-I understand your current reaction, but it would be best to return to the retelling. -Albedo suggested a minute or two later, looking and sounding slightly annoyed, but way less than Emilia did by his side. -...As interesting as it is to see you all share your thoughts on those events, we already got distracted quite enough by now. If it continues, we all might need to gather for another day.
-We also still need to give Fischl the summary notes, as well as continue to work on our own many projects. -Emilia added, looking and sounding very annoyed now. -Besides that, do you remember what this "meeting" was initially for...? It is best to spare people from unneeded worry due to not knowing if the "recent crisis" is truly over now.
"And everyone must also already be preparing for the upcoming Windblume!", Paimon added in some surprise, as did the Traveler, who soon nodded along, "We got so caught up in our hate for Dottore and Azar that..."
"...We completely forgot that the main reason for this retelling was to reassure everyone the "Irminsul burning" situation was now truly over.", the Traveler ended for her, looking a little ashamed, before they deeply sighed, "...And here we are dallying again. Let's just continue the retelling.", they soon added, before there was short silence, "After Samir punished Azar, Dottore still looked more amused than anything. It didn't look like he cared in the slightest that his "ally" was barely conscious now and withering in pain. He even told Samir that it was "a splendid hit once again", before suggesting to bring him some more "targets". Apparently he wanted to see what other attacks Samir can do in that ball form of his. And then Dottore turned to Nahida and asked to check those "Illusion mushrooms" of hers, while spreading his arms wide and telling her to throw some of them on himself. This guy is really as insane as it goes..."
"...Yeah, he also apparently let one of his clones be caught and detained by the Temple of Silence. Just so he could "study" their abilities "from up close", which led to his clone getting killed. Paimon heard a little about it when Paimon let the Temple of silence study Paimon.", The Pixie soon added, looking and sounding a little creeped out, "...Well, at least that explains why he let so many of his clones die to Samir's attacks while we were fighting against Shinjimouche: He would use anyone in order to further his "research"...By any means necessary."
"Like the way he made Haypasia willingly sacrifice herself for her "Majestic God". Even if she got burned to a crisp in the process.", the Traveler added, looking and sounding quite serious, "...Yes, this is when Scaramouche finally appeared, after being strangely missing during all the earlier chaos. And what an appearance it was! He almost burned Sumeru city down to the ground.", they ended in dead seriousness, before sighing in some annoyance, "Seriously, it was even worse than the corrupted Raiden Shogun cooking Signora at that time. First there was an AOE lighting strike on the whole city, then a huge shadow was cast from above and everyone noticed the huge robot. Thankfully those on "our side" survived, even if some people still got a little burned (can't say the same for "the opposition", those who survived are now definitely wishing to be dead). But really, why did Scaramouche have to make such a dramatic entrance...? Was he compensating for something...?"
-That Fatui is an annoying and loud-mouthed midget, so I am quite certain he was. -A familiar voice was soon heard, just as a differently-dressed Diluc, a happy Kaeya and a puffy-eyed Varka entered the office. -As you can see, I was able to dry myself and had a temporary change of clothes. It's a spare Knight Trainee outfit, but it should suffice for now. -The redhead soon explained, looking and sounding mostly nonchalant, before his expression turned a little annoyed as he saw the reactions he was getting. -I understand what you must be thinking, but wearing this outfit again feels weird to me, at most. Before returning here, we had a certain discussion, you see.
-My dear big brother and Grandmaster Varka made up~ -Kaeya supplied, looking and sounding a little amused, before his expression turned grateful. -...Took long enough, but still better late than never, right...?
-...Yes, it is. I should have done this way sooner. -Varka quietly admitted, sounding a little guilt stricken, before a small smile appeared on his face. -Diluc, if it's okay with you...You have my permission to keep this outfit.
He suddenly said, upon turning to the other,
Whose expression turned surprised for a few seconds,
Before Diluc sighed, as his expression turned to a more neutral one...
-...I promise to think about it. Just give me some time to get used to it again. -He finally said, looking and sounding thoughtful, before he turned to look towards the "Viewing window". -...I already heard a summary of what I missed from the Winds, which should be enough to get the main picture. I would like it if you continue from where you left off before we came in, Traveler.
...
