In the woods, Acheron had finally had enough after being chased around by Yunli for what felt like forever.
You're already doomed to be eliminated, so why are you so obsessed with me?!
Unfortunately, she still wasn't Yunli's match in direct combat.
With a light step, she disengaged, turned, and fled.
There was no way she was going to keep fighting this lunatic head-on.
"Don't run!"
Yunli was in no mood to let her go.
Even if she was destined to be eliminated, she was determined to drag Acheron down with her.
She kicked off the ground and gave chase.
But this was a forest.
Acheron was incredibly agile.
After weaving through the trees with several sharp turns, she quickly widened the distance.
Watching Acheron get farther and farther away, Yunli gritted her teeth.
She had speed, but nowhere near Acheron's maneuverability.
A ruthless gleam flashed in her eyes.
Gripping her spear tightly, she gathered all her strength and hurled it.
Whoosh!
The spear tore through the air.
Acheron only felt a sharp pain in her shoulder.
The weapon pierced straight through her and nailed her to the tree in front of her.
"Power and speed in one package. How troublesome."
Even Acheron felt a chill.
Fortunately, she had already worn Yunli down considerably.
Otherwise, if that throw had landed perfectly, she would have been eliminated on the spot.
Now that Yunli was weaponless, Acheron immediately turned around, enduring the pain as she drew her bow.
She intended to finish Yunli here and now.
If the chase continued, things would only get worse.
But just then, an unexpected change occurred.
A clay puppet burst from the earth and grabbed Yunli.
"Hm?"
The sudden interruption startled Acheron.
A warning bell rang in her mind.
There was no need to think.
Someone else had entered the battlefield.
Without hesitation, she abandoned her shot and turned to leave.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Before she had taken more than a few steps, countless magical bombs detonated around her, forcing her to dodge to the side.
Fortunately, her shoulder injury didn't affect her mobility too much.
After avoiding the explosions, she arrived in a clearing.
"Hehe. Thanks for taking care of them for me."
Ningguang's voice drifted through the air.
She emerged at a calm pace.
"You're unharmed?"
"Of course. That was only a puppet."
Ningguang was in high spirits.
The figure that had appeared earlier to "help" was never her true body—just a clay construct.
Now that the overall situation was under control, she finally revealed herself.
"Have you considered what might happen by standing in front of me?"
Acheron raised her bow and aimed directly at Ningguang.
Ningguang smiled faintly.
"And how do you know this body is the real one?"
"…"
Acheron felt an urge to strangle her.
She had planned to be the mantis stalking the cicada.
Instead, she had become the prey of the oriole waiting behind.
"Don't move. The ground beneath you is covered in magical explosives. Take one step, and I'll detonate them."
Seeing Acheron preparing to escape, Ningguang kindly offered a warning.
Acheron fell silent.
"So you've trapped me here. What exactly do you want?"
Since Ningguang hadn't attacked immediately, Acheron guessed she wanted an alliance.
"Nothing much."
Ningguang shook her head.
"I just need you to stay here and attract Yunli."
Acheron: "…"
Underhanded.
Shameless.
Acheron's mind was flooded with descriptions of Ningguang.
This woman was despicably cunning.
And right on cue, Yunli burst through the trees, spear in hand, charging directly toward Acheron.
"Don't come any closer! There are bombs!"
Acheron shouted.
But it was too late.
"Goodbye."
BOOM!
[Attention: Player Acheron has been eliminated.]
[Attention: Player Yunli has been eliminated.]
Two notifications rang out.
In an internet café:
Leaning against the wall, Kafka watched Silver Wolf continue furiously tapping at the keyboard.
"I have to ask—do you actually know what you're doing? Several teams have already been eliminated."
"Relax."
Silver Wolf didn't even look up.
"I've already hacked into the city surveillance network. I'll locate everyone soon."
"Then maybe you should turn off Audition first."
"I'm multitasking. Work and gaming."
In a cellar on the outskirts:
Hearing the announcement, Asta felt as though the sky had collapsed.
Acheron had gone out to scout.
How had she been eliminated?
What was she supposed to do now?
Her heart pounded anxiously.
If even Acheron wasn't a match for the others, then she—an utterly ordinary Master—stood no chance.
"Maybe… I should go to the church."
"Yes. That's the best option."
After much deliberation, Asta decided to purchase information.
At this point, she didn't even know who had been eliminated.
Master? Servant?
Without intelligence, she was blind.
If she could identify an uncontracted Servant, she might still have a chance.
Resolving herself, she opened the cellar door.
And froze.
Two uniformed police officers were standing outside.
"Miss Asta, we suspect you may be connected to the recent armed disturbances in the city. Please come with us."
"Uh…"
Well, that's it.
Her Servant had been eliminated.
Now the police were at her door.
Things could hardly look worse.
"All right."
With no better option, she nodded.
She had no intention of attacking the police.
Who knew if that would land her on a wanted list?
So she obediently followed them into the patrol car and sat in the backseat with a gloomy expression.
"Miss Acheron, you've really dragged me into this mess."
In the livestream:
[Herta: This is infuriating! What is Asta doing? She actually went with them!]
Herta was furious.
Couldn't she at least ask to see their badges?
They were fake.
[Keqing: Well, this is interesting. It seems all of Penacony has been eliminated.]
[Ruan Mei: That's not particularly amusing. Your Beidou is also in the car right now.]
[Ganyu: …]
[Yelan: I knew Captain Beidou couldn't be relied upon.]
Watching Ningguang on-screen, still looking smug, Yelan couldn't help wanting to warn her:
Your Master is literally being kidnapped, and you're standing there celebrating.
As evening descended, the two "officers" drove Asta to an abandoned factory.
"You… who are you?"
If she had initially believed this was a legitimate investigation, Asta now fully understood.
No real police officer would bring a suspect to a deserted factory.
Clap. Clap.
The two fake officers suddenly collapsed to the ground as if all strength had been drained from their bodies.
They fell into a deep sleep.
"Miss Asta, please don't resist. Come with me."
A cool blue figure appeared behind her.
"You… who are you?"
"A Heroic Spirit."
Clorinde smiled playfully and took hold of Asta's hand.
The cognitive concealment effect vanished.
Asta instantly recognized her.
"Gasp—!"
Her heart sank.
"Um… my Servant is already gone, so there's really no need to eliminate me, right? I can just go to the church by myself."
"Hehe. Any variable must be brought under control."
Ignoring Asta's resistance, Clorinde seized her and dragged her deeper into the factory.
"Oh, and one more thing."
Clorinde smiled.
"This was the Little Grass God's idea."
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