Outside Mondstadt, in a Hilichurl camp.
"Lumine, you… you actually said that…"
Paimon and Amber stared at Lumine with expressions like they had just witnessed the destruction of civilization.
Gods above—
Kamisato Ayaka personally defended your innocence.
She saved you.
She pulled you out of the abyss.
And then you…
…jumped back in???
Good grief.
If there was an award for "Self-Inflicted Social Death," Traveler Lumine would've already won it ten times.
Lumine froze.
Completely blank.
"...I… I said what just now?"
She replayed her own message in the chat.
Her eyes widened.
Her soul left her body.
Her dignity evaporated on the spot.
"完了完了—— I'm finished, I'm so finished——"
Immediate Damage Control Mode
Lumine bolted upright, frantically typing into the chat:
[Lumine]: Ahem! Everyone, stop for a second—let me explain!
I was thanking Lady Ayaka, that's all!
As for the… the thing I said afterward…
[Lumine]: It was Paimon! Yes! It was Paimon! She typed it!
@Paimon Tell them!!
Lumine shot Paimon a murderous glare.
Help me or starve.
The meaning was crystal clear.
Paimon's face twitched.
She didn't want to take the blame…
But life > dignity.
[Paimon]: Cough… yes yes, that was me. I typed it while Lumine wasn't looking. Mm-hmm.
No one believed it.
The chat immediately exploded again.
[Transcendent Chat Group]
[Kaeya]: I trusted Lady Ayaka's clarification, but… well… now I've lost words.
[Venti]: Ehe~ Traveler, that was the most spectacular self-destruction I've ever seen.
[Zhongli]: By the standard of common reason… a confession generally speaks for itself.
[Hu Tao]: That plot twist almost made my waist snap—HAHAHA!
[Childe]: You want to be someone's dog? That's a very unique hobby.
[Nahida]: Human preferences are truly complicated…
[Neuvillette]: Indeed. Even after observing humans for five hundred years, I still struggle to understand some aspects.
[Furina]: Huh? Someone wants to be a dog?
Oh, it's the Traveler? Then that's fine.
[Yae Miko]: My my~ and you insisted you weren't "that kind" of girl. How adorable.
[Lumine]: YOU'RE ALL MISUNDERSTANDING!!
[Yoimiya]: Traveler, after saying that line yourself, what "innocence" do you think you still have…? (facepalm.jpg)
Lumine: I want to leave Teyvat. Please let me quit the planet.
In Inazuma — The Kamisato Estate
Kamisato Ayato sighed, looking at his frozen-in-shock sister.
"Ayaka, you saw it.
This wasn't the light-screen exaggerating.
She admitted it herself."
Thoma nodded frantically:
"Yes, Lady Ayaka! The light-screen may be comedic sometimes, but the content is real! And the Traveler… she definitely revealed her true nature today."
Ayaka remained silent for a moment.
Then—
"…Did I really misunderstand the Traveler's personality…?"
She suddenly remembered all of Lumine's "not-so-serious" evaluations.
A shiver ran down her spine.
If I get evaluated too…
What if my 'not-serious' side gets exposed…?
"Never mind.
I hope I never get evaluated."
Lumine: I'm Done. Destroy Me.
Lumine collapsed onto the ground again.
"Everything's ruined…
My reputation… my dignity…
All gone…"
Paimon and Amber exchanged helpless looks.
This couldn't even be blamed on the light-screen.
She literally said it herself.
But before Lumine could mourn further—
The light-screen vibrated.
A divine mechanical voice echoed across all Teyvat.
[Ding! Evaluation complete.][The evaluated character will receive a random reward.]**[Rewards include—
Food, power-boosting items, resurrection items, wear-removal artifacts, and other miraculous objects.]**
Everyone: "???"
Lumine, who had been lying dead on the ground, instantly resurrected at full HP.
"W–wait! A reward??"
Her despair evaporated.
Her eyes lit up like Mora coins.
"I— I'm not a dog! Absolutely not!
But…
Hm? There's a reward?"
"Oh. Then it's fine."
The speed at which she changed her face was faster than a Wind Slime's movement.
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