"Right. If you say so, Master Diluc.", the Traveler said a few moments later, sounding quite appreciative, "...So, Scaramouche appeared in his Evangelion(?)...Huge and clearly-not-somehow-based-on-another-robot Mecha Suit and started cooking his own supposed "allies", to the dark amusement of a certain "Mad Doctor".", they started, before there was a short pause, "Yeah, he really reminds me of Raiden Shogun. I suppose that this kind of "hobby" just runs in the family."
"As well as looking down on others! Paimon still remembers how he suddenly said "Bow before me, worm!" before trying to squish Paimon, Traveler and Nahida with one of the robot legs!", the Pixie added, looking and sounding very annoyed, a big pout appearing on her face, "Then, to make things even more annoying, missies started shooting from the sky and Dottore(that lunatic) said "It appears that the Ruin Golem located in the Valley of Dahri has somehow been activated. Someone should probably do something about it and soon before the city gets destroyed even more than it already did~", while grinning widely like a maniac!"
"Realizing what happened, Samir took on his "humanoid form" and teleported away to "take care of it", while everyone else was left to take care of Scaramouche. I should have realized by then that Dottore did this on purpose, but at the time, I was already a little tired from all the "excitement" that happened before.", the Traveler admitted, their expression soon turning weary and a little annoyed, "As we found out later, after completely destroying the Ruin Golem's functions, Samir was busy participating in one of Dottore's(that masochistic lunatic) "field experiments". At the same time, our group was working on evacuating the city, protecting everyone's retreat and battling against Scararobot.", they deeply sighed, "And "Scararobot" turned to be a way bigger problem than expected. Especially considering what exactly his "Mecha Suit" was powered with: The energy collected during the Samsara Dreamloops, the Caned Forbidden Knowledge contained within the "Divine Knowledge Capsules", the Archon Residue brutally extracted from Collei and the Time Power extracted from Venti's stolen Crystaltears."
It was now around 3 minutes later,
Yet, people were still processing the Traveler's last words...
"...Especially considering what exactly his "Mecha Suit" was powered with: The energy collected during the Samsara Dreamloops, the Caned Forbidden Knowledge contained within the "Divine Knowledge Capsules", the Archon Residue brutally extracted from Collei and the Time Power extracted from Venti's stolen Crystaltears."
With everyone looking between shocked, concerned and/or regretful...
*Some people way more than others, as was Albedo's case...
...
"...The Harbringer in question's name is Il Dottore."
"...And considering the news from Sumeru we were informed about...Particularly the fact that there is not enough energy in order for the Sages and the Fatui to create a god...
...This "Il Dottore", do you suppose he "sent" someone here to steal them or did so himself...?"
"...I can not say for certain, but it does seem like they are in his possession now.
...Scientific discoveries aside, there is always a line you should never cross. And from what we already know, this "Doctor" already crossed it long ago."
"...Which is more reason to inform Venti and the others of the theft.
..."Creating a god", are you certain this is truly all he is going to use the Crystaltears for...? His scheme might not end there...The same way as "Extracting the Archon Residue from Collei" did not end at just that.
...With those Crystaltears now in his possession, who can anticipate what else he will do…?"
...
...
-...I should have done a better job at making sure to safeguard those Crystaltears. But due to my incompetence, the Traveler and their allies must have gone through a lot of trouble. -He couldn't help but soon say, looking and sounding regretful, before proceeding to stand up, turn around and go into a respectful bow before Varka. -Grandmaster Varka, I would implore you to release me from my duties as a Chief Alchemist. For such an important position, I do not have the necessary...
"That's going too far!", the Traveler couldn't help but yell out, looking and sounding shocked, "I can't deny that we had trouble fighting against "Shinjimouche", but it was only partly due to the Time power from the Crystaltears. Besides that, knowing how Dottore is, he would have found a way to steal those Crystaltears even if you were safeguarding them 24/7!", they continued, looking quite serious and sounding reassuring, before their expression suddenly darkened, "...It's similar to that time when he kidnapped Collei just when she was busy doing her Forest Ranger Trainee duti..."
-Collei is doing great now and it's a big part thanks to you, Traveler! -Venti interrupted them, trying to sound as reassuring as possible. -Without having to constantly worry about Eleazar's progress on her body, she is free to live her life whichever way she wants. -He added in sincere gratefulness and warmth, hoping that the Traveler will take these words to heart. And it was not just the Traveler who needed reassuring...-Albedo, just as the Traveler said before, what happened is not your fault. Considering what Dottore did to Xiao only recently...Locking him in such a horrible nightmare, that even Nahida had trouble waking him up and...
