"Don't worry,"
Kaeya said, trying to calm everyone down.
"Didn't you hear Boss Han? The Doctor's experience card only lasts three minutes.
As long as we can hold out until then, we'll be fine."
"Hold out…?"
Diluc fell silent, deep in thought.
He recalled what the One Piece manga had said— the Logia-type Devil Fruit users couldn't be harmed by physical attacks.
And the Flame-Flame Fruit was exactly one of those Logia fruits.
Once he ate it, Dottore wouldn't be able to touch him at all.
And with 24 hours of duration on his experience card, he could simply wait out Dottore's three minutes with ease.
A faint glint flashed in his eyes as he made up his mind.
He didn't speak further and just sat quietly, gaze locked on the counter area ahead.
"The Infinite Cannon of Machinedramon, huh? Now that I like."
Dottore's lips curved into a grin.
Machinedramon was far stronger than Andromon— a monster created from the parts of countless mechanical Digimon.
If he could study that weapon, he might even develop something greater than what existed in Teyvat.
"It's just a pity the duration's only three minutes," he sighed, though his tone remained smug.
Then he glanced briefly at Signora.
"Let's go."
"I still have things to do here,"
Signora said after a moment's hesitation.
Outwardly, the shop was calm and peaceful.
But she knew the moment they stepped outside, things would definitely turn violent.
She didn't want to be dragged into Dottore's conflicts— not because she feared Mondstadt, but because of this comic shop.
She wanted to keep reading here in peace.
If a fight broke out and the Knights or Han Feng himself were angered, it would ruin everything.
Han Feng had good relations with many of the female Knights— if any of them got hurt, that would be bad news for everyone.
So she decided: whatever Dottore did was his own problem.
As long as he didn't mess with the shop, she wouldn't intervene.
Dottore gave her a long, cold look, then turned and strode out without another word.
"Let's move!"
Diluc and Kaeya exchanged a glance and followed.
Eula and Amber quickly joined them as well.
"Should we go too?"
Ningguang looked at Keqing.
"If we go out, we'll just be teleported back to Liyue.
We won't see anything."
Keqing sighed, shaking her head.
She hadn't thought of that before—what a miscalculation.
Han Feng chuckled softly at their disappointment.
With a wave of his hand, a huge projection screen appeared above the shop, displaying the scene outside where Diluc and the others had gone.
"Didn't expect Boss Han to have a trick like that,"
Keqing's eyes lit up in delight.
"Now we won't miss a thing!"
"Maybe he did it because he knew you'd be upset,"
Ningguang teased.
Keqing rolled her eyes.
"…"
She didn't bother replying— she finally realized how to deal with Ningguang.
Just ignore her.
Sure enough, without an audience, Ningguang soon fell quiet and turned her attention to the display as well.
"Ah… the little cat's learning,"
Ningguang muttered to herself with a smile, then focused on the battle outside.
Outside the Solace Book Store
"So, you really intend to fight me today?"
Dottore halted and turned around, his cold voice echoing through the street.
"I'm a diplomatic envoy of Snezhnaya.
If anything happens to me—can you afford the consequences?"
Eula and Amber frowned.
As much as they hated the Doctor, without Captain Jean present, they weren't sure how far they were allowed to go.
"The Knights of Favonius… always hesitating as usual."
Diluc snorted and stepped forward, fire flashing in his eyes.
"Times have changed, Doctor.
You can't use Snezhnaya's name to threaten us anymore.
Tonight, I'll avenge my father!"
Every time he thought of his father's death at this man's hands,
rage surged up from deep within.
"Just the four of you?"
Dottore's voice dripped with mockery.
He clearly didn't see them as a threat— especially not now, when he had a trump card: the Infinite Cannon.
Even if it lasted only three minutes, that was all he'd need to annihilate them.
"I don't intend to waste time on small fry.
Let me end this quickly!"
With that, Dottore tore off his cloak, revealing the horrifying fusion of flesh and machine beneath.
From within the metallic mass on his chest, a glowing Delusion pulsed violently.
"Let me show you the power of a Delusion!"
The air trembled as an ominous force surged outward.
Before their eyes, Dottore's body expanded— metal plates shifting, limbs thickening,
until a towering steel giant stood before them, a monstrous fusion of man and machine.
Back in the Shop
"So that's the power of a Delusion…"
Ningguang and Keqing frowned deeply.
"No wonder he's one of the Fatui Harbingers."
Even Abyss Traveler Aether looked surprised.
"Impressive… If only our Abyss Order had something like that, we could boost our power greatly."
On the Street
"Looks like I've got no choice."
Diluc sighed as he stared up at the metal giant towering over them.
He really hadn't wanted to do this— but there was no other way.
Reaching into his coat, he pulled out a Flame-Flame Fruit, and without another word,
took a huge bite.
"Ugh—! So… so disgusting!"
The moment it touched his tongue, his face twisted in horror.
He had never tasted anything so vile in his life— the bitterness, the texture, the indescribable awfulness!
Dottore: (⊙_⊙)
"What… what are you doing?!"
Eating a fruit before a fight?
Was this some new Mondstadt ritual?
And why did his expression look like he was dying?!
For a moment, the entire street fell into awkward silence.
What was supposed to be an explosive showdown
had turned into a bizarre scene—
Kaeya, Amber, and Eula standing there watching quietly, a giant steel monster frozen in place, and Diluc grimacing horribly as he forced down the last bite.
His face contorted again.
"…By Barbatos, that was revolting."
The spectators back in the comic shop couldn't help laughing.
Even Han Feng's mouth twitched.
The battle had yet to begin— and already, chaos was in full swing.
~~--------------------------------------
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