Magical girl Nahida

While everyone else was still debating and analyzing the question, someone had already given the correct answer. They were all living beings of Teyvat, so why was she such a show-off?

On closer inspection-oh, it was Lesser Lord Kusanali, renowned as the God of Wisdom. Never mind, then.

After all, she was nominally the deity who represented wisdom in Teyvat. Everyone might doubt this Dendro Archon's fighting ability, but they had to trust her intellect.

Even though the Akademiya had spent the past five hundred years trying to downplay the new god's existence, the impression that the Dendro Archon was the God of Wisdom was not something the mere Akademiya could overturn.

There had been nine videos so far. Including this one, Nahida had already won the rewards for two questions all by herself. After so many years, she had once again reminded the living beings of Teyvat what it felt like to be crushed by superior wisdom.

[Yae Miko: As expected of the God of Wisdom. Once she gets serious about answering first, she simply leaves no chance for anyone else.]

[The Doctor: I originally thought I was the most likely answer too, but was I still misled by the wording of the question...? How embarrassing.]

In fact, when he saw the question, The Doctor had thought the correct answer should be himself. After all, he was responsible for all of Scaramouche's adjustments.

But the damn wording of the question had misled The Doctor. When he read the part about "at the cost of nearly dying himself, along with a precious secret," he had thought it through rationally and ruled himself out.

He knew the Dendro Archon well. No matter how he looked at it, that Dendro Archon who had yet to mature could not beat him to the brink of death, much less leave him barely clinging to life and trading secrets for his survival, could she?

That very line of thinking had interfered with The Doctor's reasoning, allowing Nahida to give the correct answer first instead.

[The Captain: Indeed. Thinking about it now, you were responsible for all of Scaramouche's adjustments and modifications, Doctor.]

[Pantalone: I see. Misdirection, then. Describing the same thing in different words can produce different effects and impressions.]

[The Doctor: I more or less understand what "nearly dying" means now, too. My apologies, I have some matters to attend to. This has become a little troublesome.]

[The Rooster: The Doctor, our Second Harbinger, does have the ability to take the Gnosis from the Dendro Archon... Ahem, I mean, if the above situation were to occur, you certainly have the ability to accomplish what the question described.]

[The Rooster: Of course, we Fatui categorically deny all slander from this screen.]

Today, old man The Rooster was still racking his brains to uphold the Fatui's image.

Not that it did much good.

As for The Doctor, he now had to deal with the issue of his segments. Otherwise, all of Teyvat would host the first Doctor Cup battle royale, with every single contestant being one of his segments.

[Tighnari: Uh, I admit I spoke a little too loudly earlier.]

[Tighnari: If the upcoming Sumeru videos are still like this, letting Lesser Lord Kusanali easily analyze the correct answer while everyone else is completely baffled or even misled, then all I can say is-]

[Tighnari: Esteemed Observatory, please give us more!]

[Collei: M-Master's tail suddenly stood straight up?!]

[Lisa: Hmm, I just had a thought.]

[Lisa: Could the being behind this screen have chosen nothing but fan-made videos for Sumeru not because it has anything against Sumeru, but because releasing official videos now would have an even worse impact on Sumeru's situation?]

[Lumine: When you put it that way, it's not impossible. Though I still think it's more likely that everyone just doesn't understand the memes this screen is using.]

[Lumine: Thinking back to yesterday's Footprint promotional video, Sumeru is the nation of wisdom, right? Maybe Sumeru's story revolves around battles of wits, while the first three nations' stories focus more on physical combat, so gameplay and official videos that reveal more information wouldn't have much impact.]

[Lumine: But in Sumeru's battle-of-wits storyline, videos revealing more information might actually cause the good guys to lose?]

[Nahida: That's quite possible. After all, even wisdom is fragile in the face of foreknowledge.]

[Lumine: But Nahida, how were you sure The Doctor was the correct answer?]

[Nahida: I wasn't one hundred percent certain either. But combining the relevant records in the Akasha about the Fatui, the Harbingers, and so on, I reasonably deduced that The Doctor was the most likely of those answers.]

