Su Mo simply found her words amusing. He shook his head slightly, smiling.
"An enemy of yours? Of course not," he replied.
Before he could finish, La Signora let out a cold laugh. "Hmph!"
She had expected as much. No one dared oppose the Fatui. Not even one who could subdue Stormterror.
"Very wise. You know how to read the situation." She sneered. "Compared to this fragile little nation of Mondstadt, Snezhnaya might suit you far better. How about it? Would you consider joining us?"
Seeing what she believed to be Su Mo's capitulation, La Signora pushed further, actually attempting to recruit him.
"You—!" Jean and Kaeya both froze, their faces darkening instantly. It was as though they were hapless victims watching their beloved being stolen right in front of them—a painful, complicated blend of anger, panic, and helplessness.
Even though they were anxious, neither of them had any right to interfere in Su Mo's decision. All they could do was watch, hearts sinking. If Su Mo truly defected to the Fatui, they would be powerless to stop him.
Fortunately, Su Mo had no such intention.
For one, he could never abandon Lumine. And more importantly, he still held a deep grudge.
Before he crossed into this world, he had vividly remembered how this very woman ruthlessly kicked Venti in front of him. If La Signora had been able to trigger a health bar back then, Su Mo would have willingly burned through his entire stash of potions and premium currency just to kill her ten times over.
Now, she was standing before him, alive and arrogant, daring to posture in front of him. How could he tolerate that?
Of course he couldn't.
Ignoring La Signora's invitation entirely, Su Mo calmly continued, "It's not a question of whether I want to make an enemy of you. The real question is—have you and your Fatui, your Snezhnaya, and your Tsaritsa prepared yourselves… to be my enemy?"
His tone was relaxed, but his words carried an undeniable weight.
Su Mo's voice was calm, almost too calm to sound like a threat. Yet no one present could find the courage to speak. The invisible pressure hanging in the air was overwhelming, pressing down on them like an enormous weight. Even the gentle breeze that had been swirling moments ago came to an abrupt halt, as though the entire world had fallen into a stifling stillness.
Suddenly, the sky darkened ominously, as though nature itself had grown furious. Thick black clouds gathered overhead, heavy like molten lead, their weight seemingly capable of crushing the entire city. Under this suffocating pressure, no one dared make even the slightest sound, fearing that any noise might anger the overwhelming force looming above them.
Even La Signora, proud as she was, couldn't suppress the growing fear in her heart. With just a single thought, Su Mo had caused the heavens to shift. Not even the Tsaritsa of Snezhnaya possessed such terrifying power. Trembling slightly, La Signora finally grasped the gravity of the situation and the kind of enemy she had provoked. Her voice quivered as she tried to speak, "Who exactly are—"
But before she could finish, her words were drowned out by a deafening crack of thunder.
BOOM—!!
A blinding flash of violet lightning, like a divine sword of judgment, descended from the stormy clouds and struck La Signora directly. She barely managed to summon a layer of ice to shield herself, but the savage lightning engulfed her instantly.
Before anyone could even react, another bolt struck.
BOOM—!!
BOOM—!!
BOOM—!!
The furious lightning continued to rain down mercilessly. Dozens of strikes battered her one after another, as though the heavens themselves sought her annihilation. Only after the storm of lightning finally subsided did the clouds begin to calm.
Su Mo's voice rang out again, cold and indifferent. "You need only answer with a simple yes or no. Based on your answer, I will decide whether to regard your Snezhnaya as my enemy. No other words are necessary."
When dealing with the arrogant Fatui, one simply had to be even more domineering.
The knights of the Knights of Favonius, watching the once-arrogant Fatui being utterly crushed, couldn't help but feel a sense of satisfaction. Yet, mixed within that satisfaction was also a lingering confusion, which Paimon seemed to share.
"Su Mo, after being struck like that, won't that wicked woman be dead already? Why even bother asking her anything?" Paimon floated around him, casually sticking close even after witnessing his godlike power. Besides Lumine, perhaps only Paimon had the guts to act so freely around him.
Finding Paimon's innocence rather endearing, Su Mo reached out to gently rub her little head before patiently explaining, "The power of lightning is fierce, but within this world's elemental reactions, it can sometimes be countered by Cryo. Besides, due to certain... peculiar rules in this world, Electro tends to be a bit underwhelming. Add to that the power granted to her by the Tsaritsa, it won't be that easy for her to die."
