Fontaine, Port of Lumidouce
"Finally arrived in Fontaine, just as I finished writing the first act of my novel. I'll submit it to The Steambird later."
Lucian sat on the cruise ship, reading the novel he had written.
The title of the novel was Teyvat's Strange Tales.
Opening the first page, it read: 'Prologue: Act I: The Outlander Who Caught the Wind.'
That's right, this novel was Lucian's adaptation of Genshin Impact's main storyline.
"Sigh, for the sake of this lousy system, I traveled all the way from Liyue to Fontaine. You'd better not let me down."
While proofreading typos in his novel, Lucian complained inwardly.
If he wanted to gain power and save people like Furina and the Greater Lord Rukkhadevata, he could only rely on this system.
Lucian's system was called the Emotion System. As the name suggested, it collected intense emotions from others.
Lucian could use these emotions to exchange for items and abilities.
Unfortunately, the system couldn't absorb emotions from across the entire world. It could only gather them in two ways:
One was through emotions directly caused by the host whether due to the host themselves or their creations.
The other was by collecting emotions from people near the host.
This range was limited, which was why Lucian had specifically come to Fontaine.
Fontaine had the wondrous Opera Epiclese, where trials often left people with a sense of regret.
Whether it was regret for the victim's plight or disappointment that the trial wasn't exciting enough, this place was a goldmine for such emotions.
"Excuse me, sir, could I take a look at the book in your hand?" A pleasant voice interrupted Lucian's thoughts.
Lucian turned to see a pink-haired girl not far to his left.
"Charlotte?" Only then did Lucian notice this playable character from Genshin Impact.
The cruise ship was much larger than in the game, and there were far more people aboard.
Lucian hadn't bothered to observe everyone closely, so he hadn't realized he was on the same flight as Charlotte.
If he had to guess, this little reporter had just returned from an interview and was heading back to The Steambird.
"Huh? You know me?" Charlotte was slightly surprised.
She was just a reporter, not a celebrity.
The person in front of her didn't seem like a Fontaine native either, so how did he recognize her?
"I'm planning to submit a piece to The Steambird, so I did some research," Lucian lied casually.
Charlotte nodded. "I see. No wonder I haven't seen this book before."
Then, she pulled out a notepad and pen, looking at Lucian with eager eyes as she continued:
"Teyvat's Strange Tales is this your work?"
"Are these strange encounters you've experienced in Teyvat?"
"Are they based on real events or purely fictional?"
"Can I report on it for publicity?"
Lucian: "Huh?"
How many questions did you just throw at me? Which one am I supposed to answer first?
Charlotte realized she'd been too hasty and apologized. "Ah, sorry, I got carried away."
Lucian waved his hand. "It's fine."
"Let me introduce myself first. My name is Lucian, pen name Shikikan, from Liyue, 22 years old, unmarried, currently an ordinary unemployed vagrant with a monthly income of zero."
At this point, Lucian paused and watched as Charlotte scribbled furiously in her notepad. "Do you need more details?"
Charlotte continued writing while replying, "Of course! The more detailed, the better, if you're willing."
Even though Lucian's book hadn't been published yet and its success was uncertain, Charlotte had nothing better to do at the moment. If she could secure an exclusive interview now and he actually became famous later, she'd hit the jackpot.
"Alright." Lucian nodded.
He proceeded to share non-private details like his height and weight.
After finishing her notes, Charlotte closed her notepad.
"Thank you for your cooperation, Shikikan-sensei."
Even though Lucian's book hadn't been released yet, Charlotte was already addressing him as "Teacher."
As long as she maintained a good relationship, there'd be plenty of exclusive interviews in the future.
"Would you mind letting me take a look at your work?" Charlotte asked tentatively.
Since it was an unpublished manuscript, the author might not be willing to share it especially with a stranger they'd just met.
"Of course." Lucian handed the book to Charlotte without hesitation.
To him, Charlotte wasn't a stranger at all.
Charlotte took the book and began reading.
'Prologue: Act I: The Outlander Who Caught the Wind'
[So, you drifted here from beyond this world?]
[But when you tried to leave for the next world, an unknown god stood in your way?]
The book described a white-haired god appearing before the twins, radiating an imposing aura.
[Outlanders, your journey ends here.]
[The Sustainer of Heavenly Principles has come to end the arrogation of mankind.]
Just these opening lines contained so much information that Charlotte's brain nearly short-circuited.
Travelers from beyond this world? Another world?
An unknown god? The Sustainer of Heavenly Principles?
The arrogation of mankind?
Even with Charlotte's vast knowledge from gathering news, these terms were completely unfamiliar to her.
She had thought she knew a lot from her reporting, but this proved otherwise.
As expected of a novelist what an imagination!
For now, Charlotte assumed the book was purely fictional.
Regardless of its authenticity, the opening had piqued her interest.
She wanted to keep reading to understand what these terms meant.
The following content described how the outlander fought the white-haired Sustainer of Heavenly Principles, only to lose and have their power sealed.
After an unknown number of years, the protagonist finally awoke and encountered another mysterious white floating creature.
Then, the protagonist Lumine and the floating companion Paimon traveled together to Mondstadt.
(That's right the protagonist of this book is Lumine. The Abyss gacha pulled the wrong twin again.)
So who exactly is the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles?!
Which world did the protagonist come from?!
What even is the "arrogation of mankind"?!
How did this suddenly shift from fantasy to realism?!
Leaving plot holes unfilled will rot your fingers!
Luckily, the author was right beside her. In this situation, she could just ask him directly.
Charlotte shot Lucian a resentful look and asked:
"Shikikan-sensei, why did your book suddenly switch from fantasy to realism? Aren't you going to address the earlier plot holes?"
Lucian replied, "Fantasy? This is realism."
"What? Realism?" Charlotte stared at Lucian in confusion.
If this book was truly based on reality, didn't that mean the author knew far more than she did as a reporter?
Realizing this, Charlotte quickly pulled out her pen and notepad again.
If the other party knew more than her, shouldn't she seize this opportunity to expand her own knowledge?
As for whether Lucian's claims were true, Charlotte couldn't judge yet.
She needed to gather more information first, then compare and verify it.
Scholars were the ones who determined truth reporters simply collected information.
However, until verified, Charlotte wouldn't publish any of this as factual news.
"May I ask, who exactly is the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles?"
===✧✦✧===
Character Voice: Lucian – First Meeting
"Hello, hello, konnichiwa, annyeonghaseyo, not sure which language you're using, so how about I say them all?"