to the foliage on the Sumeru sub-island.
"Kill their villagers!"
Diluc tanked a punch from Dehya and immediately led the relatively healthy members away from the Sumeru sub-island. Only four low-health Knights remained, landing several heavy blows on the villagers. Just as they were about to kill the Sumeru merchants, the Sumeru soldiers finally surrounded them. Under the onslaught, the remaining Knights immediately triggered their Totems of Undying and were eliminated.
The battle for the sub-island was over. The Knights of Favonius cheered, high-fiving each other in celebration. Then, they looked a bit awkwardly at the furious Dehya and her team.
"Our apologies, Lady Dehya..."
Dehya took a deep breath, suppressing her frustration, and shook her head. "It's fine. A match is a match; everyone plays their best. Go put out the fires!"
The Knights shrugged and jumped into the void. Those who were eliminated were either counted as losses if they hit the ocean or were picked up by the support crew.
Cyno finally arrived, albeit too late. Looking at the miserable state of the sub-island, his face darkened. "That was played far too underhandedly..."
Dehya nodded. On the surface, Sumeru had lost three men to trade for seven Mondstadt soldiers, but if you thought about it carefully, their loss was much greater. The state of the sub-island was catastrophic!
Ryen watched the screen and nodded with a smile. "The clash between Sumeru and Mondstadt for the sub-island has ended with Sumeru barely holding onto a devastated island. Now, Ningguang, which side do you think won this engagement?"
Ningguang laughed in spite of herself. Ryen wasn't satisfied just being a commentator; he had to drag her in as well. But she was happy to indulge him; being a commentator was indeed quite interesting.
"From the results, Sumeru kept their sub-island and thwarted Mondstadt's plot. Trading three for seven seems like a victory," Ningguang analyzed. "But looking at the bigger picture, Sumeru has clearly fallen into a disadvantage. This was a victory for Mondstadt."
The smile on Ryen's face widened as he nodded. "Exactly. Mondstadt's play was 'dirty.' Even though they seemed to lose more people, it's trivial compared to what they achieved. With seven Knights attacking a sub-island, they not only made off with a huge haul of resources, they also set a fire that burned through a large amount of timber. But the most critical achievement is that Mondstadt knew exactly what the most important resource on the sub-island was."
"Exactly: the Priest villagers who provide enchanted books. They are the core of a team's power progression. Although Diluc didn't kill the Sumeru villagers, the repeated attacks have clearly left them spooked. For a long while, they likely won't be able to provide any enchanted books to Sumeru."
"In this clash, Mondstadt dealt a heavy blow to Sumeru. For a long time to come, Sumeru is going to have a hard time. With their resources damaged, if they want to strengthen themselves, they'll be forced to take risks and gamble on other sub-islands or the center."
Ningguang shook her head. "Sumeru is currently at a disadvantage; it will be hard for them to interfere with the other sub-islands or the center. A reckless attempt will only bring more losses. The other four nations won't pass up an opportunity to eliminate a rival early."
Ryen chuckled. "So, Sumeru is in a tough spot. Whether they find another way to turn the tide or continue to sink depends entirely on their strategists. Now, let's turn our attention back to the center island. While the battle for the sub-island was happening, the center island began its second engagement. Bed Wars has entered its fever pitch!"
"Childe of Snezhnaya has launched an attack before Inazuma's Kujou Sara could even react! Will Inazuma be the next to suffer a heavy blow? Who will claim the chests on the center island? Note that although Liyue's earlier maneuver took a lot of loot, there are still no less than six chests worth of resources left on the center island. Whoever gets them will hold a supreme advantage!"
Inside the stadium, the Sumeru spectators didn't have long to feel despondent before the battle at the center drew their eyes back. The match had progressed to a point where small-scale clashes were happening almost constantly. Sumeru's best chance now was for either Snezhnaya or Inazuma's forces at the center to be wiped out. If that happened, Alhaitham could take a gamble and launch a heavy assault on a weakened team.
But Alhaitham and the others weren't watching the center. Currently, they were staring at their scorched sub-island, their hearts full of frustration and gloom.