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"Is this the part where I deliver a cool one-liner?"
In the modern world, this might seem a bit juvenile. However, this is Teyvat, and Inazuma remains a relatively traditional land. Who knows? Perhaps it might actually come across as imposing.
Su Ran stared at The Doctor and the bewildered Fatui gathered behind him. Meanwhile, the Shogunate guard stationed at Tenshukaku had noticed the sudden arrival of the large Fatui contingent and quickly tightened their formation. Any unauthorized army appearing before Tenshukaku was subject to immediate execution.
Su Ran had been a frequent visitor to Tenshukaku lately, so the Shogunate guard felt no reason to suspect him. In fact, compared to the Fatui before them, Su Ran was beyond reproach.
"What a pity. Here I am, face-to-face with the real you, yet I am not my most powerful segment."
The Doctor had already finished testing the waters. He realized that as a single segment—and not even his strongest one—he stood no chance. The gap in power was simply too vast, and this was someone else's home turf.
"It doesn't matter how many of you show up. The difference in strength is absolute. Even if you gathered every single one of your segments, you still wouldn't be my match."
The Doctor was a troublesome existence, certainly, but in this dream, the most selfish segment was absent. Su Ran felt no concern that this would derail his plans.
"I see, you are even more arrogant than I am. It is just... I fear I will not live to see the day you pay the price for that arrogance."
The Doctor had resigned himself to his fate, having witnessed the power coalescing in Su Ran's hand. It was a force that surpassed anything he had ever encountered, leading him to wonder if even the entirety of the Tsaritsa's divine power could measure up to the energy Su Ran now held.
"Time for your exit."
Since The Doctor had stopped struggling, Su Ran saw no reason for further chatter. He acted decisively. The energy in his palm—enough to equal the full force of ten strikes from Raiden Ei—transformed instantly into countless thorns that ensnared The Doctor's consciousness. Even as he faced his end, the segment tried to gauge the strength of the power pinning him down, but it was futile. Total erasure followed.
In reality, the physical shell of that segment slumped into a state of permanent cerebral death. Even if the body's various functions continued to operate, there was no possibility of recovery, even after the dream dissolved.
Eliminating one of The Doctor's segments was hardly a battle for Su Ran. It was even simpler than defeating the Raiden Shogun. It was just a one-sided annihilation.
The surrounding Fatui fell into a heavy silence. They had witnessed The Doctor's death with their own eyes, slain by the hand of the Genius. Unsure of the situation, they could only stand in place, lost and confused.
"Move out. You still have your orders. Or do you intend to hold a memorial service for The Doctor here?"
Su Ran had no interest in striking down the remaining Fatui. He even harbored thoughts of making use of them, though that would have to wait until the Traveler arrived.
"This... Master Genius, we have no active missions at the moment."
A Mirror Maiden, seeing that the others lacked the courage to address the Harbinger, steeled her nerves and stepped forward.
"Then stay in the shadows and wait for the storm to arrive."
The Mirror Maiden stayed silent. I understand the logic, but did you really have to say it so loudly? The Shogunate guard were staring at them like common criminals.
"Understood!"
It seemed the Shogunate guard were wary of Su Ran, so despite keeping their weapons leveled at the Fatui, they refrained from taking further action.
"Understood!"
The Fatui gathered before Tenshukaku quickly retreated. Yet, they were destined to be watched closely by the Inazuman soldiers from now on. Today's events had been too sudden. That a foreign army could gather so casually before the residence of the deity was a serious failure, one for which the Tenryou Commission and the surrounding Shogunate guard would certainly have to answer. Raiden Ei might not have time to concern herself with the guard, but Kujou Sara would undoubtedly be reorganizing the Tenryou Commission soldiers soon enough.
Su Ran turned away as if nothing had happened, walking into Tenshukaku under the complex gazes of the Shogunate guard. What were they supposed to do? Arrest this powerful figure who seemed involved with the Fatui? Should they wait for the Shogun to issue a decree?
Perhaps the commotion had been too great, as it drew the Raiden Shogun back to the entrance.
"What has occurred here?"
Seeing the disarray among the Shogunate guard, the Shogun guessed they had learned something.
"Reporting to the Shogun, Master Su Ran just killed a diplomat of the Fatui."
They could not hide the truth from the Raiden Shogun. The Shogunate guard answered directly to her; she was their sole authority. They would not stop Su Ran, but they would not take orders from him either, not without a decree from the Shogun herself.
"I see. Anything else?"
"He ordered the Fatui to remain in hiding and wait for the storm."
It was a blatant display of ill intent, yet the man seemed to share a complicated relationship with the Shogun. They could only stand by and watch.
"Understood. Continue your watch at Tenshukaku."
The answer from the Shogunate guard failed to stir any reaction in the Shogun. She spoke coldly and walked out of Tenshukaku. She needed to continue her research into this dream, or rather, to continue probing the nature of eternity within it.
The Shogun's indifference signaled to the Shogunate guard that they, too, should ignore their wariness of Su Ran. If even the Shogun didn't care, they saw no reason to waste their energy.
High above in Tenshukaku, Ei and Raiden Ei watched the scene unfold. Seeing the moment Su Ran completely erased The Doctor, a flicker of unease grew within Ei.
"Was it not said that death does not exist in this dream?"
Wasn't this a realm free from life, aging, sickness, and death? Why had a death suddenly manifested? This did not bode well for eternity.
"Ei, do not forget who created this dream. Is it so strange that he possesses a few privileges?"
Raiden Ei felt exhausted. Her sister was so easily rattled by small trifles. Was she still this immature? Had she yet to grasp whose dream this truly was? She couldn't possibly think this dream belonged to her, could she?