Hearing Sunday's words, even Valerius was taken by surprise.
He hadn't expected that someone would actually be willing to spend three points on something so uncertain—
especially after the food problem had already been solved.
"…Damn it. Am I about to backfire?"
For the first time, Valerius started worrying.
The points didn't come out of his own pocket, but his carefully planned scheme was being disrupted just like that, which made him extremely uncomfortable.
After all, as an old Liyue saying goes—
Watching someone else make money hurts more than losing money yourself.
With Sunday clearly expressing his desire, the pressure instantly shifted to Gepard.
"Mm…"
Gepard kept weighing it in his heart.
To be honest, he didn't want it.
But if he refused outright, it felt like he'd be letting Sunday down.
Should he preserve the points for victory,
or spend them to accommodate Sunday's feelings?
In the end, an image appeared in his mind.
Lynx.
Serval.
That was it.
His sister and his little sister were still waiting for him to bring victory home.
He couldn't afford to spend points here.
He had already used up one point—he absolutely couldn't spend any more.
With that thought, Gepard finally made up his mind.
"Don't worry, Serval… Lynx. I'll definitely bring the victory back."
Encouraged by thoughts of his family, Gepard turned to Sunday.
"Mr. Sunday, our points are limited. I think… we shouldn't do it."
[Lynx]: Pfft—!!! Blood loss!
[Serval]: Why can't this idiot brother just listen for once?! Would it kill you to follow Sunday's lead?!
[Lisa]: I heard it—he gave it up for Serval and Lynx.
[Silver Wolf]: Same here.
[Herta]: This one's on Serval and Lynx.
[Pela]: Lynx… your brother… sigh.
[Seele]: I propose… when Gepard gets back, we deal with him together.
[Bronya]: That… might not be appropriate…
[Hu Tao]: Wahaha—there goes the reward!
[Xiangling]: Nationwide celebration! Nationwide celebration!
[Diluc]: Tavern's offering an 80% discount today.
Belobog was in collective mourning.
Meanwhile, Teyvat was having the time of its life.
Nobody else managed to seize the opportunity—
and you thought you could sneak ahead? Dream on.
...
"I'm a little curious about what it actually was."
Although Gepard's reasoning made sense, Sunday still couldn't help wanting it.
"What if it was something that could drastically improve our quality of life?"
They still had to stay here for a hundred days.
Sunday really wanted to make things more comfortable.
As for points—he refused to believe that the other teams were all sitting on full points.
If they could get a good item now, they'd have much stronger resistance to future trades.
Gepard shook his head again.
All he cared about now was winning.
Besides, life wasn't bad at the moment. There was no real need for anything else.
"I still think we don't need it."
"I see…"
Sunday thought for a moment, then nodded.
In truth, it was mostly curiosity about a three-point item.
Now that Gepard had clearly stated he didn't want it, Sunday gave up the idea.
"Mr. Valerius, take it back. We won't trade."
As Sunday personally gave up, the livestream immediately erupted into a wave of criticism aimed at Gepard.
[Seele]: Damn it, is this Gepard even for real?!
[Natasha]: Such a shame. Even if they lost later, the reward would've been worth it.
[Lynx]: My brother's thinking isn't wrong. He didn't know what was inside.
[Serval]: Yeah… this isn't really—forget it. I'll beat him up when he gets back.
The more she tried to defend him, the angrier Serval got.
If she didn't teach Gepard a lesson, she wouldn't be able to get over it.
"Still not buying?"
"No."
Valerius gave Gepard one last look.
"I'll give you one final chance. Are you absolutely sure?"
Gepard shook his head, then straightened his chest.
"A soldier must have backbone. If I say no, then it's no."
"…Alright."
Valerius smiled—
a smile full of amusement.
In full view of the two, he took out the gacha machine.
"This is a gacha machine. Spend three points, and you can draw a reward worth up to five points."
Thud.
Gepard's vision went black as he collapsed forward.
"Mr. Sunday… I've let you down…"
"Heh…"
Sunday let out a bitter laugh, closed his eyes, and silently went to squat in the corner of the room.
Self-isolation.
Now Valerius was in a great mood.
He squatted next to Gepard.
"I'll give you one more chance."
Hearing that, Gepard's eyes flew open.
He thought the reward had already slipped through his fingers—
he never expected another chance.
Looking at Valerius again, his heart was filled with gratitude.
So Valerius was actually an honest guy after all.
"Thank you, Mr. Valerius."
Valerius found it amusing.
What happened to your backbone?
With a flick of his hand, a hammer appeared.
"Here. Smash it yourself. Let off some steam."
Gepard: "..."
So that was the chance.
Disappointment.
But just as Valerius said—even if he couldn't draw a reward, he could vent.
Without hesitation, Gepard took the hammer and smashed the gacha machine to pieces in a few swift blows.
"Well? Feel a little better now?"
After venting, Gepard did feel noticeably lighter.
"Thank you."
"You're welcome." Valerius nodded, then seemed to recall something. "Oh right—on my way here, Serval and Lynx said that if you let the reward slip away, you're definitely not getting off easy when you get back."
"…Ah."
It was over.
Only now did Gepard remember—
his sister and his little sister had been watching the whole time.
How was he supposed to explain this when he got back?
Was he really about to get beaten up?
"Heh."
Valerius pushed his cart again and left the room, leaving Gepard staring in despair.
A soldier must have backbone?
Where did your backbone go?
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