Chapter 1: Where Does the Chat Group Come From?
The Parlor Car of the Astral Express still carried the faint, lingering warmth of last night's chaotic revelry. Empty cups and scattered confetti painted a picture of a party that had stretched long into the astral night. Stelle lay sprawled across the plush velvet sofa, one arm dangling off the edge. She was cocooned in a custom-made blanket—a magnificent, woven masterpiece depicting the majestic Lord Trashcan of Belobog, an artwork she had commissioned with utmost seriousness.
The celebration had been a massive reunion. Everyone from Jarilo-VI had gathered to toast the conclusion of the Wardance ceremony on the Xianzhou Luofu. The cheering, the clinking glasses, the endless toasts—it had all drained her battery to absolute zero. Right now, her only desire was to sink endlessly into the sweet embrace of her dreams.
Without warning, an abrupt, piercing blue halo flared to life directly in front of her closed eyelids.
"Ugh..." Stelle groaned, her voice muffled against the cushions. "Who turned on the light?"
She blindly swatted at the air, trying to roll over and bury her face deeper into the majestic metallic visage of Lord Trashcan to escape the annoying glare.
But the light did not fade. Instead, it coalesced, sharpening into a crisp, translucent blue holographic screen that hovered stubbornly in her field of vision, even with her eyes shut.
[Ding! Congratulations. You have been selected to join the Cross-Dimensional Chat Group and have been granted Administrator privileges.]
The crisp, mechanical chime echoed directly in her mind. Hearing this highly unusual sound, Stelle's survival instincts kicked in just enough to pry one golden eye open. She squinted at the glowing text floating in the air. Her brain processed the words, weighed them against her overwhelming exhaustion, and made a swift, calculated decision.
"Don't bother me," she muttered, her voice thick with sleep. "I want to sleep."
With a heavy sigh, she pulled the blanket completely over her head, rolled over to face the back of the sofa, and instantly fell back into a dead slumber.
She remained entirely oblivious to the fact that on the glowing blue screen, the status next to [Administrator Stelle] in the member list quietly flickered and updated to: Offline / Do Not Disturb (Deep Sleep).
Far across the cosmos, on the bustling Sixth Street of New Eridu, the atmosphere was considerably more grounded. Inside the staff room of the Random Play video store, Belle sat cross-legged on the worn, comfortable carpet. Her eyes were glued to the CRT television screen, completely engrossed in the vintage videotape she and her brother, Wise, had just acquired.
The flickering light of the television cast dancing shadows across the room. Slowly, an unnatural azure hue began to bleed into her peripheral vision, washing over the movie's playback. The color intensified, gradually forming a distinct, glowing light screen right in front of her face.
With a sharp, synthetic ding, Belle gasped. Her entire body jolted, instinctively leaning so far backward that she nearly toppled over.
[Congratulations. You have been selected to join the Cross-Dimensional Chat Group and have been granted Administrator privileges.]
"Wh-what is this?!" she yelped, dropping the remote and furiously rubbing her eyes with the heels of her hands.
The physical sensation was entirely normal. There was no grit, no foreign object irritating her corneas. Yet, when she blinked her eyes open, that stubborn blue interface remained perfectly centered in her vision, tracking her every eye movement.
'Could it be the visual construct... malfunctioning?!'
Belle's heart rate spiked, hammering against her ribs. Panic clawed at her throat. The neural link and visual construct were critical tools—the very legacy their teacher had left for her and Wise. It was their lifeline. If this hardware was compromised, they would lose their ability to operate as Proxies. They would lose their only means to investigate the truth behind the Old Capital's fall and track down the scattered clues about their missing teacher.
Shoving the terrifying thoughts aside, Belle scrambled to her feet and bolted for the door.
"Brother! Brother!" she yelled, her voice pitching up with raw anxiety as she practically threw herself down the stairs into the main storefront. "Brother! My eyes! My—"
She slammed on the brakes, her sneakers squeaking against the polished floorboards. Several customers were browsing the aisles of Random Play, holding videotapes and looking at her with mild surprise. Belle snapped her mouth shut, swallowing the rest of her frantic sentence.