[The Doctor: Heh. With your unrestricted access to the Akasha, you certainly can do such things.]

[Nahida: Thanks to this video, I finally know what the Grand Sage and the others intend to do.]

Although she now knew what the Grand Sage and the others were planning,

at this point, Nahida had yet to meet the Traveler and receive her wholehearted encouragement. Deep down, she actually harbored a somewhat deeply rooted sense of inferiority.

Nahida had always thought the sages had forsaken her because she was not mature enough yet and lacked Greater Lord Rukkhadevata's wisdom and strength. All these years, she had quietly worked toward that goal, absorbing unfamiliar knowledge through the Akasha while secretly doing her best to help the people of Sumeru who fell into danger.

For these five hundred years, Nahida could be said to have worked very hard, never relaxing for even a moment, all so she could grow into a God of Wisdom as great and wise as Greater Lord Rukkhadevata as soon as possible.

Now, she had suddenly learned that all her efforts were meaningless. The sages had never intended to wait patiently for her to grow.

Their plan was to take another route entirely and create a new god who met their expectations to replace an "unqualified" god like her.

Honestly, it really left the current Nahida quite dejected. Had she not still had some believers in Sumeru City, she probably would have given up on herself and withdrawn into her own world completely.

Fortunately, although Nahida had not met the Traveler yet or experienced everyone joining forces to save her as they did in the original story, she had at least seen a glimpse of the future.

Although the video just now was fan-made, judging by its style, the opening segment should have been what they called gameplay footage-something that could actually happen in the future.

Seeing the Traveler struggle to get up and rescue her after Scaramouche caught her warmed Nahida's heart and gave her some motivation.

"Yes, that's right. There are people who trust me, too. I can't abandon the people of Sumeru City. There are things I can do, too, and I have friends who won't leave me."

Inside Greater Lord Rukkhadevata's meditation device, which the sages had later modified into a confinement device to isolate Lesser Lord Kusanali, Nahida's gaze grew firm.

[System: Awarding esteemed five-star user Nahida one Quicken Magic Transformation Wand.]

[System: Quicken Magic Transformation Wand (screen-exclusive edition), a transformation device created based on Advanced Elemental Reaction Theory. Based on the Quicken and Spread reactions between Dendro and Electro, it applies specially formulated Electro to users of Dendro power, providing them with a two-stage transformation. An essential piece of equipment for home and travel.]

[System: Upon using this product for the first time, a user of Dendro power will enter the Quicken state, gaining a certain increase in power and authority. Based on esteemed five-star user Nahida's current physical condition, the optimal daily duration of the first-stage transformation should be kept within two hours whenever possible.]

[System: Upon using this product a second time while in the first-stage transformation, a user of Dendro power will enter the Spread state, realizing to the fullest extent the upper limit of power they should possess. Based on esteemed five-star user Nahida's current physical condition, the optimal daily duration of the second-stage transformation should be kept within five minutes whenever possible.]

[Tighnari: Ah, this... In other words, our Dendro Archon will most likely have power equal to Greater Lord Rukkhadevata's for two hours every day?]

[Faruzan: That's far too optimistic. We don't even know whether Lesser Lord Kusanali really can match Greater Lord Rukkhadevata of the past after her first-stage transformation. Though there's also that second-stage transformation...]

[Layla: But according to our earlier guess, aren't the screen's rewards all suited to the person answering...? Uh, Lesser Lord Kusanali does seem to need power.]

[Kaveh: In that case, even if the Fatui target Lesser Lord Kusanali like they did in the video, she should be able to handle it with greater ease, right?]

[The Rooster: I object. Everything in the video is a conspiracy by this screen. We Fatui have always treated other nations with friendship and mutual assistance. We have even dispatched advance teams to help allied nations resolve monster crises within their borders.]

[Lumine: I keep feeling like I've seen this magic transformation wand in another world before.]

[Lumine: Nahida, Nahida, give us a demonstration before this reward footage ends.]

