Switch to Focalors Mode

Looking at the newcomer, a blue-haired man in elegant attire, wearing a bird-beak mask, [Furina], disguised as Elysia, didn't react much.

"You're quite impatient, aren't you, Fatui Harbinger?"

"Oh?" Dottore, the second of the Fatui Harbingers, was surprised. His calm, raspy voice held a hint of interest. "It seems you're not surprised by my arrival."

"Would the appearance of someone like you be surprising in any place? Especially in Sumeru, your homeland?"

"…It seems you do know something."

Dottore rested his chin in his hand, then after a moment of silence, said indifferently, "I'm curious about your source of information, but it's not something worth dwelling on."

"What brings a Fatui Harbinger to Sumeru?" Nahida, unable to contain herself, asked—this was Sumeru's Sanctuary of Surasthana; as Sumeru's Dendro Archon, even if she didn't want to steal the spotlight, she had to maintain her position as the host.

Nahida's childish voice held a hint of wariness and hostility.

Although imprisoned for five hundred years, her consciousness had been wandering within Sumeru's Akasha System, absorbing knowledge. She couldn't possibly be unaware of the Fatui, an organization infamous throughout the nations, especially this one before her.

Dottore said calmly, a hint of helplessness in his voice, "Naturally, it's to cooperate with the Akademiya. However, it's unfortunate that my… partner seems to have encountered some trouble just now."

"This is quite troublesome for me."

"A collaboration between a scholar expelled from the Akademiya and an Akademiya Sage? How interesting."

"…Sumeru has no rule against collaborating with the Akademiya after being expelled. Moreover, I'm not collaborating with the Sages as a scholar expelled from the Akademiya, but as a Fatui Harbinger."

Dottore's words made [Furina] fall silent for a moment, then her voice lowered, a hint of annoyance in her tone, even though his expression was hidden behind the bird-beak mask.

Logically, a wise man like him shouldn't be easily angered, as such emotions only hindered rational thinking. However, Jiang Qiao was exceptionally skilled at poking people's sore spots.

Although, from his usual behavior, it seemed that Dottore had come to terms with being expelled—he only saw it as the Akademiya's foolishness and ignorance—but to say he didn't mind at all…

That was impossible.

"As for you, outsider, you're not qualified to speak to me as an equal."

His arrogance was unconcealed. Compared to the foul-mouthed Signora, Dottore usually appeared rational and humble, but his inherent arrogance was evident even without him needing to put on a show.

It was annoying, of course, but getting angry and resorting to violence just because of a slight annoyance would be too crude.

Would you argue with an insect?

"Dendro Archon, to avoid unnecessary diplomatic disputes, I believe you understand the importance of avoiding unnecessary conflicts."

"There's nothing for Sumeru and a Fatui Harbinger to discuss. You're not welcome here." Nahida glanced at [Furina], then looked at Dottore coldly.

"No, no, no, that's not a wise choice."

"Indeed—but don't you think continuing to stay here isn't a wise decision either?" Jiang Qiao leaned against a meditation device, resting her cheek in her hand, and yawned. "After all, Sumeru's hostess isn't very fond of you. Continuing to pester her will only backfire."

"Can I interpret her words as Sumeru's stance?"

Nahida didn't speak, but she seemed to acquiesce.

Honestly, doing this was quite risky. After all, Dottore, as a Harbinger, represented Snezhnaya and the Tsaritsa.

But since [Furina] had rescued her, she naturally wouldn't leave him in an awkward, isolated situation.

Drawing a line just because of danger would be too pathetic.

Sumeru wasn't that kind of nation, and Lesser Lord Kusanali shouldn't be that kind of Archon.

"A pity. I thought we could resolve this through communication."

Dottore's voice was filled with regret:

"If this is your nation's stance, I will have to resort to… more extreme measures."

"For example, helping your nation, currently in political turmoil, restore order."

His raspy voice held a blatant threat.

"Are you threatening me?"

"No, I'm stating a fact."

"As the God of Wisdom, you should understand the current power disparity between us."

"Compared to cooperating with an uncooperative Archon, choosing the more open-minded Sages as Sumeru's rulers is a purely rational decision."

"Ho, stating such blatant interference in another nation's internal affairs so righteously, indeed, that's the Fatui style."

"I wonder if your Tsaritsa can accept the consequences of waging war against two nations simultaneously."

As Dottore and Nahida looked at her in surprise, the watery disguise gradually faded.

[Furina] shed her "Elysia" disguise, revealing her true appearance.

"..."

"Hehe, this is an unexpected development. I didn't expect… it to be you." Dottore chuckled, looking at [Furina] in her dress and hat, and said slowly,

"Fontaine's… Hydro Archon."

He naturally recognized [Furina]. Although Fontaine wasn't his area of responsibility, he had visited that place for research purposes—but hadn't gained much.

After all, before the ancient kingdom, excluding the time before the Cataclysm, Fontaine had no civilization and was far removed from the Abyss.

"In that case, I apologize for my previous disrespect."

"However, Your Excellency, the Hydro Archon, why are you in Sumeru?"

"Is that something you should be concerned about?"

Dottore's curiosity was unconcealed. "Of course, the Archon who should be residing in Fontaine suddenly appearing in Sumeru, even using a false appearance to intrude into the Sanctuary of Surasthana and freeing the imprisoned Dendro Archon… anyone would be curious about the reason, wouldn't they?"

"Then, continue being curious."

"After all, answering questions is the duty of the God of Wisdom, not the God of Justice."

Nahida, hearing this, felt slightly speechless.

Although it was true, why did it sound like she was saying—*The God of Wisdom is a sucker*?

However, seeing Jiang Qiao acting so confidently and naturally as a god,

A look of admiration appeared in Nahida's eyes.

