"Security cameras!"
Ningguang's eyes widened.
So all those magical barriers had only been a distraction.
The real surveillance method was that tiny, inconspicuous device.
She had fallen completely into a psychological trap.
"You people… could you be any more modern?"
"You should be more concerned about your real body," Navia said with a grin. "Clorinde is already on her way."
"She might not win. Don't get too smug."
Ningguang cast one glance at Beidou.
Her clay double dissolved into mud, and her consciousness returned to her true body.
"Don't move."
A gun barrel pressed against her forehead.
Ningguang froze.
"I mean… do you people have no sense of dignity? This is the Holy Grail War, and you're using guns?"
Navia chuckled.
"This thing works wonderfully. Strong firepower, no magical fluctuations, and perfect for dealing with someone like you."
Ningguang's lips twitched.
She had thought she was already underhanded enough.
Compared to these two, she was almost honorable.
"Who came up with all this?"
She absolutely refused to believe these tactics were their own idea.
"The Little Grass God."
Ningguang's expression stiffened.
So they'd brought a strategist into the game.
As expected of the God of Wisdom.
Nahida had clearly laid out this plan before the game even began, because once the match started, they were no longer allowed to exchange information.
And then she thought about Rex Lapis.
Who had contributed exactly nothing.
Couldn't you have offered me a single hint?
"All right," Clorinde said, leveling her weapon. "If you have no objections, I'll be sending you on your way."
"Wait, I still have—"
"You're stalling."
Clorinde didn't give her the chance to finish.
She pulled the trigger.
Rat-tat-tat-tat!
A burst of bullets tore through Ningguang's body.
But instead of being eliminated, her figure dissolved into nothingness.
"Did she escape? Or…"
Before Clorinde could finish her thought, a beam of magical energy blasted toward her.
Boom!
The attack punched a massive hole through the factory wall.
Ningguang reappeared.
"You don't actually think ordinary firearms can defeat me, do you?"
"Why not?"
Clorinde calmly raised her gun and emptied another magazine.
This time, every bullet was stopped by a magical barrier.
Seeing that her firearms were ineffective, Clorinde pouted and pulled out a much larger weapon.
Ningguang frowned.
"If they don't work, why are you still using them?"
But since Clorinde insisted on this approach, Ningguang saw no reason to hold back.
One magical blast after another forced Clorinde steadily onto the defensive.
"Hehe. Goodbye."
With another barrage driving Clorinde back, Ningguang's body vanished.
She reappeared inside the factory, seized Beidou while Navia was distracted, and retreated several steps.
"All right. My Master is rescued. You two can stay here and regret your failure."
Ningguang's direct combat ability was limited.
Saving Beidou had always been her true objective.
Now that she'd accomplished it, she intended to retreat.
Once she returned home and prepared the battlefield properly, she would hold every advantage.
"Getting overconfident?" Navia said lightly. "Careful you don't trip."
"Heh. You really think—"
"I think she's absolutely right."
The "Beidou" in Ningguang's arms suddenly transformed into Clorinde.
A slender rapier appeared at Ningguang's throat.
"When?!"
Ningguang was stunned.
That made no sense.
Wasn't Clorinde fighting outside?
How had she become Beidou?
At that moment, the Clorinde outside walked in and transformed into Navia.
Navia smiled smugly.
"Now do you understand why I kept using guns?"
Ningguang finally understood.
If this had been any other class of Servant, Navia would never have dared to attempt such a trick.
But against Ningguang?
A battle of magecraft was enough.
Navia didn't need to defeat her outright.
She only needed to stall long enough.
Ningguang slowly turned toward the "Navia" who had been standing beside Beidou all along.
"Then… who are you?"
"Hehe."
The woman laughed and reverted to her true form.
Yae Miko.
"You people… could you be any more shameless?"
Ningguang's mouth twitched.
Everything was over.
[Attention: Player Beidou has been eliminated.]
The system announcement echoed through the factory.
Ningguang's eyes widened.
"Beidou… was eliminated by your Servant?"
"Oh, no, no."
Yae Miko shook her head.
"The one who eliminated Beidou was Kafka."
"You three… formed an alliance?"
Then Ningguang's expression changed.
"No… wait. You're planning to betray Kafka too."
"Exactly."
Yae Miko admitted it without the slightest shame.
"I had Ei approach Silver Wolf and propose an alliance against Clorinde. Naturally, Beidou served as our gift of goodwill."
Ningguang's vision darkened.
She had spent the entire game scheming against others.
And now someone had outplayed her at her own specialty.
Was this karma?
"All right, enough talking," Clorinde said. "Finish her."
With her command, all three attacked simultaneously.
Ningguang was never suited for frontal combat.
Against one Servant and two highly capable magi, she stood no chance.
[Attention: Player Ningguang has been eliminated.]
The announcement rang out.
Silver Wolf glanced at Raiden Ei.
"Didn't expect your Master to be this capable. She actually managed to eliminate someone."
"Hmph. Naturally."
Ei lifted her chin proudly.
See? My best friend is amazing.
"So now," Silver Wolf said, "it's time to prepare for the final team."
She was feeling pretty good.
Without doing much at all, the competition had been reduced to only three teams.
Victory suddenly seemed very possible.
Meanwhile, inside the factory:
Yae Miko finished cleaning up the battlefield before raising her hand and displaying her Command Seals.
"What are you doing?" Navia asked.
"Hehe. Watch closely."
A flash of red light.
Raiden Ei was instantly summoned to Yae Miko's side.
"Ei, what did they spend their points on?"
"Information."
"Excellent. Then we've already won."
Yae Miko's eyes sparkled with delight.
She loved it when everyone else bought intelligence.
That was exactly the sort of script she enjoyed.
She raised her hand again.
"Command Seal: Strengthen Raiden Ei."
Another red flash.
Ei's magical energy surged dramatically.
"All right, Ei. Eliminate them."
"You—!"
Navia's eyes widened.
This fox woman had absolutely no sense of honor.
Hadn't they agreed to deal with Silver Wolf first to ensure the final reward stayed within Teyvat?
What was she doing attacking early?
Yae Miko waved dismissively.
"Hehe. Don't worry. Their Servant isn't our match."
Then she held out her arm.
An astonishing number of Command Seals glowed there.
Navia stared.
"How do you have so many?"
"I bought them, of course. One point per seal."
Yae Miko looked unbearably smug.
"Feel free to keep buying intelligence. I'll spend my points on Command Seals instead."
"With enough of these, I can strengthen Ei as much as I like."
"Then let's see how you plan to stop me."
Navia raised her own arm.
"I still have three seals."
"Oh my."
Yae Miko smiled sweetly.
"If you use them all here, and we lose to Silver Wolf afterward, Teyvat will miss out on the reward because of you."
The implication was crystal clear.
Yae Miko intended to save her remaining seals for the final confrontation with Silver Wolf and Kafka.
If Navia chose to empower Clorinde now, Yae Miko would simply respond in kind.
The result would be mutual exhaustion.
And in that case, Ei might truly lose to Kafka.
Teyvat would lose everything.
Navia clenched her fists.
"You… how can you be this shameless?"
"Hehe. Strategy."
Yae Miko's smile turned positively radiant.
In truth, she wasn't worried.
Ei was powerful enough to defeat Clorinde without any reinforcement at all.
She had used a Command Seal purely to send a message.
Even if you use yours, you still won't win.
The choice, dear, is yours.
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