“This is…” Stelle looked up at the statue standing in the center of the small lake before her.
Something so clearly man-made filled her with a sense of relief.
It seemed to mean she would soon encounter others like herself.
She had followed what she assumed was north along the path for quite a while before finally coming across this small lake—and the statue at its center.
Although the statue looked somewhat damaged, with cracks running across its surface, as if no one had come to worship here for a long time.
Was it an abandoned statue?
Or perhaps in this place, statues weren’t meant for worship?
Still, the power emanating from it…
it felt like wind.
How strange.
Just as Stelle was staring at the statue in a daze, a sudden noise came from the damp ground beneath her feet.
A blue, soggy-looking blob popped out from the ground.
Stelle immediately stepped back and summoned her baseball bat into her hand, watching the strange creature warily.
Round and plump, with what looked like a pair of eyes on its surface.
“Kind of…
cute,” Stelle blinked, letting out a slow breath as her body relaxed slightly.
In truth, she didn’t feel any real threat from the creature before her.
Even though the little thing clearly had no intention of letting her go.
It bounced toward her, and once it got close enough, it suddenly sprang up from the ground and slammed toward her.
Unfortunately, it was far too slow.
Stelle had more than enough time to perform her “Farewell hit.” “Ha!” This time, she didn’t shout the move’s name, simply swinging her bat with full force.
When the bat struck the round creature, Stelle briefly felt as though she were actually playing baseball.
With a heavy slam, the creature wasn’t sent flying—instead, it was directly smashed apart.
It seemed to be made entirely of water, leaving no corpse behind.
Only a small lump of viscous fluid remained on the ground ahead.
Curious, Stelle picked it up and squeezed it between her fingers.
It stretched into thin strands between her fingers, sticky and unpleasant to the touch.
“Could this be…
a slime?” Stelle tossed it aside and made a guess.
She couldn’t be completely certain, but it certainly fit the characteristics of a slime.
Those were usually found in worlds of swords and magic.
So was this the kind of world she had ended up in?
As she pondered this, she walked to the water’s edge.
She instinctively glanced down at her reflection—only for that single glance to feel like an eternity…
She was beautiful.
No…
I’m beautiful.
“Cough—this, this is me?!” Stelle quickly snapped out of it, stumbling back as she hugged her shoulders.
A faint, unnatural blush spread across her face.
Her appearance wasn’t much different from what she remembered.
But the feeling was completely different.
It might sound narcissistic, but…
but this was just…
way too beautiful!
“That’s the Statue of The Seven…” “There are a few of these statues scattered across the land to show The Seven’s protection over the world.” A somewhat youthful voice suddenly came from the distance, snapping Stelle out of her strange state.
She immediately turned toward the source of the voice and could vaguely make out two figures on a cliff behind her.
They were human—or at least humanoid.
And since she could understand them, that meant communication was possible.
The first step to survival was finally within reach.
But…
why was one of them floating in the air?
Was that a species unique to this world?
Without overthinking, Stelle hesitated for a moment before finding a place to hide, deciding to observe the two first.
…
“As we all know, poetry and language flow like the wind.
There’ll definitely be someone there who knows about your brother…
At least, that’s what Paimon thinks.” “Mm.
Even if the Anemo Archon isn’t the god I’m looking for, I can at least get some clues from him…” the golden-haired girl nodded as she spoke.
She hadn’t known the small companion beside her for long, but as a guide, she was quite reliable.
“This is the Statue of The Seven.” The blonde girl looked up at the somewhat damaged statue, a strange light in her eyes.
“You can swim over too~” “Okay.” The girl’s outfit seemed to have some special property.
She swam straight across, and in no time at all, there was no trace of moisture left on her clothes.
As if by instinct, she placed her hand on the damaged statue.
Under Stelle’s watchful gaze, the statue suddenly lit up, and a stream of power flowed into the girl’s body.
“Looks like you can use Anemo without a Vision.” “People in this world can’t possibly gain power as easily as you do.” “What’s a Vision?” “Wah!?” The sudden voice of a third person startled the two who had been completely focused, causing them both to let out surprised cries.
They quickly turned toward the source of the voice, only to see a gray-haired girl who had somehow appeared nearby without them noticing.
Seeing them turn around, the girl gave an awkward smile.
“She is…” The blonde girl glanced at the small floating companion beside her in confusion.
“Don’t look at me, I don’t know her either,” the little one shrugged.
Regardless, the two of them still walked toward her.
“Hello.” Stelle greeted them somewhat awkwardly.
She hadn’t expected her sudden voice to scare them.
They must have been too absorbed in their conversation to notice such a large person standing nearby, even from a higher position.
“Hello…” The blonde girl looked at her with a hint of confusion and caution.
After all, the fact that the other party had approached them silently was enough to suggest she wasn’t someone to be underestimated.
But as she kept looking, the confusion and caution on her face gradually changed.
A faint blush appeared on her cheeks, and her heartbeat began to quicken unconsciously.
What’s wrong with me…
The blonde girl stared into the other’s eyes, unable to understand the strange stirring in her heart.
And soon, she couldn’t hold it anymore.
So she quietly averted her gaze, lowering her head to look at the grass at her feet.
“Um, let me introduce myself.
My name is Stelle.” Stelle let out a breath of relief, not noticing the girl’s odd behavior, and introduced herself.
After a moment’s thought, she added another line.
“Though perhaps the name ‘Galactic Baseballer’ is more well-known.” She wasn’t deliberately trying to be funny.
According to her memories, she always introduced herself this way, so she simply said it naturally.
And if either of them recognized the title, it would mean they had at least heard of the Astral Express.
Maybe they could help her find a way back.
“Uh…
Baseballer?” The blonde girl from another world clearly didn’t understand this world well enough to judge whether the title was truly famous.
So she looked at the small white-haired companion beside her.
“Never heard of it,” the floating little one shrugged.
“I see…” Stelle felt a bit disappointed, though the result was within her expectations.
“Hello, my name is Lumine.” The blonde girl finally spoke her name.
“Um, are you s-single…” “What?” Stelle looked at her in confusion.
She hadn’t caught the barely audible words that followed.
“N-nothing!” Lumine quickly shook her head, confused as to why she had blurted out something so strange.
Could this really be love at first sight?
“Lumine, then who is this beside you?” “Emergency food.” Despite her flushed face and the strange state she couldn’t quite understand, the blonde girl still gave the answer she had long prepared.
“That’s not true!”