"Not bad. They've finally met. Hopefully everything goes smoothly from here."
Seeing Lumine run into the resistance's general, Su Ran finally relaxed.
"I have to say… your drawing skills are truly terrible."
The Raiden Shogun stood beside him, arms crossed, tone cold as she criticized him.
He dared push the blame onto her, too.
She nearly lost control when she submitted those portraits to her subordinates—
her toes almost curled so hard she built a three-room-one-hall house out of sheer embarrassment.
Never in her life had she lost face like that.
"I did it on purpose."
Of course Su Ran drew them horribly.
If the portraits were too accurate, anyone would recognize them instantly.
Only something abstract would attract attention.
Inazuma wasn't small, but it wasn't large either.
Wanted criminals weren't uncommon.
But to make three stand out?
You needed tricks.
And since those three wore the same clothes every day, all he needed were distinctive features.
The Shogun's fist trembled—
He said it so casually, yet he basically admitted he made her look like a fool on purpose.
"Why? Did your subordinates laugh at you?"
Su Ran noticed her irritation.
"They wouldn't dare."
The Shogun gritted her teeth.
Normally she wouldn't react this strongly— but thanks to someone reconstructing her cognition so perfectly, her emotional model was indistinguishable from a real human.
She now had the full range of human emotions—including shame.
And at the moment, she very much wanted to slap Su Ran into the ground.
"So why are you angry?"
"They don't dare laugh out loud… so they're holding it in."
If they held it in on the surface, wouldn't they be laughing themselves sick internally?
That alone was enough to make her furious.
"Alright, alright. Don't be mad. I'll compensate you later~"
At least the Shogun had loosened up.
She was angry, yes— but not to the point of obsessing over it forever.
A little coaxing went a long way.
"Hmph."
She puffed her cheeks slightly and turned away— but the fury had noticeably subsided.
"Shogun, do you think that little girl has any chance of resisting Ei?"
Su Ran pointed at Lumine.
Sure, he set the story framework.
But how things developed inside that framework… he didn't control.
And mind-controlling every character?
Too boring.
"You talk like you're older than her."
The Shogun glanced at him suspiciously.
Su Ran wasn't even thirty.
How did he have the face to call someone who'd lived over five hundred years a "little girl"?
"She's shorter than me. That makes her a little girl."
"Ridiculous logic. And no—she can't beat Ei. Not in strength, not in conviction."
The Shogun firmly shook her head.
Su Ran had given Ei far too much.
The resurrected Raiden Makoto.
The eternal dream that would never collapse.
To protect such an eternity—
Ei's will couldn't possibly be shaken.
Even the Shogun herself acknowledged this dream as "Eternity's manifestation."
If the dream collapsed, everything would disappear.
To Ei, that pain would surpass even death.
If the Traveler truly posed a threat to the dream…
Musou no Hitotachi would absolutely descend.
Even if dreams couldn't kill, Ei would not hesitate.
"Yeah, I feel the same. Should I buff her a little?"
The dream's most crucial mechanic was collective consciousness.
Normally, dream residents wouldn't destabilize it— everything was calm.
But if too many people feared, resisted, or rejected the dream, they could create a feedback surge—
A surge capable of breaking the dream entirely.
Thus, if Ei wanted to maintain it, her own will had to overpower everyone else's.
And Su Ran didn't believe she could.
Not when there were other strong wills here.
Like Zhongli's, currently sitting in prison.
Ei alone couldn't handle him.
"Don't go overboard. Right now, you're her biggest source of stability."
As Ei's former vessel, the Shogun understood her deeply.
Su Ran was too important to Ei.
She practically wished she could glue her eyes to him 24/7, terrified he'd vanish.
"I know. When the time comes, I'll let Makoto return to reality.
Then the sisters can reunite— Ei may get mad, but she won't hate me."
For Ei, Makoto was the deepest soft spot.
If she learned Makoto beside her was real…
The joy would outweigh everything.
"She has a violent temper."
"I know."
"She'll probably still slash you."
"I understand."
"With Musou no Hitotachi."
"I'm not afraid."
The Shogun exhaled helplessly.
What else could she say?
In the end, the dream would be hers.
Ei, once reunited with her beloved sister, would forget about her vessel anyway.
No need to worry too much.
But one thing was certain— she would never lend her body to Ei again.
She had her own body now.
A bit small, sure…
…but that just meant Raiden Makoto could hold her in her arms.
In that sense, Ei was the one who really profited.
"Shogun, keep an eye on them.
I'm going to the Herta Space Station to check if my materials are ready."
"It's only been a short time. They're done already?"
Ei genuinely looked surprised.
Was the outside world… that efficient?
"Of course.
I'm in a bit of a hurry, so I'll go supervise personally.
If someone's watching, efficiency always improves."
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