None of them had ever seen an army this enormous before.
For a moment, everyone was completely stunned.
Earlier, seeing Hu Tao so confident, they had guessed her forces were probably sizeable—but no matter how wild their imagination ran, this was far beyond anything they'd expected.
Row after row of pale-white skeletons stood packed together. Just looking at them made their scalps tingle.
"G–gulp."
Star swallowed hard and stiffly turned her head, looking at her companions, whose faces had gone deathly pale.
"So… what do we do now?"
"…Sigh."
Welt let out a long breath. "Send a message immediately. Tell everyone else—Hu Tao's troop count is abnormal."
At this point, their elimination was basically inevitable.
The only thing they could do was pass this crucial information to their teammates.
"Uh… I tried."
"Can't send messages. We're in combat."
"…I see."
Welt's expression darkened.
If the others didn't realize what kind of monster Hu Tao was in time, then this match… they were going to lose.
"I—I have an idea!"
March 7th suddenly raised her hand.
"Oh?"
"What is it?"
"Go ahead, March—what's your plan?"
They were already out of options. Since March claimed she had an idea, they might as well hear it.
"That is—cast a spell, then run away. How about that? Pretty smart, right?"
Himeko covered her face.
Running away mid-battle—how did you manage to describe that like a glorious victory?
Still… objectively speaking, it was a valid plan.
"Forget it," Dan Heng said quietly.
"The escape option is grayed out."
When Hu Tao revealed her skeleton army, Dan Heng had already tried to flee.
Not because he lacked resolve—but because someone had to survive and spread the intel.
But no matter how he tried, the escape option couldn't be selected.
"…It's grayed out?"
"That's weird. I definitely escaped once before. It worked that time."
March 7th was completely confused. She clearly remembered running away successfully in a previous fight.
The others all stiffened.
Wow.
March 7th, you're impressive.
No wonder her troop count was lower than everyone else's—
So you'd deserted before?!
"Everyone, stop thinking about escaping."
Hu Tao, who had been leisurely watching the whole discussion, finally spoke up. She even shook a pair of shackles in her hand.
"War Shackles. Neither side can run away~"
That sealed it.
Every possible option was gone.
There was only one path left.
"I'm so mad!"
Star clenched her teeth. The more she thought about it, the angrier she got.
Why did the enemy side get this kind of final boss?!
But as the legendary Galactic Baseballer, surrender was never an option.
Even if she died—she'd die charging forward.
Star: "Alright, everyone—let's fight her!"
March 7th: "Yeah yeah! Let's fight her!"
Star: "If this is farewell, then so be it. We'll be teammates again in the next life!"
March 7th: "Same here!"
Star: "Today, we may not have been born on the same day—"
March 7th: "—but we'll die on the same day! Same here!"
Welt pressed a hand to his forehead.
At a time like this, you two are still fooling around?
Still… Star wasn't wrong.
At this point, charging head-on was their only option.
After all, dying in a charge was at least… dignified.
Welt straightened, a bit of dramatic flair creeping in.
"Let's go. Kill one and it's not a loss. Kill two and it's profit."
Seeing them fired up, Hu Tao casually raised her hand and cast a spell.
"Haste."
The skeletons surged forward even faster than before.
"Charge—no tactics needed."
With that single command, the endless tide of skeletons rushed forward like a white tsunami.
Across the battlefield, the only sound was the clack-clack of bones grinding together.
"Oh, right," Hu Tao added cheerfully.
"I can convert skeletons, you know. Your soldiers will become my skeletons in the end. So no matter how many you kill—you're losing."
As the Astral Express crew was swallowed by the sea of bones, they heard Hu Tao's playful, teasing voice.
Himeko: "..."
Dan Heng: "..."
Welt: "..."
March 7th: "..."
Star: "..."
This really…
There was nowhere to argue.
[Notice: Welt has been eliminated by Hu Tao.]
[Notice: Dan Heng has been eliminated by Hu Tao.]
[Notice: …]
A series of notifications rang out.
The Honkai: Star Rail players collectively froze.
What on earth was the Astral Express crew doing?
They'd been completely wiped out by Hu Tao alone?!
Back in the main hall—
Before anyone could even ask Valerius what had just happened, Arataki Itto's laughter echoed loudly.
"Hahahaha! A whole group ganging up on one person and still getting wiped—do you even know how to play?!"
Star shot him a glare.
"Like you weren't eliminated by Bronya alone."
Itto: "..."
…Right.
What was he even laughing about?
Wasn't he just mocking himself?
"Sigh…"
Kuki Shinobu looked away in embarrassment.
Why was her boss always like this?
Ignoring the bickering, Welt walked over to Valerius.
"I need to ask—Hu Tao's skill. Can she just summon infinitely? There's no limit?"
"There is a limit," Valerius replied.
"What is it?"
Welt's eyes lit up instantly.
As long as there was some limitation, there had to be a way to counter it.
"As long as your side has no soldiers left," Valerius said calmly,
"she won't be able to use Soul Harvest anymore."
One sentence.
Welt's vision went black.
What kind of limitation was that?!
If they had no soldiers left…
What was even left to play?
"That's way too broken!"
March 7th complained bitterly.
Her own skills were so ordinary—why did Hu Tao's feel like something from another dimension?
"You draw what you draw," Valerius shrugged.
"That's just how it works."
What could he do?
They'd chosen their own skill sets.
And besides…
Did they really think Bronya's build wasn't outrageous too?
Sure, Bronya would struggle against Hu Tao in the late game—but in the early game, she could literally hunt Hu Tao down.
And anyway—
Didn't Valerius still have artifacts?
Eight points.
Angel Alliance, straight into the bag.
With the massive stat boosts from Angel Alliance—combined with Bronya's army—
Even Hu Tao might not be unbeatable in the endgame.
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