The Battle with the False God
The screen continued playing.
Nahida raised her small hand, activating her power.
In the next moment—
A terrifying aura burst from the Shouki no Kami.
The shockwave forced Lumine and the others backward.
Scaramouche spread his arms above the giant mechanical throne, looking down at them like a ruler.
"So eager…"
"The world seems eager for my birth."
"I remember you."
"The God of Wisdom."
"And the Traveler."
Paimon trembled.
"D-Did he already become all-knowing like Greater Lord Rukkhadevata?"
Nahida shook her head calmly.
"No."
"I don't sense the same divinity."
"The sages never finished implanting the divine knowledge."
"But…"
She looked up seriously.
"He is still a true god now."
Paimon hid behind Lumine.
"D-Did we arrive too late?"
Scaramouche laughed.
"'Scaramouche'…"
"That name belongs to the distant past."
He raised his hand as if gripping the world.
"When one ascends to godhood, it feels as if countless ages have passed."
"Looking back now…"
"The existence once called Kunikuzushi is insignificant."
"Ugly."
The cockpit was sealed.
The mechanical god's aura erupted.
Scaramouche's "God Speech"
Then the speeches began.
"The heart of every god must be engraved with conflict."
"Can't you feel it?"
"The excitement of divine power?"
Paimon stomped angrily.
"Nahida would never feel the same as you!"
Scaramouche sneered.
"You dare interrupt a conversation between gods?"
"Know your place."
Nahida answered calmly.
"You mean the Archon War?"
"The peace of Teyvat today was not easily achieved."
"Recreating such a conflict would only be meaningless destruction."
Scaramouche laughed.
"Is that so?"
"I regret never experiencing a true Archon War."
"A god who doesn't crave power…"
"How rare."
"No wonder even your predecessor abandoned you."
Lumine immediately stepped forward.
"From now on, Nahida will only gain more followers."
Scaramouche scoffed.
"Traveler."
"Your judgment is as weightless as your existence."
He raised his hand again.
"Wisdom cannot solve everything."
"You have only one choice."
"Fight."
"Let us recreate a fragment of the Archon War."
"And prove my birth as a god."
The Boss Battle
The battle began.
While fighting, Scaramouche continued his dramatic proclamations.
"Behold divine power!"
"Insects dare challenge a god!"
"Mortals will lose their place in this world!"
"Cycle of annihilation!"
Then he shouted proudly—
"Beelzebul!"
"You are powerless now!"
"Beelzebul…"
"I have ascended to godhood!"
Chat Completely Loses It
Lumine laughed.
"I thought he was a grand villain."
"He's just a huge chuuni."
Paimon added:
"And super rude!"
Barbara said gently:
"He reminds me of Fischl…"
Amber agreed.
Fischl immediately protested.
"I am the Prinzessin der Verurteilung!"
Oz translated:
"My lady says she has nothing to do with this person."
The chat burst into laughter.
The "Archon War Invitation"
Alice suddenly wrote:
"Oh? Someone wanted to experience the Archon War?"
Signora mocked him.
"With that attitude he wouldn't survive half a day."
Childe laughed.
"Exactly."
Then Hu Tao joined in.
"Well…"
"If someone wants a war…"
"Shouldn't we help?"
She tagged everyone.
Venti.
Zhongli.
Ei.
Makoto.
Nahida.
Furina.
Venti replied immediately.
"Of course!"
"I'm always happy to help."
"Send the location."
"One bottle of wine is enough payment."
Zhongli added calmly.
"Location."
"Payment: one meal."
Makoto replied.
"Ei has already gone."
Nahida hesitated.
"I might not win though…"
Lumine replied confidently.
"No problem."
"You have your First Sage."
Furina cleared her throat.
"Neuvillette."
The Chief Justice sighed.
"…Very well."
"I also wish to witness the power of the Archon War."
Then more participants appeared.
Guizhong joined.
Azhdaha joined.
Dvalin joined.
The lineup became ridiculous.
Three Archons.
Three Dragon Kings.
One ancient god.
One Traveler.
The chat exploded with laughter.
Scaramouche's Reaction
Meanwhile—
Scaramouche was still running from Ei.
When he saw the messages, his face turned red and white.
He clenched his fists.
But he wasn't stupid.
Even with the mech—
He might struggle against one god.
Now there were seven.
He wisely chose silence.
Ei's Response
Yae Miko teased her.
"Ei."
"He said you were powerless."
"You're not angry?"
Guuji and others joined the teasing.
Ei finally replied.
"He said I was powerless."
"He said he ascended to godhood."
She smiled coldly.
"No need for everyone to join."
"I alone am enough."
"I will personally show him…"
"…what the Archon War truly means."
Then she increased the search effort.
The Fall of the False God
Back on the screen—
With Nahida's dream power and the Traveler's help—
The Shouki no Kami was defeated.
Paimon sighed in relief.
"Ahhh that felt good."
Nahida smiled.
"Indeed."
Hu Tao laughed.
"A real god wouldn't keep saying 'I am a god' every five minutes."
Neuvillette suddenly tagged someone.
"There is one who does."
@Furina
Then he paused.
"Oh."
"She's a special case."
Furina:
"???!!!"
The Next Tragedy
Luo Chen turned serious again.
"We've discussed the god-creation plot."
"But Nahida's suffering has one final part."
"The most tragic one."
"Broken Dreams of the Branches."
"This event affected Nahida."
"It affected Sumeru."
"And it affected all of Teyvat."
Everyone became silent.
If even the god-creation conspiracy wasn't the real turning point…
What could possibly be worse?
Luo Chen sighed.
"Sumeru has always suffered."
"Thousands of years ago, King Deshret introduced forbidden knowledge."
"After that, two phenomena appeared."
The Withering.
And
Eleazar.
The Withering destroyed forests and life.
Eleazar caused black scale-like growths on the body.
At first, numbness.
Later, loss of strength.
Eventually—
Complete paralysis.
Both Dunyarzad and Collei had suffered from it.
Then Luo Chen revealed the truth.
"The root cause of both diseases is the same."
"Irminsul's corruption."
"The World Tree was infected by forbidden knowledge."
"Rukkhadevata once removed most of it."
"But one fragment remained."
"That fragment…"
"…was Rukkhadevata herself."
Because she was connected to Irminsul.
When the tree was corrupted—
She was corrupted too.
Even after her death—
Her memories remained in the World Tree.
And so did the corruption.
That was why the Withering and Eleazar never truly disappeared.
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