Paimon tilted her head, curiosity overflowing.
"Are you from Liyue?"
"What are you doing all the way out here at Starfell Lake?"
"Wait—are you one of those legendary adventurers?"
His name didn't sound Mondstadt at all.
It was unmistakably Liyue-style.
"Not quite," Jiang Chen replied.
"I'm from… another world."
His eyes lingered on Lumine, full of interest.
He was looking forward to her reaction.
In Teyvat, visitors from beyond the stars weren't exactly a secret—
people had heard the stories, even if few had met one.
Lumine froze, eyes widening.
"Ehh?!"
"So you're from another world too? Just like me!"
"Lumine, did you hear that?" Paimon added excitedly.
"He's also from another world! Maybe he knows something about your brother!"
Lumine's gaze sharpened.
"When you arrived here… did you see a white-haired god?"
That one question revealed everything.
When she and her brother tried to leave this world, a white-haired god had blocked their way—
sealing her powers and separating the twins.
She had only awakened recently.
Now hearing Jiang Chen was also an otherworlder…
she couldn't help but hope.
But Jiang Chen only shook his head.
"No. I just appeared beside the statue out of nowhere.
No idea how I crossed over.
I woke up here—
and then you two showed up."
There was nothing worth hiding, so he told the truth.
Lumine's expression dimmed slightly.
"I see…"
"So I'll still have to search Teyvat myself."
But after a moment, she looked at him again.
"Since you're new here too… want to travel to Mondstadt together?"
Traveling companions.
A reasonable offer — and she seemed earnest.
"No problem," Jiang Chen agreed easily.
Lumine nodded, then shifted her attention toward the statue.
"So this is the Anemo Archon's statue…?"
With curiosity gleaming in her eyes, she reached out and touched it.
A brilliant light burst forth.
Wind stirred.
Not just outside — it surged into Lumine's body.
Moments later, the glow faded.
Lumine raised her hand — and a breeze curled around her palm.
"Whoa!"
"Lumine, you got the power of Anemo!" Paimon squealed, circling around her.
Even Lumine looked stunned.
Then she turned toward Jiang Chen.
"You're also from another world. Did you gain any power from the statue?"
Jiang Chen's expression became solemn.
"I did."
"But not Anemo."
To demonstrate, he held out his hand—
Magic Release (Flame).
Fire blossomed in his palm.
Lumine's eyes widened again.
"Huh?!
So you really did get powers?"
She believed it instantly.
And so did Paimon.
"Wooow!"
"Fire element? That means you two can trigger elemental reactions together!"
"Elemental… what?" Lumine asked.
Paimon launched straight into a lecture.
Once she finished, Lumine looked thoughtful—
then looked at Jiang Chen.
"Want to try?"
"Sure."
He flared another flame.
Lumine raised her hand.
"Gustblade!"
A sphere of swirling wind formed.
Jiang Chen flicked his fire into it.
The wind immediately ignited—
turning into a massive fireball that Lumine hurled across the lake.
BOOM!
A fiery explosion blossomed over Starfell Lake's surface.
Lumine stared, amazed.
"That's incredible!!"
She finally understood the power of elemental reactions.
Jiang Chen nodded.
"Not bad."
(Though, honestly, his casual normal attack would hit harder…
but praise where praise is due.)
After experimenting a bit, they returned to the shore and began walking toward Whispering Woods.
Naturally, conversation followed.
Jiang Chen's previous world?
Lumine wanted to know everything.
"The world I came from was just a normal technological world.
No elemental powers or anything."
"Oh… one of those worlds. I've been to places like that," Lumine murmured.
As they kept chatting, the topic drifted—
from simple introductions…
to anime.
Despite many of her memories being sealed, Lumine still remembered other-world knowledge.
Only her memories of this world were affected — not the worlds she had traveled.
Jiang Chen, being a hardcore otaku, immediately lit up.
They talked about Naruto, Bleach, One Piece, Attack on Titan…
Meanwhile Paimon floated beside them, utterly lost.
But then—
They reached the Fate franchise.
Jiang Chen suddenly stopped walking.
"Wait, you've watched Fate?"
"Mm." Lumine nodded.
"I've watched it. And played the game too."
"Then… look at this."
He summoned the Immortal Blade.
Lumine blinked.
"…It looks kind of familiar?"
Something tugged at her memory.
Jiang Chen smiled and spoke clearly:
"O blazing sun— bend to my will. Vasavi Shakti.
O sun, follow my command— Oṁ Karaṇa, Obeisance to Death."
He didn't activate the full Noble Phantasm—
just recited the chant.
Lumine froze.
"…Huh?"
"…Karna?"
"WTF?!"
The golden-haired bride-to-be absolutely exploded.
Of course she recognized it —
it was Karna's Noble Phantasm from Fate.
"Exactly," Jiang Chen said proudly.
"I gained Karna's Spirit Foundation when I touched the statue."
He dismissed the weapon and briefly explained his abilities.
Since she knew Fate, there was no point hiding it.
But Lumine narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
This guy definitely has a system… doesn't he?
Advance Chapters available on Patreon