Chapter 214: Bai Luo's Game Plan
"..."
It wasn't just Kokomi who fell silent—everyone nearby had strange expressions on their faces.
A spy for the Fatui?
Well, to be fair, most of the Swordfish Unit members already knew that.
Back when Igor was stirring up trouble on Watatsumi Island, it was this very group that had been secretly tailing and monitoring him.
But none of them had expected this.
The Fatui... playing their cards face-up from the start?
That move alone had completely caught Sangonomiya Kokomi off guard.
Sensing the brief flicker of surprise across Kokomi's usually composed face, Sveta allowed the corners of her mouth to curl—just slightly.
It's just as the Ausbilder predicted, those who play by the book often lose their footing when the rules are suddenly thrown out.
"Publicly admitting to planting spies on Watatsumi Island... Are you declaring war against us?"
At this point, even if Kokomi wanted to retreat and reconsider her next move, the Fatui clearly had no intention of giving her the chance.
So she had no choice but to respond—firmly, and under pressure.
"You misunderstand, Divine Priestess," Sveta said with mock humility. "I have no such authority to make that kind of decision."
Her words were humble, but her posture and gaze were anything but. She remained proud—unflinchingly so.
According to the Ausbilder's orders, if Sangonomiya Kokomi had already passed the information along, then the message would have reached that general by now.
And so, she said what she'd been instructed to say.
Kokomi narrowed her eyes.
"In that case, bring someone who does have authority. You may leave."
Time. That was what she needed most now. Even if the Fatui did send one of their higher-ups later, by then she would be prepared—far better prepared than she was now, caught in this sudden turn of events.
With no room for pleasantries, she began issuing an unmistakable expulsion order.
Such was the pressure the Fatui could exert.
Even when outnumbered a hundred to one, they could still make an entire nation hesitate before taking action.
Sveta said nothing. But she slowly bowed her proud head.
Behind her, the rest of the Fatui operatives followed suit, dropping to one knee and lowering their heads in silence.
Kokomi frowned.
What… does this mean?
Were they surrendering? Defecting?
Or...
Shff—
A rip opened in the air above Sveta's head. Inside, a single crimson eye rotated, its vertical pupil finally locking onto her.
The mixture of jet black and blood red was unsettling—so much so that the very space around it felt like it trembled.
A pale blue gleam shimmered in the moonlight, and in the next instant, the man in black appeared silently behind Sveta.
He had intended, as usual, to lightly pat the person he was teleporting to.
Only, he found... all he could reach was her smooth, exposed back.
Hmm... probably not a good idea to touch that. He might get reported for sexual harassment or something.
It would be better for him to just go for the safe zone.
And so—with gentlemanly flair—he gave the back of her coat a quick, friendly tap, brushing away imaginary dust from his trench coat before stepping forward.
Boots crunching softly on the island's sandy shore, Bai Luo came to stand before Kokomi.
If his judgment was right, now was the time to say it.
"Miss Sangonomiya. You said you wanted someone with authority, didn't you?"
The mask on his face—a cold white carved with a blood-colored smirk—gleamed under the moonlight.
Though he was clearly shorter than Sveta, the danger he radiated was exponentially greater.
A suffocating pressure filled the air. So thick you could almost taste it.
It was the kind of menace that made your lungs freeze, that bent the wind around it.
What had Bai Luo been doing all this time on Watatsumi Island? Slacking off?
Of course not.
While he seemed to be spending his days idly by the water, what he had actually been doing was something else entirely.
He was studying the koi. (Kokomi)
Learning their habits, their instincts. Getting a sense for how they'd react to every possible situation. What they'd say. What they'd choose.
And he had it down—almost perfectly.
Just like now.
When the Fatui started knocking on Watatsumi's door under the guise of an anonymous donation, what was Kokomi's first move?
She reached out to Gorou, who was stationed on Yashiori Island.
But did she order Gorou to return?
Did she summon Bai Luo?
No. She chose neither.
There was only one sentence on the paper:
"Don't let Battousai come back."
When Sangonomiya Kokomi sent messages to Gorou, the punctuation she used revealed the severity of the situation.
A single period meant a casual greeting.
A single exclamation mark meant the matter was dangerous.
Three exclamation marks? That meant it was urgent.
But a message with no punctuation at all?
That meant things were already so critical that she didn't even have the time—or composure—to include any.
So when Bai Luo noticed Gorou discreetly receiving Kokomi's tiny slip of paper while they were still discussing the matter of Miss Hina, he immediately understood just how far the situation on Watatsumi Island had progressed.
And from that moment, his role became clear:
Time the exact moment Kokomi would arrive at Sveta's location.
Impossible to calculate?
Not to him.
Why had he sparred with Teppei on the southern training ground days ago? Why had he shown up early?
Because even then—he was already laying the groundwork.
In fact, ever since Igor's exposure had come to light, this entire scenario had already been set in motion.
Even Scaramouche arriving on the scene? That, too, had been within his predictions.
After all, someone had to stir up the public, right?
Though, admittedly, the chance meeting with Sveta and Sayu had not been part of the plan.
Originally, the job had been assigned to Ah Qi, one of the debt collectors.
Ah Qi was perfect for it—after all, handling delicate, high-pressure situations was his actual job.
But after running into Sveta, Bai Luo had a change of heart.
I mean, who could say no to a tall, curvy, obedient subordinate like that?
"Divine Priestess," Sveta suddenly declared, stepping aside. "Allow me to introduce one of Her Majesty the Tsaritsa's strongest—the Guardian of the Continent, and Twelfth Seat of the Fatui Harbingers: The Ausbilder."
The string of titles fell like a hammer.
The atmosphere froze.
Even some of Watatsumi's elite forces instinctively swallowed hard.
They weren't unfamiliar with the name Ausbilder. Over the past few days, that name had become... uncomfortably common.
But not in a good way.
Thanks to Bai Luo's deliberate loose talk, word had already spread across the island:
The Ausbilder once clashed with Battousai.
And with Beidou and the visitors from Liyue present to confirm the tale, the rumor had turned into a fearful legend.
Sure, most merchants had no idea what really happened.
But Beidou and Kazuha? They knew the truth.
So here on Watatsumi Island, "The Ausbilder" wasn't just another Harbinger.
He was the most dangerous one.
After all, people hadn't forgotten why Battousai—supposedly a hero—had returned from Liyue in the first place.
He hadn't come back in triumph.
He had returned in disgrace, after injuring a Fatui Harbinger and being forced to flee Liyue.
According to Kokomi's intel, she had deduced the truth long ago: Battousai had pretended to ally himself with the Ausbilder—only to ambush him at the right moment.
And yet... he had failed to kill him.
That's why he had returned to Inazuma, bruised and hiding.
This was also one of the key reasons Kokomi had warned Gorou to keep Battousai away.
Not just because she feared the Ausbilder would retaliate—but because she feared if the two met again, the Ausbilder's fury might burn Watatsumi to the ground.
. . . . .
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