In the livestream chat:
Jing Yuan: "Is she about to use her Noble Phantasm?"
Bronya: "I'm looking forward to this!"
Aventurine: "Come on, let me see what Miss Hoshimi Miyabi's Noble Phantasm actually does."
Keqing: "Miss Miyabi should be an Assassin. If she's using her Noble Phantasm head-on…"
Ruan Mei: "Let's watch and see exactly what kind of Noble Phantasm it is."
Seele: "Wahaha! Bronya, I finally beat you!"
Bronya: "You can have the win. I'm watching the stream."
Seele: "..."
So that's why you stopped dancing.
What a letdown.
On the wilderness plain, Miyabi's magical energy surged to its peak.
Then, suddenly, she moved.
Her figure vanished from sight.
"This is…?"
Barbara's vigilance rose to the maximum.
She could sense that Miyabi hadn't fled—she was still lurking nearby.
Barbara slammed her banner into the ground.
"Royal Guardians, heed my summons!"
Her Noble Phantasm activated as well.
One hundred knights clad in heavy armor materialized around her, forming an iron wall.
In the livestream:
Lisa: "Amazing! Barbara can summon people too?"
Furina: "This is over. One versus one hundred? There's no way she can win."
Bennett: "Go, Miss Barbara! You're unbeatable!"
Kaeya: "Bennett, shut up."
Albedo: "Don't jinx it."
Bennett: "Uh… sorry."
Bennett looked awkward.
He was used to Barbara healing him whenever he got injured, so in his excitement, he instinctively cheered her on.
Unfortunately, he'd forgotten all about his notorious bad luck.
The wind swept across the battlefield.
No trace of Miyabi could be seen.
Just as Barbara began wondering whether her opponent had retreated, the situation changed.
A dark figure dove from the sky at blinding speed.
"Protect the Princess!"
The guardian knights cried out in alarm.
They raised their shields just in time, barely blocking the attack.
Slash!
The figure disappeared again, only to strike from another impossible angle.
Clang!
Blocked once more.
For the next several minutes, the shadow repeatedly appeared and vanished.
The attacks came from bizarre directions, each one so fast it arrived in the blink of an eye.
Even with her knights protecting her, Barbara was gradually forced into a defensive corner.
"Underground!"
Suddenly, Barbara thrust her sword into the earth.
A spray of blood erupted.
Miyabi was finally forced back into view.
In the livestream:
Jing Yuan: "This… isn't this Noble Phantasm a little underwhelming?"
He was baffled.
Earlier, Valerius had described Noble Phantasms as these incredible trump cards.
But Miyabi's seemed to do little more than increase her speed.
And if she couldn't break through Barbara's defenses, what was the point?
Bronya: "A little disappointing."
Zhu Yuan: "That can't be right. There's no way Miyabi's Noble Phantasm is this simple."
Caesar: "I protest! I protest!"
Harumasa: "Chief's Noble Phantasm feels kind of… low-tier."
Even Miyabi's own teammates from Section 6 felt that something was off.
Barbara twirled her sword, flicking the blood from its tip.
"Hehe. You're out of tricks now, aren't you?"
She looked positively delighted.
Compared to her own Noble Phantasm, Miyabi's seemed almost unimpressive.
Barbara was a Rider.
Her greatest Noble Phantasm was naturally her mount, and she hadn't even needed to use it yet.
Miyabi merely snorted.
"Hmph."
Without a trace of panic, she wiped a hand across her wound.
Crimson light flared.
And then Barbara saw something that filled her with dread.
A translucent figure slowly materialized beside Miyabi.
It was Barbara herself.
Miyabi raised her dagger and pressed it to the phantom's throat.
Then she spoke calmly.
"What do you think will happen if I slash here?"
"Uh… what exactly does your Noble Phantasm do?"
Barbara felt a chill run down her spine.
For some reason, she had the terrifying sense that she was about to die.
Miyabi smiled faintly.
"Goodbye. You'll be the first to be eliminated."
"And you'll have to take the punishment."
You bullied me earlier, didn't you?
Now it was your turn.
Her dagger sliced across the phantom's throat.
Barbara's eyes widened.
A sharp pain erupted in her own neck.
Her consciousness blurred.
Then she collapsed to the ground.
In the livestream:
Harumasa: "Huh?!"
Jing Yuan: "This…"
Sunday: "We underestimated her Noble Phantasm."
Bronya: "That's terrifying. How are you supposed to defend against that?"
Everyone was stunned.
This was killing someone without even touching them.
A moment ago, Miyabi had been the one injured.
How had Barbara fallen instead?
Lisa: "What on earth just happened?"
Noelle: "Miss Barbara… has been eliminated!"
Venti: "Could it be some sort of curse?"
Valerius: "Miyabi's Noble Phantasm is Curse Upon My Blood, Slay Thy Soul. If her opponent comes into contact with her blood during the Noble Phantasm, she can impose a curse directly on their soul and deliver a fatal strike."
Soukaku: "Chief is terrifying. I'm never provoking her again."
Wise: "That's basically unbeatable. Anyone would lose."
Diluc: "How insidious."
Nahida: "Mr. Valerius, when Miss Miyabi activates her Noble Phantasm, she can't injure herself, correct?"
Nahida had seen through the flaw.
If all she needed was blood contact, Miyabi could have cut herself immediately at the beginning.
There had to be restrictions.
Zhongli: "Indeed. Such a powerful effect would not come without limitations."
Valerius: "Correct. Miyabi cannot deliberately harm herself while the Noble Phantasm is active. And her defenses become extremely fragile. If she makes a mistake, she'll be the one eliminated."
Herta: "I see. So the limitations are quite severe."
Argenti: "Even so, it remains very difficult to defend against—especially if the opponent doesn't know the Noble Phantasm's effect."
Sucrose: "That's unfair! Her Noble Phantasm is way too strong. She should just be declared the winner."
Valerius: "Are you all underestimating everyone else's Noble Phantasms? Haven't you noticed something strange?"
Serval: "What do you mean?"
Ruan Mei: "Barbara hasn't been eliminated."
Seele: "Oh… right!"
Only then did everyone notice.
Barbara had indeed collapsed.
But the system had not declared her out.
At the same time, Miyabi noticed the anomaly as well.
Not only was Barbara still technically in the game, but the summoned knights had also remained.
Her expression changed.
She immediately retreated several steps, widening the distance between them.
"What's going on?"
"Is she immortal?"
Miyabi couldn't understand it.
Barbara should have been eliminated.
Why was she still here?
Keeping her eyes fixed on Barbara, Miyabi considered her options.
She could retreat now.
But first, she had to understand exactly what kind of ability Barbara possessed—one powerful enough to survive what should have been a guaranteed kill.
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