On the battlefield, there were only two choices.
One was surrender—pay a certain amount of gold, keep part of your army, and withdraw from battle.
But this option required the enemy's approval.
The other was retreat.
Once chosen, all troops would be lost.
At this moment, Sunday had only one option left.
He had to surrender.
He needed to carry Paimon's information back to the others.
As for retreat—
That was no longer possible.
He himself had equipped the War Shackles, sealing off any chance of escape.
Which made him feel like he had personally dug a deep pit…
and then jumped into it headfirst.
"Hmm~"
Hearing that Sunday wanted to surrender, Paimon grinned broadly.
"I refuse."
No hesitation.
No mercy.
Did he really think she was stupid?
That tiny bit of gold—what could it even do?
Sunday's mouth twitched.
He could already imagine how badly he'd be laughed at after the game ended.
Getting eliminated by Paimon…
That alone was embarrassing enough.
And to make it worse—
He was the one who initiated the fight.
"Then I'll fight you to the end!"
"All units—charge!"
If survival was impossible, then at least he'd go down with dignity.
The White Knights charged, plunging straight into the Centaur ranks.
They managed to kill five Centaurs—
…and then couldn't push forward another inch.
Sunday covered his face.
A Level 6 unit's full charge, and it only took out five Level 1 troops.
There was simply no justice in this world.
Fortunately, Level 6 units were still tough.
Under heavy encirclement, the Knights managed to cut down over twenty more Centaurs before finally falling.
The Griffins wiped out all the Grand Elves—
leaving only a single survivor.
As for the rest of the battlefield…
Whatever damage he dealt was profit at this point.
The only thing that gave Sunday a shred of comfort was this:
Paimon's army consisted entirely of Level 1 troops, all with pitiful HP.
If she had the same kind of army he had—
He didn't even want to imagine how horrific that slaughter would have been.
Elsewhere.
Topaz had been cornered into a dead end.
Behind her stood a gate shimmering with unstable magic—
its destination completely unknown.
"Heh~ Go on, keep running," Hu Tao said with a grin.
"Let's see where you run now."
Hu Tao had noticed the gate too.
But it radiated danger and ominous energy.
She was certain Topaz wouldn't dare enter it.
"You're getting smug," Topaz sneered.
"Do you know your precious Paimon is being hunted down right now?"
"…What did you say?"
Hu Tao's smile froze.
A bad feeling surged up her spine.
"I already sent my teammates to deal with her. Just wait."
"You—you people are despicable!"
Hu Tao was genuinely shocked.
She'd planned to finish Topaz and then go back for Paimon—
But this was a classic lure-the-tiger-away-from-the-mountain trap.
"Tactics," Topaz replied smugly.
She had already handed all her troops over to Aventurine.
Even if she got eliminated now, she'd done her part.
And based on her calculations—
Paimon was absolutely worth targeting.
"Damn it…"
Hu Tao's expression darkened.
Paimon was carrying countless artifacts and spell scrolls.
If those fell into enemy hands—
It would be a disaster.
She herself wasn't afraid.
But her teammates?
They'd be in real trouble.
"I have to go back. Now."
No more delays.
Hu Tao prepared to eliminate Topaz and rush back to Paimon.
Suddenly—
[Attention: Player Sunday has been eliminated by Paimon.]
Topaz: "Huh???"
Hu Tao: "Eh??"
The system announcement stunned both of them.
After a long pause, Hu Tao slowly turned to Topaz.
"…You people can't even beat Paimon?"
"I—I—"
Topaz couldn't come up with a single rebuttal.
Internally, she cursed Sunday until his ancestors cried.
Didn't he swear he'd take Paimon down?
This was how he did it?
If Paimon wasn't eliminated—
Then hadn't she died for nothing?
"Hehe~ Time to die."
Completely relaxed now, Hu Tao moved in.
Even she hadn't expected Paimon to pull off another miracle.
This teammate—
Honestly, not bad at all.
"Hmph. Dream on."
Not willing to die in vain, Topaz made her decision.
She turned and dove straight into the teleport gate behind her.
Where it led didn't matter.
If she had to be eliminated—
She refused to die by Hu Tao's hand.
Flash.
Light flared.
Topaz vanished.
"Trying to run?!"
Hu Tao immediately chased after her—
Then stopped right before entering the gate.
"No, no… Paimon comes first."
She'd already lost Paimon once.
She wasn't making that mistake again.
After a brief calculation, Hu Tao turned her horse around and headed back the way she came.
Honkai: Star Rail – Team Channel
[Robin]: Brother???? Eliminated by Paimon???
[Gepard]: What… Bear One actually lost?
[Sparkle]: LMAO… 666… Wing-boy never disappoints.
[Seele]: I—I can't breathe, I'm laughing too hard.
[Sampo]: Here's a joke: "I've got War Shackles, Paimon can't escape."
[Asta]: Heehee… Madam Herta, please stop…
Even though this was terrible news—
It was way too funny.
[Jing Yuan]: Everyone, now isn't the time to laugh.
We suspect the artifacts on Paimon can massively amplify combat strength.
[Jade]: Agreed. We can't let Paimon go. If one person can't do it, we move together.
[Jing Yuan]: Unfortunately, Hu Tao has likely already returned. Further pursuit would be meaningless.
[Luka]: So we just let Paimon escape?
[Jing Yuan]: Bronya—Miss Bronya.
We'll give you Paimon's estimated route. Set up an ambush near her return point.
Don't expose your position. Ignore other players.
This was Jing Yuan's best option.
After this incident, Paimon would almost certainly return home.
She wouldn't keep wandering around with treasures on her.
Even a 50% chance was worth taking.
[Bronya]: Understood.
At this point, both sides were playing the same game.
You appear—I retreat.
You leave—I return.
Then—
A new message appeared.
[Topaz]: Everyone… I can use points now.
Eyes lit up across the channel.
[Jing Yuan]: Miss Topaz, you found Valerius?
[Topaz]: Yes. I can trade points for artifacts—but they're very expensive.
After entering the gate, Topaz realized she'd arrived at Valerius's domain.
Which meant—point trading was available.
[Jing Yuan]: Anything that can change the situation?
[Topaz]: Yes.
The combination artifact Angel Alliance—8 points.
Also… Holy Dragons.
Ten of them cost just 1 point.
[Jade]: Holy Dragons? What are they like?
[Topaz]: Like this. HolyDragon.jpg
The moment the stats were posted—
Everyone went silent.
Holy Dragon
Attack: 50
Defense: 50
Damage: 70–80
HP: 1000
Speed: 19
Special Traits:
Immune to Level 1–3 magic When Holy Dragons are present, enemies have a 10% chance to be Fear-struck and unable to act
The channel went dead quiet.
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