Pei Guang caught the implication in Himeko's words. "Himeko, sounds like you know something?"
Himeko looked at Pei Guang. "Do you want to find out ahead of time?"
Pei Guang shook his head vigorously. "No, no—when it comes to games, you need that sense of anticipation. But since it's already the finals…"
Seeing how serious Pei Guang looked, March 7th asked curiously, "The finals… is there something we need to do?"
"That's right! Since it's the finals… then…"
Pei Guang looked into his inventory space. In an instant, he changed outfits. On his head was a red hat. He wore a red coat with a white stripe down the middle, and on his back was a yellow backpack—who knows where he got it.
March 7th's eyes widened. "You—you—you changed clothes! Stelle, you should learn from Ah Guang! He even changes outfits, and you—"
Before March could finish her sentence, she went silent. She noticed that Stelle had suddenly gone quiet too.
Yes, when Pei Guang said, "Then…", Stelle seemed to sense something and fell into silence.
Noticing March 7th's gaze, Stelle turned to her with a smile: "…"
"?"
For some reason, March 7th felt like she could understand Stelle's happy mood, even just from that ellipsis?
March 7th: "Should I be doing something, too?"
Looking at the sudden transformations of the other two, March 7th felt like it wouldn't sit right if she didn't do anything herself.
Pei Guang looked at her. "Alright then! When the match starts, just shout: 'Piggy Hero, I choose you!'"
March 7th: "That's it?"
Pei Guang: "That's enough! This time, we're the protagonists. And as protagonists, we're going to borrow all the classic protagonist moves. Okay! We're just about ready. Let's head out. Stelle! March! Let's go. Our goal is—!"
March 7th: "Aether Spirit Master!"
Stelle: "...!"
March 7th turned to Stelle. "The match hasn't even started yet. Say something normal first."
Stelle spread her hands and smiled: "...~"
March 7th: "You win…"
Watching the smooth exchange between Stelle and March 7th, Pei Guang looked stunned. "You can understand what she's saying?"
March 7th nodded. "Totally easy~ Her first line was repeating me, and the second one meant, 'I don't want to talk, no one can make me speak.' Super easy to understand."
Pei Guang: "You really are something else…"
Pei Guang was impressed. March 7th could already understand weird animal languages, but now she could even understand what Stelle meant when she didn't say a word.
Stelle crossed her arms proudly and looked at Pei Guang: "...…,...,...."
Pei Guang turned to March 7th again. "What's she saying?"
March 7th: "She said, 'You dummy, Ah Guang. How could you not be in sync with me? When we get back, I'm going to seriously teach you a lesson and show you what I'm made of.' Ahem, those weren't my words. That was all her. Totally her~"
As she spoke, March 7th smirked mischievously. She hadn't expected Stelle to be so bold.
Stelle stood tall and proud, her posture saying, Yeah, I said it. You just couldn't understand me.
Watching the three joke around, Himeko smiled. And as time passed, the final match was about to begin.
When Pei Guang and the others stepped onto the stage, the reigning champion, Topaz, was already there waiting.
Seeing them approach, Topaz smiled. "You've finally arrived. I can't believe you made it here with that little one… Just as I expected. So, tell me, did you enjoy the journey?"
Pei Guang: "If I had to score it, I'd give it a perfect 10!"
Topaz: "That joy, that's what this celebration is all about. That's the very reason I stayed here. Trailblazer, I've long been looking forward to our battle."
Although this celebration was held at Pei Guang's request, he was really just the initiator: this festival was always meant to take place around this time.
Even though it was arranged because of Pei Guang, when it came to the competition, Topaz definitely wasn't going to go easy on them.
In reality, Topaz couldn't win against Pei Guang in a direct match. But this was Aetherium Wars.
While based on Pei Guang's performance her loss seemed inevitable, just like Silver Wolf, as a player, even if Topaz expected she might lose, she would never surrender. She chose to enjoy the process of battle.
Competitive players can usually predict the outcome of a match by evaluating both sides' condition and skill gap. But as true gamers say, better to go down fighting than give up.
Whether in a game or in real life, who can really say who the final winner is until the very end?
Seeing how full of fighting spirit Topaz was, her fanbase at the venue started chanting her name. As the reigning champion and director of the Strategic Investment Department, Topaz had massive popularity.
Hearing the cheers around her and seeing the glow sticks waving in the crowd, March 7th's expression turned serious. "Darn it! Her aura is way too strong. We can't lose in momentum: we've got to say something too!"
Pei Guang clenched his fist and stepped forward: "…"
Stelle stood tall with her arms crossed, brimming with presence: "…"
March 7th looked at Pei Guang. "When did you get infected by her?! Whatever! A family's gotta stick together!"
What March didn't expect, though, was that just as Pei Guang and Stelle struck a pose and said nothing, the entire arena suddenly erupted into chaotic cheers.
"Trailblazer! Trailblazer! Trailblazer!" The shouting was loud, but unfortunately, because the Trailblazers' fans weren't organized, the cheers came at different times from different people, making their support seem a little weaker in comparison.
But at this crucial moment, Bronya stood up from the audience: "Everyone! Let's lend the Trailblazer a hand!"
Belobog was already filled with Trailblazer fans, and with the Supreme Guardian herself leading the charge, the crowd quickly rallied.
The previously scattered individuals immediately fell into sync with the organized cheering. Together, they joined in full force to support the Trailblazer's team. Even people watching the livestream on the other end of the screen, seeing the energy of the crowd, couldn't help but start cheering too.
Especially the Cloud Knights—many watching from Xianzhou Luofu said that if the competition had been held there instead, those outsiders would've seen who the Trailblazer's number one fans really were!