Faced with a question that couldn't be called entirely unrelated to the video, but offered absolutely no clues and contained an enormous amount of information, everyone in Teyvat with any knowledge inwardly cursed, "Motherfucker."
Especially those in Fontaine, where the film industry was highly developed.
These people, who spent their days seeking entertainment at the Opera Epiclese, could hardly have been more familiar with what a script was.
And now, before the existence represented by this screen, all the utterly real joys and sorrows, partings and reunions of Teyvat were actually nothing more than a rather grand script?
It stirred a feeling of anger that was far too difficult to suppress.
[Lumine: That settles it. This "Genshin Impact" is either an anime or a game, though judging from the earlier information, a game is most likely.]
[Albedo: In Teyvat, all who possess Visions are called allogenes, meaning they are qualified to become gods. The title of this work certainly highlights a defining characteristic of Teyvat.]
[Alice: Oh my, Albedo is always so reliable.]
[Albedo: Ah, Aunt Alice, my apologies. I was busy testing an experiment just now and didn't get a chance to greet you.]
[Alice: That's all right. You're always busy with alchemy and looking after Klee. Thank you for all your hard work.]
[Klee: Albedo is a good person!]
After greeting a few people, Albedo fell silent again. No one knew whether he had gone back to his experiments or was thinking about the question.
Everyone in the discussion area also returned their attention to the question. After all, the rewards for the first two questions had both been items related to gods, and Teyvat was a world where people walked alongside gods. Everyone wanted items related to gods, which only heightened their enthusiasm.
[Yoimiya: It's already the third question. I want to win a reward too.]
[Xiangling: I wonder if the reward might be some unusual ingredients or dishes.]
[Navia: If it could ease my financial burdens a little...]
[Bennett: I probably don't have much hope of getting it right, but, um, if there's a reward that could change my luck...]
[Alice: Darn it, this question doesn't offer a single hint. Its difficulty is on a completely different level from the earlier questions.]
[Klee: Klee doesn't know.]
[Tighnari: The important thing is, it said earlier that correct answers earn rewards, while wrong answers bring punishments.]
[Keqing: The first two so-called freebie questions gave out two rewards related to gods. It's hard to imagine what prize this question will offer, and the corresponding punishment...]
Those ellipses Keqing posted in the comments made almost everyone suppress the urge to buzz in.
To be honest, none of the playable characters or important characters currently able to speak in the discussion area lacked courage.
The problem was that this question offered no hints or direction whatsoever. The unspecified punishment also hung over everyone's heads like the sword of Damocles, forcing them to be cautious.
After all, if the rewards were god-tier, then logically, wouldn't the punishments be god-tier too? At the very least, under the principle of equivalent value, they could very well be life-threatening.
Of course, "almost everyone" meant there was still someone who defied common sense.
[Arataki Itto: Hahahahaha! It's my time to shine! You cowards, stand aside and watch me work.]
[Kujou Sara: This idiot. (Headache) Still, since he's about to sacrifice himself for everyone and eliminate a wrong answer, I won't arrest him this time.]
[Kuki Shinobu: Tsk, he just had to pick a time when I wasn't around. It's too late now.]
[Arataki Itto: Huh? You rotten tengu, just you wait! Once I get an incredible reward, I'm definitely going to beat you.]
This guy was so simple-minded.
That was more or less the unanimous opinion of everyone in Teyvat.
Even Raiden Ei, who was also in the discussion area, seriously considered whether to employ this fellow as an official retainer specifically to eliminate wrong answers from questions.
[Arataki Itto: Listen up! The answer is Inazuma! How could anywhere with me in it follow some stupid script?! Ahahahahaha!!!]
When it came to letting everyone down, this idiot really never let anyone down.
Kujou Sara and Kuki Shinobu wore masks of agony.
[System: Incorrect answer.]
As expected, Arataki Itto had eliminated a wrong answer.
[Arataki Itto: Huh? Impossible! Absolutely impossible! How could my answer be wrong?]
[Arataki Itto: Hey, is this stupid thing broken?!]
[System: Arataki Itto's punishment for selecting an incorrect answer is as follows-for the next month, soy products will randomly appear in his three daily meals according to a certain probability.]
[Bennett: Huh? What kind of punishment is that? Soy products are delicious, and aside from meat, they're the best foods for nourishing your body.]
[Xiangling: Hmm, my intuition as a chef tells me... is Mr. Itto allergic to beans?]
[Tighnari: Allergies can be fatal. This is no joke. Without proper countermeasures, Arataki Itto will be in danger from now on.]
[Sigewinne: Oh, that's no good. Mr. Itto, you need to take responsibility for your health. Do you need emergency medical services?]
[Hu Tao: Although I'd love to make a sale, I don't want a customer to use the discount package as soon as I've sold it.]
[Baizhu: Don't worry. I'll provide a prescription. It'll taste a little bitter, but it can ensure he stays alive.]
[Kuki Shinobu: Uh, thank you, everyone. Just as you said, our boss is an oni. Although oni aren't actually afraid of beans like the legends say, our boss really is severely allergic to them. Thank you all for your kindness.]
After all, with a few exceptions, these important characters in Genshin Impact were good people in every sense, especially the warmhearted kind. They were exactly the sort to draw their swords to help whenever they encountered injustice.
Otherwise, why did the player always get dragged into all kinds of bizarre and varied incidents in the game?
At least half of those could be credited to these overly warmhearted friends.
Of course, the yellow exclamation marks also bore some responsibility.
They would even lend a hand with the troubles of passersby who didn't have unique character models.
Now that everyone had actually seen Arataki Itto receive a potentially life-threatening punishment, they naturally offered their help enthusiastically.
