Early the next morning.
Valerius sprang into action immediately.
[Valerius: Miss Acheron, are you around?]
[Yae Miko: So early in the morning—why are you looking for her? Don't tell me you have ulterior motives?]
[Valerius: What ulterior motives could I possibly have? I'm talking business with Miss Acheron. Big business.]
[Acheron: What is it?]
[Valerius: Want to make a run on the Annihilation Gang? Mutual benefit.]
[Acheron: Annihilation Gang… who are they?]
[Valerius: The Annihilation Gang, you know—the one led by… uh… the Duke of Infernal Flame… something-something—]
[Acheron: Sounds vaguely familiar.]
[Silver Wolf: The Duke of Infernal Flame? Pretty sure he got killed a few days ago.]
[Valerius: …What???? That fast?!]
Valerius was stunned.
I haven't even started yet and the boss is already dead?!
[Silver Wolf: Why were you even looking for the Duke of Infernal Flame anyway?]
[Valerius: Uh… nothing. Just a small matter.]
Since the duke was already dead, Valerius had no intention of admitting he'd planned to rob him.
[Jade: Mr. Valerius, may I ask for your contact number?]
[Valerius: 189******. Why?]
Why does she want my number?
[Ding—Transfer received: 10,000,000 credits.]
[Valerius: As expected of Lady Jade… many thanks. I'll repay you when I get the chance.]
[Jade: No need. Consider it a token of thanks for bringing the game arena to life.]
A mere ten million credits meant nothing to Jade.
But Valerius's value? That was crystal clear.
As long as she maintained a good relationship with him, this "investment" was guaranteed profit.
[Silver Wolf: Now I get why you were looking for the Duke.]
[Valerius: @Bronya When are we going shopping again? Don't worry—I'm paying this time!!!]
[Bronya: Sorry, I'm quite busy today. I'll ask you when I have time.]
[Seele: Huh? Since when did you two get this close?]
[Serval: I smell romance in the air… but wait—Belobog uses Winter City Coins. Are you sure you can pay, @Valerius?]
[Valerius: Eh???? Then let's go to the Xianzhou next time.]
[Jing Yuan: Mr. Valerius, the Xianzhou generally uses patrol scrip.]
[Valerius: …This world really is missing a First Emperor, huh.]
Annoyed.
What is wrong with this universe?
Can't you people unify the currency already?
Interastral Peace Corporation—do something!
With no one inviting him anywhere, Valerius spent the next few days lying flat.
Fortunately, Bronya had some tact—she sent someone over with a bit of Winter City currency. Otherwise, he'd probably be sleeping on the streets.
"System," Valerius said while lying on the bed.
"Let's get started."
[Acknowledged.]
A flash of light followed.
When Valerius regained his vision, he found himself standing in a magnificent, gold-plated hall.
The space was vast, with rows of lifelike statues lining both sides.
"…Wait. Why do these statues look so familiar?"
The more he looked, the more familiar they felt.
"Holy hell—are we really doing this?"
Memory clicked into place.
He turned his head.
On one side stood a great angel, sword in hand.
Opposite it—a towering demon gripping a scythe.
Elsewhere, a titan wielding lightning faced off against an enormous black dragon.
"…This is Heroes of Might and Magic!"
Opening the system interface—
Three massive words appeared:
[Total War]
Valerius understood instantly.
This time, it was a true, head-on confrontation.
He glanced over the player counts.
Completely unbalanced.
The Honkai side had nearly twenty fewer people than the Teyvat side.
"System, the numbers aren't even. How do we balance this?"
[Host, the side with fewer participants will receive an additional three points.]
"I see."
After reviewing the rules, Valerius nodded.
This was a Total War scenario.
Both sides were capped at 10 points.
With Honkai getting an extra 3 points due to fewer players, the balance was restored.
After all, Valerius would be selling some truly terrifying items this round.
Those extra 3 points were more than enough to offset Teyvat's numerical advantage.
"Begin teleportation."
[Acknowledged.]
[Attention: The game arena has opened. Beginning transfer.]
[Herta: Huh? Direct transfer? No random selection this time?]
[Ruan Mei: It seems this game will be different.]
[Sparkle: Exciting~ Very exciting~]
[Venti: Looks like everyone will be participating this time.]
[Aha: So lively—and you're excluding me?]
[Ningguang: Heh.]
[Furina: You're just a spectator~]
By now, everyone knew who Aha was.
But over the past few days, the players had realized something—
Aha didn't seem to get angry at all.
In fact, the more you teased Him, the more excited He became.
So gradually, people stopped being afraid.
After all, if the sky fell—
Valerius would be the one holding it up.
[Aha: Waaa~ Poor Aha. So embarrassing.]
Both worlds agreed on one thing:
Keeping Aha out was for the best.
Teyvat feared His sheer power—He was an Aeon, after all.
And the Honkai side feared Him even more.
Who knew if He'd stab someone in the back at a critical moment just for laughs?
Based on historical records…
That was absolutely something He would do.
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