Even if one could not grasp just how terrifying Su Ran's strength truly was, the Raiden Shogun could no longer muster hostility toward him.
She was no longer that stubborn puppet of old.
She had learned flexibility, learned compromise.
Su Ran's power was unquestionably above that of any Archon.
Perhaps even Celestia itself would not be his equal.
This was something the Shogun had personally confirmed.
So when Kujou Takayuki spat out such reckless words, her first reaction was to ask herself: Just me?
Raiden Shogun, oh Raiden Shogun!
You have no obligation to pit yourself against a man who cannot be defeated.
And then the truth dawned on her— Why should she oppose him at all?
Su Ran was now the very creator of eternity itself.
They were allies.
It was Kujou Takayuki who had betrayed her eternity, colluding with the Fatui, slandering the innocent.
Such a man deserved death.
For him to deny eternity to her face, and even try to frame another?
Did he take her for a fool?
"Do you know who he is? He is the one who defeated me."
"…"
The words clogged Kujou Takayuki's throat.
His chest full of arguments suddenly choked into silence.
He looked up with dread at the man holding the tiny Raiden Ei.
Su Ran added lightly, "Hard to believe, I know. But I'm a Fatui Harbinger.
As for your collusion with the Fatui—well, I have evidence."
One word from him, and the Fatui stationed in Inazuma would produce everything on the spot.
His rank among the Fatui was high— so high that no one dared oppose him, unless another Harbinger appeared.
For though "the Genius" was a parachuted Harbinger, and all obeyed his orders, he had never once contacted those Fatui agents in Inazuma.
They only knew his face, nothing more.
"Shall I show the evidence, Kujou-Lord?"
Su Ran crouched down with a mocking smile.
"My apologies. Who would have thought I'd be the one to sell you out—my own partner?"
The false apology only made his fury burn hotter.
Kujou Takayuki's eyes nearly promised to devour him whole.
Hiiragi Shinsuke, by contrast, was shaken but cautious.
He would not repeat Kujou's folly of speaking out of turn.
"You Fatui… vile beyond belief!
Had my eyes been keener, I would never have dealt with you!"
Now even Kujou knew there was no escape.
For if the Shogun herself admitted this man surpassed her, their schemes were already doomed.
The Kujou Clan had relied on her might as their shield.
If even she could not win, what chance did they have?
When fists were strong enough, all schemes became empty words.
"Guards! Take Kujou Takayuki away!"
The Shogun waved her hand.
Two members of the Tenryou Commission's troops entered, dragging him out by force.
With his only ally gone, Hiiragi Shinsuke was left to stew in regret.
Why had he followed Kujou Takayuki here?
Why had he joined in this foolish plea?
But the die was cast.
Now all he could do was try to lessen the punishment awaiting the Hiiragi.
"Now it's your turn, old man.
What reason do you have?"
Compared to Kujou's crimes, Hiiragi Shinsuke's seemed almost minor— embezzlement, forged accounts, extorting foreign merchants.
Still serious, but with Kujou's betrayal as contrast, his sins seemed lighter.
"Will you bow out gracefully, or shall I act for you?"
Su Ran had no stake in Inazuma's factions.
He targeted them only because he disliked them.
Had they not come today, he would have spared himself the trouble.
But since they had come— he would entertain them properly.
"…Do I still have a chance, Harbinger-Sir?"
Unlike the doomed Kujou, Hiiragi Shinsuke was quick to bend.
They had come to submit a memorial, and now one of them was being dragged away.
Su Ran was no ruler, only a Fatui Harbinger— but Shinsuke had dealt with the Fatui before.
He knew well how direct they could be.
"There is a chance. Depends on your performance, Hiiragi-Lord."
Su Ran patted the old man's shoulder.
"If it pleases you, my clan can offer up ninety percent of its assets."
Shinsuke had realized it.
The Shogun's dream was no empty promise.
It would soon be reality.
What use was wealth left behind then?
He left a tenth only as a faint hope— that if the dream shattered one day, the Hiiragi would not fall all the way to commoners.
"…Quite generous of you," Su Ran admitted, surprised.
Ninety percent of assets was no small offering.
Though Inazuma sat at the edge of Teyvat, it was still one of the Seven Nations.
And with trade flowing from nearby Liyue, the Kanjou Commission's treasury was no small matter.
Ninety percent— enough to tempt even the wealthy.
Seeing Su Ran's expression soften, Shinsuke seized his chance.
"Not only that… I have a daughter, whose beauty could shame moon and flowers, sink fish, startle geese…"
The Kujou Clan was finished.
Any marriage arrangement between their families was void.
And people were nothing if not realistic.
The Hiiragi would not save a doomed house.
Better to seize this chance to cling to the leg of the man who now swayed even the Shogun.
But Su Ran only looked at him with disdain.
"Enough. I'm not interested in your daughter.
However pretty she may be— can she compare to the Shogun herself?"
"Of… of course not…"
Hiiragi Shinsuke cast a terrified glance at the Raiden Shogun, sweat streaming down his face.