Wise, who was standing behind the counter carefully logging new inventory into the register, immediately paused. He took one look at his sister's pale face, set down his scanner, and offered the customers a polite, apologetic smile, smoothly declining their concerned offers of assistance.
Stepping out from behind the counter, he gently grasped Belle's shoulders and guided her quickly into the private breakroom in the back. The moment the door clicked shut, his calm, analytical demeanor took over.
"Belle, calm down. Take a breath. Don't panic," Wise said, his voice a steady, grounding anchor. He leaned in, carefully examining her eyes under the room's lighting. "What exactly is wrong with your eyes? Does it hurt?"
"Brother! My eye construct seems to be having a massive error!" Belle spoke in a rapid, breathless rush. "A blue light screen suddenly popped up right in front of me, and it talks! Well, it dings and has text!"
She waved her hands frantically in front of her face. "At first, I thought it was just a weird visual effect from the videotape's plot, but it's fixed right here. Even when I turn my head or look at the floor, it's still floating right in front of my eyes. It feels like... like it's projected directly inside my retinas!"
Saying it out loud made the reality of the situation sink in, and a slight tremor entered her voice.
Wise's brow furrowed, his expression shifting into one of solemn concentration. He scrutinized her pupils, looking for any sign of hardware failure or Aether corruption, but her eyes looked perfectly clear and normal.
He turned his head slightly toward the ceiling. "Fairy. Run a diagnostic check on the external network. See if there are any recorded medical cases or Proxy reports of situations similar to Belle's symptoms."
Turning back to his sister, he placed a reassuring hand on her arm. "Belle, focus on your body for a second. Is there anywhere else that feels uncomfortable? Any dizziness, nausea, or ringing in your ears?"
Belle took a deep breath, forcing her racing heart to slow down. She did a quick mental check. "Uh... no. Besides this weird extra screen blocking my view, I feel completely fine. Nothing hurts."
A cool, synthesized voice echoed from the room's hidden speakers. "Master, a complete search of the real-world network and Inter-Knot databases shows zero records of similar Aether erosion symptoms or hardware malfunctions."
Hearing Fairy's report, the tension in Wise's shoulders visibly lessened. He let out a quiet breath. "That is good news. Don't be so nervous, Belle. Since it is not a physiological issue, nor a known Aether-related malfunction, we should approach this logically. Why not try to read the information it is providing? See if you can interact with it."
He crossed his arms, his analytical mind already dissecting the problem. "What if your construct simply unlocked a hidden function? After all, we still haven't fully mapped out all the legacy features our teacher left behind. Now, take your time and describe this light screen to me. What shape is it? What exactly does the text say?"
Belle squinted at the floating blue rectangle. "It is... it's rectangular. Translucent. Like a high-end holographic display, but it never goes away. It says... [Cross-Dimensional Chat Group]? And below that, [Administrator Belle]? There are also tabs for [Group Announcement] and [Group Members]... Brother, what exactly is this thing?!"
She tilted her head, a sudden spark of recognition cutting through her fear. "Wait a second... why does the layout feel so much like Knock-Knock?"
Seeing the familiar UI structure—resembling the everyday messaging app they used to contact clients and other Proxies—Belle's rigid posture finally began to relax. The unknown was terrifying, but a chat app was something she understood.
Wise's expression shifted from solemn concern to deep, calculating thought.
"A chat group? Administrator privileges? That certainly does not sound like a system crash or a virus," he mused aloud. His sharp, intelligent gaze fixed on the empty air in front of Belle's face, as if trying to pierce the veil of reality and see the interface himself.
"If Fairy cannot detect it and I cannot see it, it shouldn't be a physical problem with your optical nerves, Belle. This behaves more like an information interface projected directly into your consciousness. It mimics highly integrated AR technology, but the delivery method is clearly leaps and bounds beyond New Eridu's current technological level. It is honestly more like something pulled straight out of a sci-fi movie."
He gestured toward her. "Try to tap those words. Use your mind, or just physically reach out and mimic operating a virtual interface, exactly like how you scroll through Knock-Knock on your phone."
Encouraged by her brother's steady, logical guidance, Belle nodded. She took a breath, focused her mind, and raised her index finger. She imagined the tactile sensation of pressing a screen and tapped the air right where the [Group Members] tab hovered.
