Arknights, please stop going crazy over the streamer's operators.

Page 24

"Can this be seen?"

"Of course, look how many years we've been partners."

Exusiai proudly raised her head and said.

Although Texas always has a poker face, Exusiai can still detect subtle differences in Texas's appearance.

This might also be a kind of tacit understanding, just like Texas can guess Exusiai's mood based on what she eats for breakfast.

"I dreamt of Dr. Wanfeng."

"Leader? How has he been lately?"

Exusiai seemed completely unconcerned that it was just a dream, and blurted it out without even thinking.

"Fortunately."

After speaking, Texas paused for a few seconds, seemingly thinking of his somewhat disastrous teammates, and then added, "Not so good either."

"Haha, what role did he play in your dream? He sounds like a happy beggar who, despite being a wanderer, can still get apple pie every day."

"He's still in command."

Texas didn't respond to Exusiai's lame joke, but simply replied indifferently as usual.

"Hey, how could he not do well doing what he's always been in? It's no wonder he can't do without me protecting him."

Exusiai, not one to back down, jokingly said, "Then next time you dream about him, remember to ask him when he's coming back. He still owes me several guns."

Texas picked up a pokey, looked up at the starry sky, and whispered in response:

"Well, definitely."

Chapter Twenty-Three: The Bet

"Boss, why don't you recruit another special agent, an executioner with defensive capabilities?"

"It's alright, we just need a ranged guard. We can find a lord to supplement the aerial damage."

"Another eight executioners? Boss, please don't come here, we're not familiar with each other. What, you want to find eight Silent Texas? If you've found them, what use are I? Aren't you invincible, kid?!"

"What's the point of me watching your ten vanguards? Why don't you just apply for a refund for minors in the backend? Your team isn't even as reliable as the leader of those eight executioners from before!"

……

Li Ji found that this night was particularly torturous, not because it was difficult to find a team, but because each team was more bizarre than the last.

Apart from a few teams that are relatively normal, the others, like the Ten Vanguards and the Seven Warlocks... did you guys hold a self-employment meeting in your class right after graduation, and then all the people who couldn't find jobs joined the same team?

Otherwise, why would a team have so many players with the same class?

The absurdity of it all made Li Ji start to question his own existence.

This made it hard for Li Ji not to feel that these people weren't there to form a team, but rather that he had hired them to create a show effect.

If it weren't for the existence of someone like Kiyono, who has a good understanding and skill level, Li Ji would have felt like he had entered a parallel world where the technology level of Arknights had regressed by a hundred times.

Various experts displayed their unique skills, and it's unclear who leaked the news, but it led to that "Eight Decision Master" returning to the live stream.

After he saw the near-perfect performance of the silent Texas.

The eldest brother said he had plenty of money and was now announcing that he was recruiting executioners with similar skill sets, eight of them in one go.

"If I could lead two vanguards and ten heretics in this world, wouldn't I be able to do whatever I want?"

Upon hearing this, Li Ji's vision went black.

There were even comments in the live stream saying they wanted to invest in the big brother, just so they could borrow him to use in the team twice after he recruited him.

No, man.

If it were really that easy to recruit, then there would definitely be similar operators in the top teams, but has anyone seen them yet?

You want to recruit ten more?! And there are people in the live stream dreaming along with you?!

Don't be too outrageous!

But Li Ji couldn't very well stop someone from pursuing their special forces dream, so he could only take a deep breath and express his support.

As time went by, Li Ji finally finished watching the last team. After giving his evaluation and recruitment expectations, Li Ji wiped away a bead of sweat and leaned back on the sofa.

That's it for today's team pairing session. I'm just running out of time, so I'm completely exhausted. See you tomorrow, guys!

As Li Ji spoke, he turned off the live stream amidst a chorus of groans and "get lost" comments. The screen went black even faster than when Jeston was instantly killed.

If you're not proactive about leaving get off work, there's something wrong with your brain!

"No, I feel like we can't do this kind of team matching process again next time, otherwise it will really become part of the tier system."

Li Ji leaned back on the sofa, trying to clear his mind of the bizarre thoughts he had witnessed that evening.

