Genshin: New Life, New Hype

"Aaaaaaaaah, Why am I falling!!?"

In the endless sky, I, Ronan, plummeted. The distant earth remained just a dream, yet I sensed a dire fate approaching.

The origin of my strange predicament remained a baffling riddle.

Strolling homeward, an unexpected missile struck me, ending my life mercifully without pain, a fate I much preferred.

As I lost consciousness, I awakened to a new fall.

Would this be another encounter with death?

The thought terrified me, and I could only scream with all my might. There was no escape.

I closed my eyes as the ground drew nearer. Oh, dear...

...

...

...

Huh? No pain? Did I meet my end swiftly once again?

Soft...

"Ugh! What happened?" My thoughts remained hazy from the fall.

"Oi! What are you doing to her?" A high-pitched voice, akin to a child's, exclaimed. I turned to see the source.

A petite, adorable child with a crown atop her snowy hair and a blue scarf adorned with star patterns.

"Paimon?" I called out, as the name was familiar from a game I played just a week ago.

"Huh? You know Paimon?" She responded, tilting her head in a way that only made her even cuter.

"Um, can you please move?" Another voice chimed in, coming from below.

I turned my head to see a lovely blonde girl with golden eyes, different from the blondes I knew from my past life. She wore a flower as a hair accessory and a white fantastical dress.

One of my hands was pushing into the ground, trying to brace myself, while the other...

*squish*

"Can you stop that?" She asked softly, seemingly unperturbed.

"O-Oh, okay." I quickly withdrew my hand, pondering the fate of the blonde in the game world.

"I mean, the game didn't do her justice."

This blonde girl was Lumine, one of the main characters from the game I played. The game allowed you to choose between her and her twin brother, but it seemed she was the protagonist.

"I'm sorry about that." I extended my hand to help her up, and she accepted.

"Ah, no worries. Why did you fall, though? I mean, how did it happen?" She looked up at the sky, searching for an answer.

"Well, it's a bit complicated," I admitted, scratching my cheek with my finger, offering a wry smile. 

"Would you like to hear my story?"

"Oi! Why are you ignoring Paimon? Paimon doesn't like being ignored," the little girl-like Paimon pouted adorably.

"Hahaha," I laughed, finding her antics endearing. The mystery surrounding Paimon was perplexing, and there were so many theories about her.

"I'm Ronan, by the way, from Another World." I extended my hand for a shake.

Lumine's eyes widened in surprise. I trusted her with my true identity because, when it came to expert travelers between worlds, there were no others but these two siblings, Aether and Lumine.

"Lumine, I'm also from Another World, but I'm stranded in this world with my brother. I've lost my power to return, and I need to find him." She took my hand.

"I'm sorry to hear that. Well, I found myself falling into this world suddenly. I don't know who or what caused it, but I will find out." I left out the part about dying and coming back to life. I also wasn't sure if the missile had killed me.

"Since both of us are from another world, how about traveling together? There must be mysteries in this world to unravel." I suggested.

"That's a good idea," Lumine agreed.

"Great! To start our journey, I have something to tell you both. It might sound crazy. Do you want to hear it?" I clapped my hands to get their attention and looked at them with a serious expression.

"Boo Boo, you two keep ignoring me. Are you the same as Lumine? What's there to be surprised about?" Paimon mumbled cutely from the side. 

"Paimon wants to hear it."

Lumine remained silent, nodding in agreement. I knew I could trust her with my identity, as she was a character I'd observed while playing the game.

"Well, this might sound unbelievable, but I won't force you to believe it. In my world, we have advanced technology, but we don't have the magic and elemental abilities of this world. As for how I know this, it's because in my world, this world is a game we play..." Their expressions showed disbelief, and I decided not to reveal certain shocking details.

Paimon, in her childlike way, asked amusing questions about food from my world.

It seemed Paimon was not surprised by my revelations. That fact puzzled me a little, but I let it go. Paimon was an enigma.

"That's quite unbelievable," Lumine muttered softly.

I understood her skepticism. If I were in her shoes, I might not believe it either. But honesty was my policy with people I could trust.

"Ah, that was a relief." I heaved a deep breath, feeling refreshed. Some might think I was a fool for sharing such information, and they weren't entirely wrong.

I was a full-time hacker, a modern-day outlaw who hacked corrupt people's banks and distributed the ill-gotten gains to the needy, like a modern Robin Hood. Many sought my head, and the missile strike could have been an attempt on my life.

But I couldn't care less.

"Oh, we have a new companion. Yey!" Paimon celebrated in the air.

"Please take care of me," I bowed my head slightly.

"Okay," she nodded. "Do you know how to use weapons? You mentioned that your world doesn't use handheld weapons, right?" Lumine asked, bringing up a valid question.

"About that, I do know some martial arts, but it's hand-to-hand combat. I want to try using a Claymore," I confessed, reminiscing about the coolness of greatswords from the anime I'd watched.

"Hey, Ronan. I've noticed something, though. How do you know Teyvat's language?" Paimon interrupted our conversation, her childlike curiosity on full display.

"Huh? Now that you mention it, I'm speaking in my language, but it's coming out differently. Strange," I mused. Transmigrators often knew multiple languages when transported to a new world.

"I've spent two months..." Lumine whispered quietly in the background.

"Lumine, don't be disheartened. You're already a quick learner. This guy is just an anomaly," Paimon consoled, flying over to Lumine and patting her shoulder.

"Paimon is right. I may be able to hold a conversation with you, but that doesn't mean I can read. Lumine and Paimon, can you help me?" I requested.

Lumine eagerly stood up and patted her chest. "I will teach you!"

"Oy, I'm gonna help him too," Paimon chimed in.

"Hahaha, thank you both. By the way, where are we?" I laughed at the comical scene.

"We're heading to Mondstadt, but we'll have to make a stop near a town. It'll take a week to reach Mondstadt..." Lumine explained, taking out a map.

Near the town, there was a statue of the Seven, the Anemo Archon. Paimon mentioned that the Seven's statues could grant people abilities.

"That's what I've heard from people, but it's not entirely trustworthy," Paimon interjected.

I was once again taken aback. In the game, Teyvat was small, and you could reach Mondstadt within minutes with teleportation. But it appeared that I needed to study the geography of this world. This world was a hundred times larger than the game.

Of course, I realized how foolish I'd been. This wasn't a game; it was a real, vast world.

"Let's do that," I agreed, my lips curling into a small smile.

"First, we'll travel to Mondstadt, but we'll make a stop near a town. It will take a week to reach Mondstadt..." Lumine informed, unfolding a map.

This world was unlike any game, and I had much to learn. But I embraced the journey with open arms.