Cryo could break through Electro's defenses. Su Mo wasn't entirely sure of the exact principle—perhaps something akin to superconductivity channeling the lightning into the ground—but this was simply how the world functioned. Combined with the fact that Electro wasn't exactly known for overwhelming offensive strength and that he hadn't intended to kill her outright, merely to teach her a harsh lesson, La Signora survived the ordeal.
Though she was still alive, her condition was far from good.
Once the protective ice shattered, La Signora lay sprawled on the ground, her body charred and battered, barely clinging to consciousness. She now resembled the very street dog she once mocked Venti for appearing as.
"So? Have you made your decision?" Su Mo's cold voice reached her ears once more, making her body tremble involuntarily. She was about to refuse instinctively, but then she recalled Su Mo's earlier words.
Gritting her teeth against the searing pain, she forced herself up from the ground, her voice hoarse but loud, "No! We have absolutely no intention of becoming your enemy!"
With those words spoken, her battered body finally gave out. She collapsed onto the ground, unconscious.
Seeing that she had yielded, Su Mo saw no reason to continue pressing the advantage. With a wave of his hand, he released the rest of the Fatui members from his grip. They immediately rushed to La Signora's side, forming a protective circle around her, casting wary yet helpless glances at Su Mo. They clearly wanted to ready their weapons, but in the face of Su Mo's overwhelming might, none dared to lift a hand.
All they could do was exchange uneasy glances, looking pitiful and powerless—an unfamiliar sight for the Knights of Favonius, who had never seen the arrogant Fatui so utterly humbled before. For reasons they couldn't quite explain, watching this unfold brought them great satisfaction.
Jean, trying to maintain her composure, walked up to Su Mo and asked, "Mr. Su Mo, what do you intend to do with these Fatui?"
"Whatever," Su Mo answered nonchalantly, shaking his head. "They came looking for trouble, I merely responded. Now that they've surrendered, I don't see any need to go further."
After all, the Tsaritsa herself seemed to be opposing Celestia. She might even become an ally someday. There was no need for needless bloodshed.
Jean nodded in understanding. "Very well."
She then turned to face the Fatui. Under their nervous and fearful gazes, Jean put on a serious expression and spoke in an official tone, "While visiting the Statue of the Anemo Archon, the Fatui Harbinger 'La Signora' unfortunately encountered extreme weather conditions and suffered multiple lightning strikes, resulting in her current injuries. The Knights of Favonius extend our sympathies and hope for her swift recovery. That is how today's incident occurred—correct?"
This was the very definition of telling bald-faced lies with a straight face.
La Signora had nearly been struck to death by lightning, and yet Jean calmly framed it as nothing more than an unfortunate weather event. An extreme climate disaster, nothing more.
Upon hearing her words, not just the Fatui— Even Amber from the Knights of Favonius couldn't help but comment under her breath, "So Captain Jean has this kind of crafty side too..." The innocent girl was visibly shaken by the revelation. Kaeya, on the other hand, looked ready to applaud. "Well done! As expected of Captain Jean!" he said approvingly. Lisa also nodded in agreement. "Grand Master's judgment was indeed correct."
Compared to their cheerful mood, the atmosphere among the Fatui was quite the opposite. They looked pitiful, weak, helpless—and utterly furious. Having never faced such humiliation before, the Fatui were burning with anger.
"You motherfu—" one of the Debt collector almost let slip a curse but quickly noticed Jean's dangerous gaze. His survival instincts kicked in instantly. "Ahem... You are the noble Knights of Mondstadt who came riding in with grace. We are humble soldiers from Snezhnaya who crossed mountains and rivers. We are allies, bound by eternal friendship. Offering sympathy and condolences is far too formal. Please, allow us to bring back our 'sleeping' Lady from the floor to the hotel!"
Well now. That was quite the impromptu rhyme. In his retelling, La Signora, who had been struck unconscious by lightning, had somehow transformed into a little girl napping peacefully on the ground. One might even joke: was her name perhaps Xiangyun?
Jean nearly burst into laughter but managed to hold it in—truly deserving of her position as acting Grand Master. "Very well then, take care on your way back," she said, politely dismissing them while even offering a stretcher for transport.
The Fatui carried La Signora off in an embarrassing procession, but to their credit, they had delivered their ridiculous lines with remarkable composure.