With his arms weak, he crawled along the sofa, picked up his phone, and sent a message to Qingye.

"I'm off the broadcast now. I'm available to call you anytime if you're free."

Kiyono replied to the message very quickly; just a few seconds later, his message appeared in the chat box: "Wait for me for ten minutes."

"He must be having a heart-to-heart talk with his teammates, right?"

Li Ji raised his eyebrows twice, guessing what was going on in his mind.

Based on his initial impression of Kiyono, he thought Kiyono was the kind of person who would resolve issues immediately without dragging things out.

So Li Ji readily agreed to Qingye's request; it's always more pleasant to be friends with someone like that.

Soon, Kiyono called.

"Hello, can you hear me?"

"Great! How's the communication with your teammates going?"

"It was a success, and no one had any objections. We should be heading to the border region next month."

Kiyono's relieved voice also revealed a hint of anxiety, "I don't know if these two weeks will be enough for me to further improve their skills."

"It should be fine. They have the basic skills, but they lack experience. When faced with difficulties, their first reaction is to wait for orders instead of trying to find a solution themselves. Then, when they actually enter combat, they don't have the brains to think of a solution."

At this point, Li Ji changed the subject again, "But it also proves that your team really trusts you, and that's the kind of spirit a team should have."

"Don't try to comfort me. To put it bluntly, it's just their dependence on this old man like me."

Kiyono smiled, interrupting Li Ji's subsequent praise.

"Let's get down to business. Take a look at the picture I gave you."

Li Ji minimized Qingye's voice message window and opened the newly sent image.

It was a screenshot of a group chat, with the group name and members' names hidden by Kiyono using mosaics.

The content inside is speculation about Texas's skill set, multipliers, and talents, and some people have even started speculating about how much Texas's 'transfer fee' will be.

“Someone is already eyeing Texas. I know I can’t poach an operator like that, and even if I did, I probably wouldn’t be able to keep him…”

Kiyono asked Li Ji seriously, "But what I want to know is, can you really keep her?"

He didn't give Li Ji a chance to answer, and continued, "If you just want to show me how recklessly you put such an excellent operator into the public eye, you will definitely be targeted by people with ulterior motives!"

"They will use various methods to get your agents to 'voluntarily transfer' and pay you a considerable hush money."

"If you want this money, then consider it a favor, and I'll introduce you to reliable and high-quality clients."

"But if it's because of me that Silent Texas was 'voluntarily transferred,' then I feel like I've become a sinner for all time."

As Kiyono finished speaking, he couldn't help but sigh.

"Thanks, Brother Ye, but there's no need to feel so regretful. Choosing to showcase an operator was my choice, and it has little to do with you."

Li Ji first eased Qingye's unfounded sense of guilt, then said nonchalantly, "It's alright, if they want to take it, let them."

Unlike Kiyono, he didn't hold back when speaking and directly used the word 'rob'.

After all, this kind of behavior is tantamount to coercion.

"I have sufficient reasons and conditions to keep Texas here, so you don't need to worry about that, Brother Ye. Thank you for providing me with this information."

“You…you are still young, there are many things you haven’t encountered yet, and I’m here to remind you because I’ve been through this kind of thing myself.”

Kiyono's bitter voice seemed to contain a lot of emotion as he earnestly said, "Sometimes, one person's strength is simply no match for capital."

"Silent Texas definitely has the potential to become a superstar, and they won't let such an operator go easily."

"Money, power, status, fame... Can you guarantee that Silent Texas won't be corrupted by these things? Can you guarantee that you won't touch these things?"

After Kiyono finished speaking, he let out a long sigh of relief.

But Li Ji simply smiled and replied:

"I understand Ye's concerns, but since we've come this far, how about we make a bet?"

"Make a bet?"

"How about a bet on whether I can stay in Texas?"

"..."

Kiyono paused for a moment, then burst into laughter through the microphone, "Hahahaha, alright! Let's make a bet then. If we're going to bet, let's go big. I'll bet half of my fortune, how about it? If I win, you don't have to pay anything, you just need to help me out when I'm in trouble. If I lose, I'll just swipe my card to pay!"