After meeting with Kujou Shinobu, Victor Wang finally pieced together how the whole situation had unfolded.
Despite having dealt with Bubblegum for quite some time already, it wasn't until the Sakoku Decree was lifted that Arataki Itto suddenly remembered to send someone to Liyue to inquire about the "First Teyvat Bubble-Blowing Tournament"—the very one he'd been obsessed with but that had never held an Inazuma division. To his great success, he easily learned the name of the organizer: The "Tianquan Star" Ningguang.
At first, he had foolishly planned to write her a letter of protest. Fortunately, Kujou Shinobu caught wind of it, and that was how he discovered the truth: "Pearl Bubble" was actually one of Ningguang's businesses—and the employees he had been pestering were her subordinates.
Naturally, this gave him a direct appeal channel. From that day on, he wouldn't stop pestering those poor employees, insisting they help him deliver his protests to Ningguang. He even went to another Pearl Bubble Tea shop in town to beg the manager there for help.
In the end, Ningguang was both moved by Arataki Itto's relentless spirit and annoyed by his persistence—and, admittedly, she did feel a touch guilty for having overlooked Bubblegum's promotion in Inazuma. Though her shops there sold the product, sales had remained lukewarm. So, she actually agreed to sponsor a supplementary tournament in Inazuma.
But there was a condition: since the request had come from a store under Victor Wang's protection, she would not take responsibility for organizing any part of the event—she would merely acknowledge its legitimacy and provide the funding.
From there, Arataki Itto unleashed the proud Arataki School tradition of impulsive enthusiasm—by dawn the next day, every street in Inazuma was plastered with tournament posters.
Only after finishing the job did he realize the horrifying reality:
The prize money was too high, the entry barrier too low, and far too many people wanted to sign up. The venue wasn't even secured yet. The event hadn't been filed with the Tenryou Commission, there were no professional judges, the official representative was missing, and the "prestige participant"—also missing.
Helpless, Kujou Shinobu turned to Kujou Sara for assistance. During that time, something unexpected happened: while buying milk tea, Kamisato Ayato learned about the competition—and promptly folded it into the upcoming Summer Festival.
His original words were:
"It doesn't cost us anything, it's lively, and it's entertaining. What a fine arrangement. The venue and event approval will be handled by the Yashiro Commission. But make sure the finals take place during the Summer Festival."
With that, the venue and permit problems were solved.
The event procedure—naturally—was drafted by Kujou Shinobu. Considering the limited time and manpower, she devised an efficient plan:
Start with an open preliminary round to trim the crowd to 500 contestants. Then hold five consecutive days of eliminations, cutting the number down to 50. To boost the festival's popularity, the semifinals with those 50 would be held during the daytime of the festival. Nine finalists would then be selected, joined by one "prestige representative." The final match would be held that night, at the height of the festival.
Today—just one day after Victor Wang's return from Watatsumi Island—was the final elimination round.
The three current judges were: Kamisato Ayato, Arataki Itto, and Yoimiya.
Whether that lineup was "a little awkward" or "exactly what one should expect" depended on perspective.
The host, chosen by Shinobu for his eloquence, was none other than Shikanoin Heizou.
"Good day, dear audience and contestants!"
"Today, we will determine the last ten players who will advance to the Semifinals of the First Teyvat Bubble-Blowing Tournament – Inazuma Division! The rules, as you all know from the previous rounds, are simple: the larger the bubble and the shorter the time, the better the score."
"Now, you must be expecting me to say, 'Let's start the first match right away!' But—"
Heizou raised a finger to his lips and wagged it playfully.
"But no. Before we begin, I have good news! Perhaps some of you have already noticed—our long-lost host representative has finally returned!"
"Please welcome—the inventor of Bubblegum himself, the famous Fox Mask, Mr. Victor Wang!"
Victor rubbed his nose. Really? Everyone can already see me standing here—why make such a scene? This is awkward…
Heizou continued, his grin widening. "To celebrate Mr. Wang's return, I have a question that everyone's been dying to know the answer to! Ever since your identity as the inventor of Bubblegum was revealed, there's been speculation about your fox mask."
"Some say you wear it to maintain an air of mystery—fair enough. But others ask, if that's the case, why not wear a full mask? And then someone proposed the theory that you only cover the top half so you can still blow bubbles."
Heizou twirled once onstage, feeding off the crowd's laughter before turning back toward Victor.
"Now, don't dismiss it—it's the hottest theory right now! So, tell us, is there any truth to it?"
Behind his smiling face, even Heizou seemed genuinely curious.
Caught off guard, Victor could only answer honestly, "There's… some truth to it."
"What? There really is some truth to it?! Well then, how much is 'some'? Haha, never mind—I won't pry. After all, people will always believe whatever version they like best. Let's leave them a bit of imagination, shall we?"
Turning back toward the contestants, Heizou raised his voice, "Now then—let's begin today's first round!"
A hundred contestants were divided into ten groups, ten per group—except the first group only had nine.
Heizou glanced around exaggeratedly, pretending to search. When he found no tenth player, he spread his hands in mock helplessness.
"Look behind you!"
"Behind!"
The audience and contestants called out. Heizou spun dramatically. "And what do we see?"
"A referee's warming up!"
"A referee's entering the field!"
"Just like before when Judge Yoimiya joined as a contestant! And the other two judges—guess what? They're both entering today too!"
"But that brings a problem," Heizou continued, milking the crowd's laughter. "Yoimiya's already made it to the semifinals. If the other two judges also advance, we'll be out of referees!"
He let the audience's reaction peak before announcing the twist:
"Fortunately, we anticipated this! Replacement judges have already been selected. Taking Kamisato Ayato's place—Yae Miko! And taking Arataki Itto's place—Mr. Victor Wang! Both will appear in the semifinals and finals!"
Regardless of what the audience thought, once Victor sat down at the judges' table, he immediately found himself staring straight into Yae Miko's amused eyes.
"I can't say I'm surprised to see you here," he said dryly. "You were the one who told Arataki Itto to find me at the docks, weren't you?"
"Oh my, whatever do you mean?" she replied with a teasing lilt. "When word of the Bubble-Blowing Tournament reached Watatsumi Island, I simply heard they were 'busy with important matters and couldn't attend.' Naturally, I grew curious and went to take a look. Surely that's not the same as keeping an eye on you, hmm?"
"…"
"By the way," she added slyly, "that girl's dancing was simply exquisite."
"You've been a shrine priestess for years, Miko. You must know how to dance too, right?"
Her lips curled. "Oh? You want to see? Hehe… then let Hanachirusato dance for you instead."