-...This could have as well been my fate, is what you mean, yes...? -The Chief Alchemist ended for him, as he finally finished his earlier bow, looking and sounding thoughtful now. Getting locked up in a horrible nightmare...-...It does sound like an unpleasant situation to experience...-He couldn't help but admit, realizing that calling it "unpleasant" would be a grave misunderstanding. -...Alright, I will retract my earlier plea to remove me from the post of Chief Alchemist. But I would also like to work on the lab's defenses, if it is no trouble.
-Before you ask, yes, I might as well assist you in this particular matter. -Emilia said almost right away, sounding both quite serious and reassuring. -...There's a certain "project" I require a first test for, anyway...-She added, her expression turning a little amused now. -It has to do with my "Flower Garden", you see...~
-...Oh, so it has proceeded quite far. -Albedo thoughtfully said, sounding quite impressed, before his eyes narrowed in a glare. -...There should be no problems with safety, yes...? I do not want the lab to turn into another Dragonspine.
-They are very obedient children, so there should not be any problems in that regard~ -The Alchemist happily answered, before her expression turned a little eerie. -...So obedient, that they will follow any command which I give them, without question. Same goes for my "Dear Twin"s commands.
-...I thank you for trusting me with your creations, Emilia. -He gratefully told her, before glancing around the office, his expression changing to a slightly ashamed one. And this is after he told the Traveler that it is best not to dally…-...We better continue this discussion later. -He continued, before turning to look at the "Viewing Window". -Apologies for the delay, Traveler. Shamefully, I failed to follow my own advice.
...
"Oh, uh, yes, it's alright.", the Traveler reassured him moments later, looking and sounding a little concerned, "...This "Flower Garden" and the "Obedient Children" that you were just talking about…It's nothing too drastic, right...?", they made sure to carefully ask, soon getting two reassuring nods in reply, "...Alright, I am going to believe you. At least you two have morals that you take care to follow, unlike a certain "Mad Doctor".", they added in clear dislike and disgust, before sighing, "...Alright, continuing with the retelling...Our battle against Scararobot...", at these words they turned towards the Pixie, "...Want to tell the story, Paimon...?"
"Like always, Paimon doesn't mind it, Traveler!", the Pixie admitted, looking and sounding quite happy, "...Besides, you are the one fighting the most between the two of us, so it's the least Paimon can do...", she slightly sadly mumbled, before letting out a small sigh, "To summarize our fight with "Scararobot": It looked to be simple at first, using Nahida's ability to "lock" an enemy inside a Samsara Dreamloop. All the Traveler, Nahida and everyone else had to do was learn Shinjimouche's movements, so that the next "dream loop" we would be ready for his attacks. But soon, probably because of all the "different juices" powering the robot, things started getting harder and harder...And it didn't help that from the start of the fight and until the end, Scarabully kept targeting Nahida in particular, like he had some kind of grudge against her!", she recalled, her expression and voice soon getting quite annoyed, "...Like yeah, Paimon gets it, her using Sumeru's Katherine reminded him of Ei. But she's Nahida, not Ei, so targeting her just for that...!"
"He was probably already affected by corruption at that point, hence he kept targeting Nahida.", the Traveler suddenly said, looking and sounding thoughtful, before they sighed, "...And to think that the Sages planned to "revive Rukkhadevata" through him...It just made this whole situation even worse...", they then looked between everyone through the "Viewing Window", "Yes, we found out about this later, but Azar and his followers planned to revive Rukkhadevata, hence all the Divine Knowledge Capsules used on Scararobot. But they didn't take into account the Forbidden Knowledge and corruption that went along with it."
"Paimon is going to continue now.", the Pixie said a minute later, "So Nahida locked Shinjimouche inside a dream loop in order for the Traveler and everyone else to learn his attack patterns...Except that it worked for the first few loops, but then his attack patterns drastically started to change, as if he remembered the previous dream loops!", she dramatically yelled out, before her expression suddenly turned annoyed, "And not only that, he was even making mocking comments like "Oh, you really thought that such an obvious attack will work?", "You are so predictable, it's laughable!" and "I didn't know you were this dumb, it seems like I greatly overestimated you.", that ass*ole!"
