What terrifying talent.
Back inside the Fatui's delusion factory in Inazuma, Dottore stared ahead, his face etched with disbelief as he returned to the facility. His segments were scattered across all of Teyvat, hidden away in the seven nations and forgotten ruins alike. Naturally, one such segment had been stationed in Inazuma, intending to depart this very morning.
He had boarded a ship, but after sailing for a while, he found himself right back at the departure point. At first, Dottore assumed someone was playing a elaborate prank on him. He made thorough preparations and set out once more, even meticulously measuring the distance he traveled by sea.
Ten kilometers.
Ten kilometers was the hard limit. The moment he crossed that threshold, he would be transported back to the starting point. It did not matter how many times he tried; the result remained the same, as if the world itself were telling him that no road existed beyond that boundary and that further exploration was futile.
That was not all. His connection to every other segment scattered across the world had been severed. The segment currently in Inazuma had become an isolated entity. Connecting these events to the words of the Raiden Shogun from a few days prior, Dottore realized he was trapped inside a dream.
There had been no warning signs. Save for a sudden, inexplicable wave of exhaustion the previous night, he had fallen asleep for less than three seconds before waking up. He never imagined that a mere three seconds would be enough to seal his fate. He had been dragged into this dreamscape, crafted by that genius.
As for why he was certain this was not the work of the Raiden Shogun, Dottore's reasoning was simple: she lacked both the ability and the talent for such a feat.
I possess such capability, so why didn't you bring me along?
Dottore felt a deep sense of frustration. He knew the genius disliked him, but in a matter this fascinating, what harm would one extra assistant have done? Even if he were not an assistant, he could have been an eager scholar. A true sage would never hesitate to spread their knowledge, and on this point, even Dottore prided himself on being willing to share his research, even if few people actually appreciated it.
Was the genius worried that once he learned the secret, he would surpass him? It made no sense, as bringing him along would hardly have resulted in any losses. They were both Harbingers of the Fatui, after all. At worst, once he finished learning, he would have been willing to let this segment be discarded.
Of course, he could not blame Su Ran entirely for his prejudice. He had his own faults. When he first heard the Raiden Shogun speak of weaving a dream for all of Inazuma, he should not have scoffed at the idea. Had he paid enough attention back then, perhaps he might have seized an opportunity.
It is time to meet that cold-hearted colleague. Even Sumeru could manufacture such a dream, but they had no Akasha Terminal here.
To trap the entire nation of Inazuma in a dream without any tools was no small feat. Human consciousness was incredibly complex. How could this genius guarantee the creation of such a realm without the World Tree or the Akasha? The sheer volume of calculation required was not something one could just conjure out of thin air.
Did he capture the Raiden Shogun?
Dottore quickly dismissed the thought. The Raiden Shogun was no pathetic deity. She possessed power, immense power. She was not a weakling like the Lesser Lord Kusanali. She could not possibly be imprisoned so easily.
So, what was the principle behind this dream? Where did its core reside? Perhaps the answer lay within Tenshukaku. After all, it was the residence of the gods.
***
"That was a long nap. Do you feel any discomfort, Ayaka?"
"I do not."
"It seems my lap pillow was quite effective, then."
"..."
If Su Ran were not so eccentric, Kamisato Ayaka doubted she could have developed such a strong affinity for him in such a short amount of time. He was certainly far more approachable than the Raiden Shogun.
"What do you think of Ei?"
"Lady Ei? She... I suppose she must be a lonely deity, is she not?"
Kamisato Ayaka did not know much about Raiden Ei, only that she was the true deity of Inazuma. The people of Inazuma could only ever see the puppet created by her.
"Lonely? Perhaps in the past. But now? She is more like a child who loves to throw tantrums."
"That... that cannot be true, surely?"
Even the younger version of Ei did not seem like the type to throw fits. When she had held her the day before, Ayaka had not felt that the shrunken Raiden Shogun would be the type to weep and make a scene.
"I have proof. She said as much herself. Why don't we stay here and watch her throw a tantrum a little later?"
He had intended to pull out the evidence immediately, but considering that Tenshukaku was their home, Ei and Makoto would surely return. There was no need to rush. However, seeing the Raiden Shogun split once more would likely startle Ayaka yet again. She had been shocked enough when she first saw the younger Ei. If a Makoto appeared now, she might simply grow numb to the absurdity of it all.
"Right, I'll ask you another thing. Does Ayaka prefer the gentle Raiden Shogun, the serious one, or the rather dim-witted one?"
There were truly three deities in Inazuma now, all of them looking exactly the same.
"By the gentle deity, you mean..."
Kamisato Ayaka had a general idea about the serious one and the dim-witted one, but gentle?
Could Master Su Ran be speaking of himself again? Besides, he was hardly gentle himself, given how much he loved to tease women.
"Because aside from Ei, there is also Makoto. Another Raiden Shogun has returned to Inazuma. It is quite a nuisance, really. The people of Inazuma will have yet another god to worship."
"Pardon?"
Kamisato Ayaka found the news unbelievable. If the Shogun was the outer shell and Ei was the essence within, then who was this Makoto? Was this still the Inazuma she knew?
"On a side note, now that she knows a genius as excellent as myself is also a suitor of yours, that gentle Makoto is quite curious about you. You must make sure not to lose your composure when you meet her."