With Belobog cheering them on, Mondstadt's morale soared.
Every member was fired up, looking ready to grind Penacony into dust.
"Go, Mondstadt!"
At that moment, a cheer rang out from Liyue's section, followed by support from the rest of the Liyue players.
"Huh? Why is Liyue cheering too?"
Bronya immediately sensed that something was wrong.
If Mondstadt eliminated Penacony, then Inazuma would almost certainly throw the next match, allowing the Sumeru-Fontaine Alliance to claim the championship.
That absolutely could not happen.
"Go, Penacony! Take down Mondstadt!"
And just like that, Belobog switched sides and started cheering for Penacony.
Even if Belobog couldn't win, as long as the rewards stayed within Honkai: Star Rail, they could live with that.
"Do you people have any principles at all?"
The other spectators covered their faces.
Had Belobog really been corrupted by Valerius? Their loyalties changed every other minute.
"Tweet!"
The whistle blew.
What followed was downright brutal.
Mondstadt had gone first, and Penacony had clearly studied them thoroughly.
From the opening minute, Mondstadt was completely suppressed.
"Good!"
"Beautiful tackle!"
No one was happier about this than Seele.
Watching Rosaria get knocked flat onto the turf, she leaped to her feet in excitement.
After all, Rosaria had spent the previous match kicking her so hard she hadn't managed a single shot.
It had been utterly outrageous.
On the field, Mondstadt was being battered from all sides.
Any pass they made was immediately intercepted.
Even with Razor's overwhelming physical strength, they still couldn't keep up.
In the end, the final score left no room for argument.
"Sigh…"
The Teyvat players collectively sighed, staring at Mondstadt with profound disappointment.
Their looks seemed to say:
We believed in you, kid.
"Next match."
The Sumeru-Fontaine Alliance vs. Inazuma.
As Raiden Ei stepped forward for the coin toss, Alhaitham shot her a meaningful look.
Take it easy.
Let us fight for first place.
"Heh. This is a competition. There is no reason to hold back."
Ei had absolutely no intention of throwing the match.
If they wanted victory, they could earn it.
Her response instantly offended most of the Teyvat players.
But the Honkai: Star Rail crowd was full of admiration.
"The Electro Archon is the only honest one here."
"This is exactly how a real competitor should act."
"All hail Her Excellency, the Almighty Narukami Ogosho!"
The match began.
And almost immediately, both sides discovered one terrifying truth.
Arataki Itto was absurdly strong.
His physical attributes were monstrous.
His shot power was outrageous.
And his special move was downright ridiculous.
Whenever Ushi appeared, it took at least four players to stop him.
Even the goalkeeper was useless.
"My god! Itto is incredible!"
"Go, Itto!"
"Itto is invincible!"
The Honkai: Star Rail audience exploded with excitement.
"HAHAHAHA! You finally understand my greatness!"
Itto threw his head back in triumph.
He had never been the center of attention like this before.
And honestly?
It felt fantastic.
Meanwhile, the Teyvat crowd wore expressions so dark they might as well have been storm clouds.
The final score: 5–2.
Itto scored three goals, completing a hat trick all by himself.
"YEAHHHH!"
The Honkai: Star Rail fans erupted in celebration.
Victory was guaranteed.
No matter what happened next, they would win.
If Penacony won the final, they would take first place and claim the rewards.
If Inazuma won, Belobog would remain in first place, and the rewards would still stay within Honkai: Star Rail.
Either way, they couldn't lose.
"Final match. Both teams, please come forward."
At last, the decisive championship match arrived.
The final battle that would determine who took home the rewards.
Valerius looked at Ei with a pleased expression.
"You did very well. I'll give you a special reward afterward."
Ei's eyes lit up.
There were individual rewards too?
As expected of her.
She truly was different from everyone else.
"What reward?"
"Candy. Very sweet. Want some?"
"Of course!"
She nodded immediately.
This was exactly the kind of reward she liked.
"Candy?"
Standing nearby, Sunday relaxed.
When he first heard Valerius mention a special reward, he'd thought it was unfair.
But if the reward was only candy, there was nothing to worry about.
He had more sweets than he could ever eat.
"Your Excellency, the Penacony family possesses plenty of candy."
"If you want to win, do it with your own strength."
Ei rolled her eyes and turned away.
Her meaning was obvious.
If you wanted victory, earn it honestly.
"Heh. You really thought she was that easy to fool?"
Valerius chuckled.
Ei often acted a little dense, but she wasn't stupid.
"Doesn't hurt to try."
Sunday shrugged.
Who knew? Maybe she would have accepted.
Both teams took their positions.
The final began.
"Pass me the ball! Leave it to me!"
After his performance in the previous match, Itto had become the centerpiece of Inazuma's attack.
The moment he called for the ball, his teammates sent it to him without hesitation.
"Ushi, let's go!"
Itto fired immediately.
The charging bull reappeared.
Watching Ushi thunder toward the goal, Sunday stepped directly into its path.
"I'll stop it."
He swung his leg.
And was promptly launched backward by the impact.
"Tch. It took four of us to stop that thing before."
"You thought one person could do it?"
"How naive."
The Fontaine players sneered.
They knew exactly how terrifying Ushi was.
There was no way Sunday could stop it alone.
"Rising Dragon Punch!"
Just as Ushi reached the goal—
Boothill, acting as goalkeeper, launched an uppercut and smashed the charging bull back into an ordinary soccer ball.
"Huh?"
Itto stared blankly.
His Ushi had steamrolled everything before.
How had it been stopped by just two people?
"Heh, rookie."
Boothill flashed Itto a dazzling grin after making the save.
Confused?
Good.
That was exactly the point.
He was technically the substitute goalkeeper.
But even as a substitute, he still retained the enhanced physical attributes of a goalkeeper.
As for the official starting keeper?
That had originally been Sunday.
Earlier, Herta had discovered that once positions were assigned, the corresponding stat boosts became fixed.
They didn't change, even if players switched places later.
Which meant Sunday was now playing defensive midfield while still possessing goalkeeper-level physical strength.
Three defenders might not be enough to stop Itto's special move.
But two goalkeepers?
That was more than enough.
Boothill calmly tossed the ball to Herta on the flank.
Upon receiving it, Herta immediately launched a long pass upfield toward Ruan Mei.
"Hmph. You're not winning that header."
Kujou Sara moved to mark her.
In her eyes, Ruan Mei looked like a researcher, not a fighter.
One-on-one, Sara was more than enough.
"I don't need to."
"What do you mean?"
Sara frowned.
If Ruan Mei couldn't win the aerial duel, how was she supposed to bring the ball down?
"Heh."
Ruan Mei smiled softly.
Then she extended a finger and lightly tapped Sara in the lower abdomen.
Sara's entire body went limp, and she collapsed to the ground.
"When it comes to the human body," Ruan Mei said gently, "I understand it a little better than you."
She brought the ball down effortlessly and began dribbling forward at an unhurried pace.
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