The interface reacted instantly. The screen rippled like water, the content switching to display a clean, organized list of three distinct names:
[Administrator Stelle] - Status: Offline / Do Not Disturb (Deep Sleep)
[Administrator Lumine] - Status: Online
[Administrator Belle] - Status: Online
Meanwhile, beneath a blazing, unfamiliar sky, Lumine's boots crunched against dry, crimson earth.
She and Paimon had only just crossed the border into Natlan, the fabled Nation of Fire. The air here was thick, carrying the faint, sharp scent of sulfur and sun-baked rock.
"Wow, so this is Natlan!" Paimon cheered, doing a little mid-air loop. She pointed enthusiastically at the towering, jagged peaks that pierced the horizon. "Look at those strange mountains! And I just saw an animal with scales that looked like actual rocks! Everything here is so different!"
Lumine offered a small, appreciative smile, her golden eyes scanning the rugged terrain. This land felt entirely distinct from the other five nations they had traversed. The very ground seemed to thrum with a raw, untamed power, a primal heat that radiated through the soles of her boots.
She was just about to suggest they find a vantage point when an abrupt, brilliant blue light flared to life, slowly unfolding across her field of vision like a blooming digital flower.
"But it doesn't seem like there's a city or a town anywhere nearby," Paimon continued, oblivious to Lumine's sudden stillness. The little guide placed her hands on her hips, scanning the empty wilderness. "Where should we even go first? We need to find an inn, or at least someone to ask for directions!"
Lumine wasn't looking at the mountains anymore. Her gaze was locked on the glowing text hovering in the air before her.
[Cross-Dimensional Chat Group Activated.]
[Administrator Permissions Bound.]
[New Member Detected: Administrator Lumine.]
Lumine blinked, her usually stoic expression cracking into genuine confusion. She reached a hand out, her fingers passing right through the translucent blue screen.
Beside her, Paimon stomped her foot in the air. "Lumine! Are you even listening to me? I asked which way we should go!"
"Never mind which way to go for now, Paimon," Lumine said, her voice laced with bewilderment. She pointed a finger directly at the empty space in front of her face. "Come look at this."
"Hmm? Look at what? Did you find a new type of ore?" Paimon's curiosity instantly overrode her annoyance. She floated closer, leaning in and squinting hard in the exact direction Lumine was pointing.
Her big, starry eyes blinked rapidly, full of utter confusion. She looked at the empty air, then back at Lumine's face. "There's nothing there, Lumine. You're not just teasing Paimon, are you?"
Paimon crossed her arms, puffing out her cheeks. She assumed Lumine was just playing another prank on her. After all, their long journeys across Teyvat often grew tedious, and the two of them frequently joked around and played silly games to relieve the exhausting fatigue of endless travel.
"No, Paimon. I am not joking," Lumine said, her tone deadpan but entirely serious. She tried shifting her gaze toward a nearby boulder, but the glowing interface tracked her movement, remaining firmly anchored in the center of her vision. "There is a blue... light screen right here. It says [Cross-Dimensional Chat Group]... and it has my name on it. Apparently, I have become an administrator."
"Hmm? What? Chat group? Cross-dimensional?" Paimon repeated, her little head spinning rapidly as she tried to process the bizarre string of words.
Suddenly, her eyes widened, and she clapped her small hands together with a loud smack. "Ah! I know! I get it now!"
Paimon puffed out her chest, looking incredibly proud of her own deduction. "This must be Natlan's version of the Akasha system! Just like the one we used in Sumeru! But wow, is Natlan's technology really this advanced? It automatically bound to you the second we crossed the border? It doesn't even need a physical earpiece or a medium to work! As expected of the Nation of Fire, they don't mess around!"
Her proud smile faltered, slowly melting into a look of deep, existential dread. She grabbed the sides of her head, her voice dropping to a nervous squeak.
"But... wait. We literally just arrived and we're already encountering weird, nation-wide surveillance tech. Lumine... we aren't going to get caught up in another massive, world-ending event the second we step foot in a new country like we did in Sumeru, will we?" Paimon wailed, her shoulders slumping in defeat. "Paimon just wants a quiet vacation for once!"
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