That said, what is he doing in the love's paradox au after Jayce throws the divorce papers at him? Because I refuse to believe he would be normal about it

Yeah. Real talk, I think Viktor is the true "obsessed" one in this relationship. But they're also both kind of messes, but I get more “obsessive ex energy” from Viktor from than from Jayce. Like, even after Jayce blew a hole through his chest, Viktor was STILL out here trying to get him to join him. He full on strut walked into the council room, kicked Jayce around a bit before restraining him and leaning mere inches from his face and asking them to be partners again. And then when Jayce says "No" Viktor jumps onto him AGAIN and starts choking him. And even then, he seems to be acting like this is just a typical lovers' quarrel with how pouty he was looking in the astral plane. Not to mention the blanket and the whole him gently holding the cog right up until Jayce kills him.

And Piltovian Viktor is just the same. I mean, man literally arranged it so that he could wear a MATCHING set of outfits with Jayce (almost like they’re married). In his own house's colors mind do. On top of whatever other accessories and outfits Jayce is given by the Ferros House. Like, if that doesn't feel like Viktor saying "he's mine" I don't know what does. He was subtly claiming Jayce there, and I'm sure that Jayce had no idea about that. Though that also just confirms that Viktor for all his confidence, is still a gay disaster, because how do you do all of that and still not confess?

Anyways, yeah, he is NOT normal about the fact that his best friend (not-husband) just left him after he performed questionable-magical-heart surgery on him (he full on opened up Jayce’s chest btw). I bet he didn't even sign those theoretical divorce papers, because he is in denial about Jayce actually leaving him.

He is probably still hoping that Jayce will come back, so he doesn’t move any of the stuff Jayce left behind in the labs. And, he’s definitely not going back through all of Jayce’s old notes and reminiscing about simpler times. The gay yearning is very real here.

Viktor is kind of going through the motions of life right now and on the verge of just collapsing from the emotional weight of it all. Mel and her presence are literally the only reasons he isn't completely falling into pieces. That and all the responsibilities he is still left with. Such as, having to deal with the aftermath of half of the Council being killed and the whole thing with Jinx. Which, yeah, he’s also not the biggest fan of Jinx… and while he is still hesitant about making weapons, he kind of also wants her gone. Especially, since she’s the reason that Jayce was killed (he’s not about to let that go).

Mel’s support is helping him not fall off the deep end and her resistance to all-out war helps him stay on course. When Mel suggests using the division in Zaun against them and pinning an immense reward on Jinx. He backs her up fully and without wavering. Viktor did just go through his own arc of “there is always a choice” and now he’s putting his foot down and standing by Mel. However, it will get much harder for him very soon.

After all, why not take the opportunity to turn people of Zaun against Jinx by saying that the Council was just about to grant them independence until she exploded the council room? He deems it the lesser of the two extremes in this case. The “better” option.

Even when there is resistance to this from Shoola and Salo regarding the city’s safety, Viktor retorts that he has his own solution to this. He offers to refortify Piltover with Hextech to ensure their own safety, while they put the reward for Jinx in motion. He doesn’t want to make weapons, and he doesn’t want to wage outright war. So, he takes the only option he sees and that’s building up defenses to make people feel safe. To which, the Council finally comes to an agreement.

But then the plan gets more complicated when more attacks begin to happen, and the defensive option shifts needing a more offensive one.

All the while, his mother’s words of “Privilege comes with sacrifice.” is playing in his head. And even as he tries to hold firm to his choices, he is still struggling with whether or not they are the best choices to make. And whether he needs to continue making more sacrifices for the good of everyone else. He doesn’t want to put weapons in the hands of the enforcers, so he devises an alternative solution to needed security. Why not create robots who would follow his orders precisely and could effectively help/protect the people? Thus, he begins creating a collection of Hextech golems that will protect the city of Piltover as its new security force.

Also, yes, that means he creates Blitzcrank. Can’t have him making a system of hextech robot security with him also creating Blitzcrank.

Among other things, like such as Hextech augmentations because if he managed to make a whole functional heart that revived a person, what else can he make? He may or may not be working on that as a kind of obsession with anatomy and figuring out how people work and how to fit the pieces together to make them function with Hextech (*cough* he’s thinking about Jayce *cough*). Even with a war is directly looming over them, Viktor is still being a mad scientist.

Him also coping with his partner being gone and using it as an excuse to look back through all the notes he was taking about Jayce’s new hexcore heart. Definitely not that. He literally will have one or several of the golems sit in the labs with him so he can talk to them about his ideas. Viktor got used to having someone around who would actually listen to him and add to his ramblings, so time to fill the void with robots.