She still had a long way to go before becoming a true Archon.

"Hehe…" Dottore let out a creepy chuckle.

The girl, fiddling with her fingernails, glanced at him indifferently and said, "That's an unpleasant laugh~ Now, seeing me, are you still planning to continue your arrogant and unreasonable Fatui behavior in front of the God of Justice?"

"This is indeed an unexpected variable, but from a certain perspective, it's also good news, isn't it?"

"Although there's an additional Archon, …according to the information from Fontaine, Lady Furina, you're not exactly known for your combat prowess, are you?"

"In fact… judging from your performance over the past few centuries, I have to question whether you even possess the power befitting an Archon."

"So…"

Hearing his dismissive words, [Furina]'s expression didn't change. She simply asked in return, "Have you heard of a rumor—that Fatui Harbingers above the third rank all possess power comparable to an Archon?"

"And the 'me' you see now is the strongest among all my Segments."

As he spoke, a powerful aura emanated from Dottore.

"The God of Wisdom doesn't possess the power to rival a god. And you, God of Justice, let me see your performance in the face of this power."

His raspy, imposing voice, accompanied by a dark power tinged with green, filled the entire Sanctuary of Surasthana.

"Treating an Archon as a challenger, you're quite confident, aren't you?"

[Furina], standing up, rubbed her smooth knees, looked at Dottore, who was radiating an ominous aura, and rolled her wrists.

"Fine, let's settle the score from four hundred years ago."

These words puzzled Focalors, who had been quietly observing within the body.

"You have a grudge against him?"

"No."

"Then what score is there to settle?"

"Yours."

"Huh?"

Focalors was completely lost.

Four hundred years ago, she had already been in the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale. How could she have any grudge against a Fatui Harbinger?

Dottore was also puzzled. His momentum stalled.

"I don't recall having any dealings with you."

"You really have a poor memory, don't you?"

"Remember a place called Tatarasuna?"

"Tatarasuna… that place." Dottore pondered for a moment, then a look of realization appeared on his face.

And Focalors, after careful consideration, felt puzzled.

"Tatarasuna, I remember that place being in Inazuma, right?"

"Mmm."

Focalors, receiving confirmation, was even more confused—Inazuma was incredibly far from Fontaine… She searched through Furina's memories, trying to find some clues, but it seemed unsuccessful.

And Jiang Qiao, using [Furina]'s body, coldly listed Dottore's crimes:

"Four hundred years ago, for your own selfish desires, you caused the Tatarasuna incident by releasing the sealed vengeful spirit within the Mikage Furnace."

"You used the identity of a Fontaine craftsman, Escher, under the guise of introducing new technology, to orchestrate this tragedy."

"Did you think you could escape justice after committing such a crime?"

"The Raiden Shogun might not be aware of your crimes, but I, the God of Justice, will not let you off so easily."

"This guy…" Focalors instantly understood and glared at Dottore angrily.

Not to mention that as the God of Justice, she couldn't ignore such injustice,

Just the severity of this incident… if the Raiden Shogun of Inazuma wasn't so detached, the relationship between Fontaine and Inazuma would have drastically deteriorated.

After all, Dottore had committed this crime using the identity of a Fontaine craftsman, under the guise of introducing new technology.

The current Sakoku Decree might have been partly caused by this tragedy.

"If you hadn't mentioned it, I would have almost forgotten about this old matter."

"However, bringing up the past is meaningless."

"The path of a wise man is always filled with doubt and misunderstanding. And that disaster was just a minor sacrifice on the path to seeking truth." His raspy, calm voice held a hint of disdain.

Dottore didn't care about this past crime at all.

After all, in his long life, it was just a minor incident in his pursuit of knowledge.

Those victims weren't even worth remembering.

They were just numbers, nothing more.

"God of Justice, if you are truly just, then judge me."

"If you can't judge me, then your empty words only highlight the pathetic nature of so-called justice." Dottore, activating his Delusion and enveloped in an ominous aura, looked down at them arrogantly.

He didn't think he would lose—after all, in Dottore's eyes, the lofty Archons weren't unattainable.

After centuries of research, the current him, the strongest Segment, possessed sufficient power to crush them.

And seeing Dottore like this, Nahida, who had originally wanted to say "I'll help you," shrank back.

As the God of Wisdom, she hadn't inherited any combat abilities from Greater Lord Rukkhadevata. The only thing she could do was access the collective wisdom of Sumeru's people.

But that was only useful against someone like the Raiden Shogun, a half-baked Archon.

She was essentially made of paper.

But against an Archon-level opponent—with Dottore's current state, even among Archons, he wasn't someone to be trifled with.

Especially against Dottore, Nahida didn't even dare to use the Akasha.

See that black aura? That was clearly a vengeful spirit!

If Dottore, who also had means of interfering with the Akasha, channeled that thing into the Akasha, everyone in Sumeru would be screwed without even having time to think.

"Alright, use your power to reinforce the Tree of Wisdom."

"I'll deal with this guy quickly." [Furina], seeing Nahida's unwillingness, sighed, patted her head, and said comfortingly.

Then she reversed her grip on the Splendor of Tranquil Waters and plunged it into the ground.

Azure crystals spread, centered around the sword, eventually enveloping the entire Sanctuary of Surasthana.

But unlike dealing with those pushovers, René and the Narwhal,

Dealing with this villain, who wasn't even aware of his own wickedness, would require more effort.

[Furina] casually took off her hat, a cold glint flashing in her heterochromatic, divine eyes.

Her tied-up hair unraveled.

The light of the Hydro Archon enveloped her body, her suit disappearing, replaced by a pure white dress.

At this moment, it wasn't [Furina] standing there,

But—Focalors, the Hydro Archon.