"...I'm screwed."
Gabrielina stared blankly upward at the black ring gradually shrinking above her head.
The lake beneath her had long since dried up, the earth was covered in horrifying scars, and the forest was still being annihilated... never mind those two Slimes.
[Side quest completed. Rewards obtained: Mora ×10,000, Slime Condensate----]
"...What happened?" The system sounded rather bewildered.
"I think I... used a 'Heaven's Strike'?"
Gabrielina explained shakily. The lingering rush of pleasure filled her body, leaving her almost unable to notice that she was now floating quite comfortably in the sky.
"...You used 'Heaven's Strike' to fight..." The system checked the quest panel, then took a long look at the ground. "Slimes?"
The girl fell silent. More accurately, she was a little embarrassed herself.
Originally, she had wanted to wander through the forest first and see if she could find any treasure chests. Even a Dull Blade would have been something.
The actual item was what mattered, the actual item! There was nothing wrong with a lancer like her carrying a sword, right!? She was proficient in every weapon, after all~
Who could have known that Slime would launch a sneak attack, picking on an eighteen-year-old veteran like her? It had leaped straight onto her back, making her whole body tense up in fright, and then...
She just... flew.
"Gabrielina, what have you... done!"
"I was wrong... I was wrong," the girl muttered quietly, the wings on her back fluttering gently.
By now, the terrifying black ring overhead had completely contracted and returned to the top of her head, looking no different from before.
With the ground devastated as far as she could see, there was nowhere to land, so she could only keep hovering in midair.
"Um..."
"...What?"
"I-I didn't hurt anyone, did I?"
The system thought, Can a Flügel really be this kindhearted?
"No. This 'Heaven's Strike' wasn't very powerful. It only hit a very small, uninhabited area."
"Phew... that's good. That's good."
"That 'Heaven's Strike' was probably only about 1% of your energy output."
"Wow, I'm that strong!?"
Smack-!
"Oww!"
The girl's head snapped backward, nearly throwing her whole body off balance. Whimpering, she covered her reddening forehead as tears welled in her eyes.
The system really was terrifying. Better not mess with her...
"That was this time! Next time is another story! Today you blew up Slimes, tomorrow you'll be blowing up Celestia! Do you want to end up stewed with mushrooms!?"
Gabrielina shook her head fiercely.
"...Just focus on your quests. Be good, and you'll get plenty of rewards."
[Side quest completed. Issued: Mora ×10,000, Mondstadt Map ×1. Stored for you.]
"...That's so little."
What could 10,000 Mora buy? It wasn't even enough for three meals a day!
"Side quest rewards are mostly material possessions you can take or leave. As a Flügel, most of them are meaningless to you."
"Main quest rewards will be more substantial~ Your original name was... Tang Xue?"
"Yes, boss."
The system thought, *?*
Ignoring the girl's strange form of address, the system's tone lost its intensity and turned somewhat languid as she continued, "Don't use that name casually from now on, unless it's with someone you truly trust. Understand... Gabrielina?"
"...Okay."
...Someone I truly trusted? The system definitely counted, right!
No, she wasn't human... she wouldn't even give me a spear. She was a damn dog!
"Host, you're in luck~ You can accept another quest already!"
"Gee, thanks."
[*Main* quest issued: Find and happen upon the Traveler currently in Mondstadt. Time limit: 1 day.]
...The Traveler?
Gabrielina fluttered her wings slightly. Having already gotten the basics down, she quickly flew away from the scorched earth and into the still-lush forest.
I wonder who I'll get... Lumine? Aether?
Tsk... that cheeky little Lumine.
Brother Aether... maybe we could be sisters too?
Aaaah, whatever! I had one main account and one alt anyway. They were both equally precious to me. Whoever it was, once I got them, they weren't getting away!
Hmph~
This was a main quest? Eeeeeeeeeasy!!
[*Main* quest addition: Make the Traveler your master. Time limit: 100 days. Warning! Warning! Failure will result in severe punishment!]
"What!?"
Gabrielina crashed bodily into a tree with a thunk.
The tremendous impact made the trunk crack with a teeth-grating sound. In an instant that seemed to unfold in slow motion, bark flew and wood chips scattered.
The century-old tree met a heroic end, crashing to the ground with a thunderous roar that startled a flock of birds from the forest.
Amid the billowing dust, the angel lay spread-eagled in the wreckage, her wings still outstretched.
She suddenly raised her upper body, blinked, then slowly lay back down, even elegantly smoothing her disheveled hair.
"...I'll just be dead for a little while."
Meanwhile, elsewhere.
"Whoa!" Paimon shuddered at the enormous noise, caught her slipping little crown, and quickly hid behind Lumine.
"T-Traveler... did you hear that? It sounded like another..."
Lumine hurriedly soothed Paimon, tightened her grip on her weapon, and looked toward the source of the sound.
The dense sea of trees blocked her view, but the trembling earth, the scattering birds, and the faint sound of breaking wood in the distance all made one thing clear-
It had come from that direction, not far away, closer to her than last time.
Fortunately, this disturbance seemed smaller. After only a brief tremor, everything went quiet.
"Paimon, that being from earlier... do you think she... um..."
"What is it, Traveler?"
Lumine gently touched her chest, her brows drawing together. "Could she... have something to do with the god I'm looking for?"
"You mean..." Paimon's voice suddenly grew quieter. "The one who took your brother?"
Lumine nodded silently.
Paimon instinctively propped her chin on her hand to think, only to realize she had floated out of cover. She quickly flew back behind Lumine to hide.
"Paimon... doesn't know, but she really looked dangerous! Traveler, your power..." Paimon looked at Lumine worriedly.
Lumine raised her left hand. A few wisps of wind gathered at her fingertips, swirled, then quietly dispersed into the air.
Still not enough... nowhere near enough...
"We should... stay out of her way." Paimon suddenly had a flash of inspiration. "Mondstadt is the Anemo Archon's nation! The Anemo Archon will definitely come down hard on a bad guy who destroys the environment like that! We just need to find a way to meet the God of Wind!"
Lumine slowly lowered her sword and took one last look in the direction where the huge tree had fallen.
The birds had already returned to their nests, as though the disturbance had never happened. She sighed softly. "...All right. Let's head into the city first."
"Okay!"
"Take me along."
"Ah!"
"Waaaaaaah!!!"
Lumine instinctively shielded Paimon behind her, her right hand already gripping the Dull Blade.
But before she could perform a sword technique, she heard a sharp crack-the weapon in her hand had been snapped clean in two.
"You... you..."
The blond Traveler was too shocked to speak.
Not because of the other's sudden appearance, nor because of her inexplicably broken weapon, but because-
Of her, the girl floating before her eyes-or was she a god? That alone was enough.
Even many years later, the Traveler would remember that afternoon.
She would remember the dappled sunlight filtering through the leaves, those wings, those eyes, and that pure, flawless face in the sunshine, as though a god were about to lean down and kiss her forehead.
And her name, Gabrielina, or rather...
Tang Xue.
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