[System: Answer C has now been eliminated. Other users, please continue to buzz in. As user Arataki Itto has eliminated an incorrect option, this question's difficulty has decreased. Subsequent rewards and punishments will be reduced accordingly.]
Everyone nodded at the system's notice.
Indeed, four choices had become three. Especially with a question that seemingly offered no leads, it was essentially the difference between a one-in-four chance and a one-in-three chance. It was perfectly reasonable for the corresponding rewards and punishments to decrease as well.
So the question was, who would be the next brave soul-or lucky winner?
Before everyone could figure that out, the next person-or rather, god-to answer appeared.
[Nahida: I choose D. The answer is Sumeru.]
[System: Correct answer. Esteemed five-star user Nahida is awarded one bucket of milk from the MC world.]
[System: Any entity within Teyvat that consumes this entire reward bucket of milk in one sitting can remove all negative status effects.]
That was... answered, just like that?
Most people, whether ordinary users or star-rated users who could speak in the comments, burst into an uproar.
But after seeing who had answered correctly, everyone felt it was somewhat to be expected.
After all, judging from the earlier conversation with that attention-loving Hydro Archon, this person named Nahida appeared to be the only god who had voluntarily responded to the Hydro Archon's greetings and provocations.
In the understanding of most people in Teyvat, gods were called gods precisely because they were supposed to be omnipotent.
What's more, she was the Dendro Archon, who governed wisdom among The Seven, making it even less surprising.
Speaking of which, what was going on in Sumeru? Why did such a capable god have almost no presence in everyday life?
Compared to the Hydro Archon Furina, who always loved the spotlight and had been Fontaine's biggest star for centuries, this Dendro Archon named Nahida was worlds apart in terms of fame. The difference was far too great.
In Sumeru City, the Grand Sage exchanged complicated looks with several other sages, unsure what to do now.
That immature god they could clearly afford to ignore had now proven her wisdom to all of Teyvat. It really was awkward for these people who intended to create a god.
And this reward...
Honestly, they wanted it.
The problem was that there was only one, and it was in the hands of that confined god.
Although these sages believed the new Dendro Archon was not mature, wise, or powerful enough, she was still a god. As the most knowledgeable people on this continent, they instead lacked the nerve of those ignorant mortals who dared to speculate about a god's power.
With an enhanced barrier between them, they still dared to ignore the Dendro Archon, but to open that barrier themselves and snatch something from a god's hands...
Honestly, their generation of sages didn't dare be as bold as the sages five hundred years ago.
[Tighnari: The Dendro Archon...]
[Cyno: A god?]
[Alhaitham: It's time for me to clock out.]
[Kaveh: Huh? That's your reaction?]
[Alhaitham: No one can stop me from leaving work on time.]
[Ganyu: I still think today's work should be finished today. We should even get a little ahead.]
[Jean: Exactly. There's so much work, we should start ear-wait, have we gotten off topic?]
[Lisa: As expected of the God of Wisdom. Although my analysis also suggested Sumeru was the most likely answer, I still couldn't quite bring myself to commit.]
[Shikanoin Heizou: Oh? Someone else made the same guess as me?]
[Tighnari: Well, although this is a bit of hindsight, I guessed Sumeru too.]
[Lumine: I guessed Sumeru too! Aah, if it weren't for that so-called punishment, I would've buzzed in.]
[Paimon: What, what? Traveler, you actually guessed it? Aaaah, what a shame! I wanted some super-delicious Sweet Madame!]
[Lumine: Paimon, no one said this suspicious screen would give out super-delicious Sweet Madame as a reward.]
[Paimon: But it's possible~! Besides, even if that wasn't the reward, I could trade whatever I got for lots and lots of Mora and buy more Sweet Madame than I could ever eat!]
[Lumine: ...You little glutton. Sometimes you actually make a lot of sense.]
[Amber: Huh? Huuuh? Why could all of you guess it was Sumeru?]
[Chongyun: Exactly. I had absolutely no idea.]
[Collei: Aah, I suddenly feel so stupid.]
[Albedo: Hmm, how should I put it? I think it was probably because of a not particularly convincing deduction.]
[Charlotte: A deduction? (Takes out a notebook) Could you please explain in detail?]
[Albedo: It's simple. As Miss Traveler said, if our world appears as a work of fiction in another world, then however you look at it, logically, developments beyond the predetermined script shouldn't occur early in the story.]
[Lumine: And with that helpful guy eliminating Inazuma, the third option, Sumeru became even more likely.]
[Alice: Still, works these days always love to surprise people.]
[Yae Miko: So no one was actually very certain it really was Sumeru. After all, if they unexpectedly tore up the script right at the beginning, there'd be nothing we could do, would there?]
[Charlotte: Ohhh! (Takes notes) I see, I see! Thank you all for explaining!]
[Nahida: Actually, I only managed to make up my mind to buzz in because I knew a little more than everyone else.]
[Dottore: Hmph. I see. So that's how it is.]
[Columbina: The Doctor, have you thought of something?]
[The Doctor: It must be Irminsul. As the Dendro Archon, you were born with the ability to manipulate Irminsul. Although you're still very immature and may not be able to use this authority well, it is indeed possible that you changed the "script" in the future because of it.]
[Tartaglia: No, um, I want to ask something first. How did you change your name?]
[The Doctor: Foolish. Those of us with different titles, names, and code names can change what we're called in the system. You've had this screen for so long. Have you done no exploring on your own at all?]
Exploring, my ass!
Just you wait, you bastard. One day, I'll beat your face into a pig's head.
The Doctor's answer stirred up waves in the hearts of most people in Teyvat.
No one had expected the Dendro Archon, who currently had almost no presence and was the youngest of the current Seven, to possess such a heaven-defying authority.
Rewriting the script-roughly speaking, did that mean she could freely change the course of anything in Teyvat without anyone else even noticing?