Misaka Mikoto pinched her chin as she leaned against a pillar, her left foot propped against it.
"Why?"
"A very simple question. If we pool them together, who do we give them to?"
Kazuma Satou and Hachiman Hikigaya exchanged glances. They had long since chosen someone.
"It can only be Ryuguuin Seiya."
"..."
Ryuguuin Seiya did not answer immediately. He lowered his head slightly and pinched his chin.
Laios, who had wanted to wade into the pool and touch Taotie and the strange beasts within, was wrapped up by a tongue and flung straight back up.
He lay on the ground for a while, recovering as he listened to the entire discussion.
Laios climbed up and sat on the ground. There was no emotional fluctuation in his pale golden eyes; he was so calm that he seemed detached from human emotion.
"This is not about assigning everything to a specific person, no matter who that person is."
"It is about which team that person will ultimately be on—and what the other two teams are supposed to do."
"Oh!"
Kazuma Satou, Hachiman Hikigaya, Ryuguuin Seiya, and most of the others understood at once.
"What are you talking about?"
Mahiro Oyama looked left and right. Most people seemed to understand, or at least half-understand. She was the only one who did not understand at all.
"It's simple."
Hachiman Hikigaya spoke up. "If we pool our Fate Coins in this round and feed them all to one person, giving him the highest combat power we can currently put together—for example, Ryuguuin."
Kurisu Makise continued.
"In that case, perhaps we could find a decent combination. It might even give Ryuguuin a chance to fight Archer alone."
Misaka Mikoto went on.
"But whether you can find such a combination, and whether that 'person with the