The following days passed uneventfully.
With Sparkle's "conditions" in place, Sunday truly didn't make a move against Jaina again. That allowed her to relax a little. Aside from dealing with Sparkle's daily antics, things were… manageable.
Today was the final day.
If the clock struck twelve, she would clear the game.
Her eyes locked onto the clock in the distance.
11:00.
Only one hour left.
And yet—Jaina couldn't feel happy at all.
"…Why is time moving so slowly? Did I miscalculate something?"
She scanned her surroundings.
No one.
Only Sunday… and Sparkle.
An unease crept deeper into her chest.
11:30.
Sparkle leaned toward Sunday and whispered, "You can make your move now"
"…It's about time."
This time, Sunday didn't speak in "banana."
He stood up and walked straight toward the front desk.
"Heh. You won't win."
With a casual gesture, black mist surged out, instantly flooding into Jaina's body.
"Ba… banana?!"
Jaina panicked.
Why was she back in that "banana-only" state?!
"Heh… how naive." Sunday looked at her with amusement. "Did you really think staying here meant you wouldn't be infected?"
"Banana?! Banana?!"
As if understanding her confusion, Sunday smirked.
"This place is the epicenter of infection every single day. Why do you think you stayed normal all this time?"
"…Because I never triggered it."
Jaina's eyes widened.
She remembered.
On the first day, Sunday had casually pointed at her, and she instantly fell into that "banana" state.
So that wasn't infection.
It was activation.
No… more like testing.
Once he confirmed it worked on her, he slowed down—eventually doing nothing at all.
Waiting.
Waiting for the final, decisive moment.
Jaina's gaze flicked toward Sparkle.
Sparkle was subtly gesturing—
Press the button.
No hesitation.
Jaina pulled out the device and pressed it.
"Hehehe~ You fell for it~ Nothing will happen, you know~"
"Oh, wait, something will happen~ It'll play music~ You can enjoy a nice tune while you die~"
"Hehehe~ Praise me, your kind and generous Lady Sparkle—"
Her voice kept rambling on endlessly.
"Give up. You don't stand a chance now."
Sunday chuckled.
Even Sparkle gave her a "parting gift"—music for her death.
How merciful.
"Once the music ends… so do you."
He didn't even attack.
He simply watched, waiting for despair to consume her.
Inside the livestream:
[Sunday: Why aren't you finishing her off yet? What are you waiting for?]
[Sparkle: Hehe… how amusing. Chicken-wing boy really is unreliable.]
[Sunday: Then help me already.]
[Valerius: Who told you she's helping you?]
[Sampo: Yeah—who told you that?]
[Jing Yuan: Interesting… so Miss Sparkle is helping both sides.]
[Pela: She's stalling for Jaina.]
[Gepard: If the music never stops… doesn't that mean Jaina wins?!]
[Sunday: Hmph. Not necessarily… she harmed my sister. I won't let her pass so easily.]
[Guinaifen: Then go after Acheron.]
[Lisa: Yes, go after Acheron.]
[Caesar: Exactly—bullying the weak instead?]
[Lucy: That's called picking on easy targets. Learn the right term.]
Time passed.
The music continued.
Then—
Jaina moved.
She took out a pill, placed it in her mouth, and swallowed.
"I expected something like this… being infected at the very end."
Sunday froze for a moment—then smiled.
"…I see. So that's how Acheron resisted the corruption."
Everything clicked.
"Then… what can you do now?"
"Simple." Jaina smiled. "Kill you."
"In the lobby? Aren't you afraid of being expelled?"
"Heh." Sunday scoffed. "This is Penacony. I can rewrite the rules here."
He pulled out a panel and casually erased one rule.
"There. Problem solved."
"…I see."
Jaina smiled.
Then raised her hand.
"I'll leave it to you… stowaway."
BOOM—
A silver mech burst into the scene—
A powerful kick slammed straight into Sunday, sending him flying.
Inside the livestream:
[Billy: HOLY—THAT WAS A RIDER KICK!]
[Silver Wolf: Wait… why is Sam here?!]
[Jing Yuan: It seems Acheron found the stowaway from the start.]
[Herta: So Jaina predicted this outcome all along?]
[Valerius: Damn… that's actually impressive.]
Back in the space:
Sunday struggled to his feet, glaring at Sam.
"…So that's how it is."
He turned to Sparkle.
"Hold off the stowaway. You've had your fun."
"Sure~"
Sparkle cheerfully skipped forward—actually intercepting Sam.
Inside the livestream:
[Seele: Wait… whose side is she on?!]
[Keqing: So this is what "chaotic neutral" means…]
[Ningguang: I… don't understand, but I'm shocked.]
[Ganyu: This is bad for Miss Jaina…]
[Welt: Not necessarily. She still looks calm.]
Sunday returned to Jaina.
"This time… no one will save you."
"…Not so fast."
Jaina showed no fear.
"This isn't a dream. You understand what that means, right?"
"…What?"
"It means…"
"Rules are meant to be broken."
WHOOSH—
A baseball bat cut through the air—
SMASH!
Sunday was sent flying again, crashing hard into the ground.
He barely lifted his head—
Then his pupils shrank.
Standing before Jaina—
Acheron.
Welt.
Stelle.
Dan Heng.
Himeko.
"…Took you long enough."
"…Uh… we got lost."
Acheron looked slightly embarrassed.
Inside the livestream:
[Arataki Itto: HUH?!?!]
[Kamisato Ayato: Weren't they expelled?!]
[Jing Yuan: This isn't a dream… I see now.]
[Fu Xuan: So Acheron intentionally got expelled to find Welt?]
[March 7th: I get it… but why are Himeko and Dan Heng here, and not me?!]
[Herta: Remember what Stelle shouted before disappearing?]
[Dan Heng: "Start fighting."]
[March 7th: …Still don't get it.]
[Valerius: Anyone who engaged in violence got expelled together. Dan Heng and Himeko acted when Acheron attacked. You… didn't react in time.]
[Stelle: That's so you, March.]
[March 7th: Wuuuu—this is so unfair!]
[Feixiao: Sunday is finished. One Acheron is already too much—now there's the Astral Express too.]
[Silver Wolf: Correction—slightly weakened Astral Express. Missing main DPS March 7th.]
[March 7th: STOP REMINDING ME 😭]
She was devastated.
The final battle… and she wasn't even in it.
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