Had someone else asked, Nahida might have politely declined.

But this was the Traveler, who had risked herself to save her in the video and had given Nahida motivation when she felt dejected after discovering the sages' true intentions.

After considering it, Nahida went ahead and used the strange, entirely pink transformation wand, which had a red, pointed, birdlike beak adorned with white feathers.

"Hmm, the transformation incantation is... henshin?"

As Nahida's adorable voice fell, a surge of Electro power comparable to that wielded by the Raiden Shogun erupted inside the tiny meditation device.

Despite being Electro power of such high quality, it gave off no sense of danger at all. The polar opposite of the Electro power the Raiden Shogun had unleashed earlier, this Electro power seemed brimming with vitality.

After a cloud of smoke inexplicably appeared and cleared, Nahida's little-girl form was nowhere to be seen. In her place stood an adorable teenage Nahida, looking at her hands with a hint of curiosity.

[Lumine: S-So good. Th-This is definitely the best reward this screen has given out in these two days!]

[Lumine: Quick, quick, quick, try Spread mode too!]

[Alice: As much as I want to tell you to calm down, Traveler... I'm on your side this time!]

[Alice: Hurry, the second-stage transformation!]

Having already guessed from the Quicken transformation what the Spread transformation would be, Lumine urged her impatiently. Even Alice voiced her support.

Or rather, it was not just Alice. At that moment, who knew how many viewers across Teyvat were of one mind with the Traveler and Alice, silently cheering her on.

This was the unspoken understanding between gentlemen, a moment that needed no words!

Feeling the vigorous vitality and Dendro power within her body, Nahida did not hesitate either. After all, curiosity was this God of Wisdom's greatest trait, and she was very curious about what the second-stage transformation would be like.

With that curiosity, Nahida, still unaware of the world's sinister ways, went straight into her second-stage transformation.

Another flash of lightning passed, and a sudden swirl of smoke obscured the view from outside, making Lumine and who knew how many other viewers click their tongues in displeasure.

When the smoke cleared, an adult woman appeared inside the tiny confinement device. She wore slightly ill-fitting robes and had long white hair, gentle features, and eyes filled with compassion and warmth, as though her very existence alone could soothe people's hearts.

[Tighnari: Greater Lord Rukkhadevata?!]

[Faruzan: So Lesser Lord Kusanali will look exactly like Greater Lord Rukkhadevata when she grows up?]

[Kaveh: This really is... Hmm, very reasonable.]

[Dehya: Uh, my lady? My lady, what's wrong?]

[Dehya: Strange. My lady suddenly fainted after watching that scene just now, and her face is so red. Is she sick?]

[Faruzan: Ahem. Dehya, just help your lady somewhere shaded to cool down. She should be fine.]

[Cyno: So stimulating her with Electro power can make Lesser Lord Kusanali grow up ahead of time. I see.]

[Tighnari: No, I don't think ordinary Electro power has that effect.]

[Lumine: Ahh, I'm satisfied!]

[Alice: All right, Traveler losing her mind up there, you can stop now. There are children in this discussion area.]

[Lumine: True, we can't be a bad influence on Klee and the others.]

[Lumine: So why hasn't this screen enabled private messages yet?]

[Alice: Wouldn't private messages make things a lot less entertaining?]

[Lumine: Fair point.]

The system's reward footage ended after Nahida entered Spread through her second-stage transformation.

At this moment, Nahida paid little attention to the commotion in the discussion area. Almost all her attention was occupied by the changes in her body and power.

The balance issues that had abruptly become harder to manage due to the enormous change in a certain piece of biological armor were actually easy enough to handle. Nahida regained her physical balance after only a few seconds of adjustment. It was her own body, after all; it would have been a joke for a god to fall over from a lack of coordination.

Although the sudden increase in the burden on her chest gave Nahida a rather peculiar feeling, none of it could compare to the pleasant surprise brought by the tremendous changes in her own power and authority.

"Just as I thought, everyone in the discussion area guessed correctly. The rewards this screen gives are all specifically tailored."