"Nahida soon theorized that he indeed remembered the previous dream loops and the reason for this is the Time Power from the stolen Crystaltears powering his Mecha Suit. So our earlier plan not only failed, but since he knew what we were trying to do, Scararobot purposely tried to change his attack patterns each time.", the Traveler continued, looking and sounding a little weary, "And then after a few more loops, he got completely overcome by the Divine Knowledge and his attacks got even more powerful and unpredictable. Yet his "sarcastic comments" somehow stayed the same."
-I am not surprised in the least. -Diluc couldn't help but comment, looking and sounding quite annoyed. -Knowing how aggravating that Fatui is, of course the most annoying part of his personality would remain.
"Yeah, you are right, Master Diluc. Truthfully, after a while his comments started grating on my nerves.", the Traveler admitted, looking and sounding quite annoyed, as well, "...Everyone else must have felt the same way, since we gave it our all in our battle against him. And after a few more of those loops, we managed to defeat him, by breaking apart most of the Mecha Suit.", they suddenly sighed, "Only to have Dottore "swoop in" and rip out the Electro Gnosis out of Scaramouche's exposed body. Then he used some kind of syringe in order to get all the "Godly essence"(as Dottore called it) out of him, as well. All the while he was telling Scaramouche how much of a failure he was, but "can still be used as the experiment that he is, a lowly puppet and research material".", they recalled, looking and sounding a little sad for a few seconds, before their expression turned more neutral, "Honestly, the way Dottore acted back then and the things he said, I couldn't help but feel a little bit sad for Scaramouche. Dottore even admitted how he orchestrated most of Scaramouche's life, when the other was still known as "the Puppet"."
"I can continue from here, Traveler. Paimon was listening to the crazy bastard's retelling really well!", The Pixie soon said, looking and sounding a little annoyed, before her expression turned thoughtful, "...To summarize: Ei discarded "the Puppet" by leaving him to sleep inside the Shakkei Pavilion. A while later he woke up and wandered Inazuma, before being found by a Yoriki named Katsuragi and settling in Tatarasuna (where the Mikage Furnace is) with his new friend. He and Katsuragi even performed a sword dance together after the Daitatara Nagamasa was forged!", she added in some surprise, before sighing a second later, "And this is when Dottore "swooped in" and made things worse and worse. First he infiltrated Tatarasuna(disguised as another person) in order to do his "Fatui business" and then he had people smith weapons from Crystal Marrow of all things, which soon began killing people with its evil energy. Then, while "the Puppet" went to try talking to Ei (not knowing that Raiden Shogun was in charge by then) about the situation, Dottore murdered Tatarasuna's Armory Officer, Niwa Hisahide and gouged out his heart. Dottore(as his disguise Escher) then blamed Niwa for the incidents happening, by saying that he ran away and left everyone to their fates, before giving "the Puppet" a "Mysterious Box" that will help with getting rid of the evil energy in the Mikage Furnace.", Paimon visibly shuddered in rage after this, "The box Dottore gave him(which helped purify the place) had Niwa's heart in it, which Dottore said was the heart of a subordinate that Niwa killed. Not only that, since Niwa apparently "ran away", it led to Katsuragi getting slain by Mikoshi Nagamasa as part of capital punishment. THAT ASS*OLE BASTARD!", the Pixie yelled out in rage, huffing madly as she did so, before she sighed to calm herself, which didn't seem to work so well, "...After a while "the Puppet" met a child, who was very weak and sicky. And whose parents, who turned out to be workers from Tatarasuna (and contacted the "illness" there), were missing for a long time. This child, who became "the Puppet"s family, soon died too. This and the previous "betrayals" left "the Puppet"(Later Kunikuzushi and then Scaramouche) disappointed in people and "easy pickings" for the Fatui to recruit.", she explained, still seething, even if less now, "Dottore made sure to admit that this whole…"Situation" was a "hugely successful experiment" in order to have Scaramouche join the Fatui and do their bidding, before mumbling something else(which definitely took more than a minute) in the already weakened and clearly broken Scaramouche's ear. Then the bastard evilly grinned before teleporting away, pretty much leaving Scaramouche (who looked like his whole world has just ended and Paimon can't blame him for it) for dead.", she soon sighed, "Paimon thinks it's truly a miracle that Nahida managed to save Scaramouche's life. And even if Paimon hates Scaramouche, Paimon hates Dottore and what he did to everyone much much more!"