Honkai: Star Rail – Banner Character, Delivering Knives to the Player [45]

This guy…he’s seriously bad news!

All the vagrants blocking the road shared the same chilling thought.

One of the hot-headed ones finally reacted, his face taking on an expression Lingzhou knew well: reckless bravado.

“You said it yourself! Fine—we’ll play your little game. If you survive, you can pass!”

“Indeed, my words exactly. Fire whenever you like—but each of you only gets three shots. After all, I don't intend to stand here as your target practice all day.”

Lingzhou maintained his gentle smile.

But to the vagrants, that smile now seemed disturbingly eerie.

What a madman!

These guns weren't toys—they were real, scavenged from an abandoned machinery factory.

“If you’ve got a death wish, we’ll grant it!”

“Wait,” Lingzhou interrupted casually.

“What now, backing out already?”

“No, I just wanted to remind you—”

Lingzhou’s lips curled slightly upward.

“Those who break the rules will reap the consequences. Pull the trigger a fourth time after three shots, and you might pay with your life…”

He didn’t bother lowering his voice; everyone nearby clearly heard him.

Though March 7th trusted Lingzhou, seeing him willingly place himself at gunpoint was still…

Impossible not to worry.

“Cowards. If you're too scared to shoot, we'll consider that your loss.”

“You bastard! I'll shut you up!”

The first vagrant snapped under the provocation, gritting his teeth and aiming at Lingzhou’s thigh before pulling the trigger.

Click.

A dull misfire echoed.

March 7th sighed in relief.

Beside her, Seele and the locals similarly relaxed.

At first, even they doubted Lingzhou.

Especially Seele.

She’d instinctively moved to intervene, surprised to find Bronya stepping forward at the same time.

Even more unexpectedly, Stelle stopped them.

Stelle quietly said a single sentence:

“Trust him. Just watch.”

Lingzhou stood casually, hands folded loosely behind his back, exuding a calm, convincing aura.

Stelle wasn’t surprised by the outcome at all.

She glanced at the locals and recalled something Himeko had told her back at Herta Space Station.

According to Himeko, it was Lingzhou who’d contained the energy surge from the Stellaron within her.

If Lingzhou could suppress something as terrifying as that—

—primitive old firearms posed no threat whatsoever.

Even the Space Station's advanced defensive weapons probably couldn’t harm him.

The vagrant stared bewilderedly at his gun, unable to understand why it jammed.

“You have two shots left,” Lingzhou reminded lightly.

Click.

“One shot.”

The man hurriedly pulled out the magazine, confirming bullets remained inside.

Is it a malfunction?

Reloading quickly, he pulled the trigger once more, yet again failing to fire.

“I’m in a bit of a hurry. Why don’t you all shoot together? Taking turns is troublesome.”
Lingzhou yawned lazily, showing no hint of tension.

Dangerous—yes. But damn, he’s so cool!

[He’s channeling Jerome’s energy here.]
[Jerome's nothing compared to this. Jerome dared to shoot himself three times, but Lingzhou's having others shoot at him!]
[Adding to that, five vagrants each shooting three times—that’s fifteen shots!]
[He’s seriously badass!]

Lingzhou’s relaxed tone seemed to further irritate the vagrants.

They exchanged glances, slowly raising their guns together.

Some aimed at his limbs, others his shoulders.

Only one or two aimed directly at lethal spots like his chest or head.

The scene shifted into a cinematic sequence.

Each time the vagrants pulled their triggers, the curve on Lingzhou’s lips grew wider.

Repeated dull misfires echoed, yet not one bullet left the barrels.

“Game over. You lose.”

Lingzhou beckoned behind him, smiling faintly.

“Let’s go, everyone. The mines await.”

With that, he calmly walked toward the vagrants.

Instinctively, they backed away in terror, clearing the main path.

Fear and confusion filled their eyes.

One jammed gun could be an accident.

Two might be a coincidence.

But three, four—even more?

This man wasn't just strange—he was terrifyingly so!

Yet, Lingzhou had never touched their guns, always maintaining a safe distance.

This made it utterly inexplicable.

Guns they'd successfully fired earlier to intimidate miners were now all mysteriously jammed.

“What do we do now…?”

“Are we really letting them pass? If he’s here on someone's orders to get revenge—”

As they hesitated, Lingzhou was already moving past them.

“Stop right there!”

Someone finally lost patience and shouted.

Lingzhou didn’t even look back.

“Don’t break the rules. It won’t end well for you.”

“Whatever you do, don’t lose your temper. Like I said earlier—it could cost you your life…”

Players stared intently at the cutscene.

Without a doubt, someone would recklessly pull the trigger again.

They didn't care who it was—they only cared about Lingzhou’s promised consequences.

Such scenes were rare in miHoYo games. Even if gacha characters shed blood, it was usually villains’.

So how would Lingzhou handle the rule-breaker who fired the fourth shot?

As Lingzhou walked further away, one vagrant raised his gun again in desperation.

Bang!

This time, no misfire.

The screen slowed dramatically, tracking the bullet closely.

Players leaned forward, eyes wide in suspense.

The bullet raced from the barrel, aimed precisely at Lingzhou’s head.

Yet just centimeters away, it suddenly curved strangely, returning along the same trajectory without losing speed.

The screen turned stark white, silhouettes painted black—

A sickening thud!

A black streak pierced through a shadowed figure’s head, spraying dark liquid.

The figure fell instantly.

The screen returned to normal, revealing a headless corpse collapsing to the ground, lifeless.

Everyone understood immediately—

Someone had died.

“It’s a shame he wouldn’t listen.”

Lingzhou turned slowly, his face wearing a warm, sunny smile.

Yet this warm expression filled onlookers with chilling dread.

Even Natasha, Seele, and the others weren't exempt.

When the vagrant fired, Seele had vanished instantly, attempting a desperate interception.

Yet the bullet swerved neatly past her, perfectly piercing its shooter’s skull instead.

As if the bullet itself possessed intent.

It defied logic, chilling her to the bone.

Seele knew now—

She’d underestimated him.

“G-ghost… It’s a ghost—!!”

“A ghost—there’s a ghost here!”

Frozen briefly, the vagrants soon lost all sanity, tossing away their guns.

Screaming and stumbling, they fled for their lives, terrified of becoming the next headless corpse.

Players finally released their pent-up breaths, tension easing from their shoulders.

[That was awesome!]
[Holy crap, Lingzhou is decisive as hell! He meant every word!]
[What a kill! Great writing—though definitely not very 12+ rated.]
[Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.]
[Didn’t care much for Lingzhou before, but now I genuinely like him—he’s got real guts!]
[Badass in one word!]

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This is a fan translation of 崩铁：卡池角色，给玩家发刀 by 三十度幻. All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!