Genshin Impact:The one who likes to observe

The sun hung low in the sky, painting the horizon with hues of deep orange and soft purple. A warm breeze swept through the quiet rural landscape, rustling the leaves of nearby trees. Birds chirped lazily, their melodies blending with the faint sound of a distant river.

A lone figure strolled across a small wooden bridge, its planks creaking slightly beneath his weight. The bridge wasn't large—just wide enough for pedestrians and motorcycles—but it offered a beautiful view of the peaceful countryside.

Theo Guan exhaled deeply, watching as the sun began its slow descent. In one hand, he held his phone, the screen glowing softly against the dimming daylight. He tapped on a contact and brought the device to his ear.

"Hey, do you have some money?" Theo asked casually, though there was a slight urgency in his tone. "If you have, I want to borrow some."

A moment of silence passed before the voice on the other end responded.

"Huh? Money?" His friend's voice carried a note of suspicion. "Hmm… Yeah, I have some right now, but what do you need it for?"

Theo hesitated, his fingers lightly drumming against the bridge railing. "Uh… you know…"

His friend paused, then sighed. "Oh, don't tell me—you want to top up for Primogems again, don't you?"

Theo winced. Caught.

"Yeah," he admitted, rubbing the back of his head. "There's a Zhongli rerun… and only a few minutes left before the banner switches."

His friend let out a long, exaggerated sigh. "So that's why you suddenly called me… Hmm…"

Beads of sweat formed on Theo's forehead as he anxiously awaited an answer. He could already feel his hopes slipping away.

Maybe I should just give up… He thought, staring at the fading sunlight. I guess I'll have to pass on Zhongli this time. What else can I do?

Then, a familiar notification sound beeped from his phone.

Theo blinked. He looked down at the screen. A money transfer notification had just popped up.

His friend's voice came through again. "There, did you get it? I already transferred the money. But if I remember correctly, you always prepare Primogems in advance for characters you want. What happened this time?"

Theo sighed, shaking his head. "You won't believe it… It's actually kind of embarrassing."

Flashback: A Gacha Gamble Gone Wrong

Just minutes before he made the call, Theo had been sitting on his bed, phone in hand, staring at the Zhongli banner on the Genshin Impact wishing screen.

He exhaled, his fingers hovering over the summon button. "Let's see if I hit hard pity or not."

With a deep breath, he tapped 10-pull lightly. The wishing animation began, the glowing golden path appearing on the screen. Theo closed his eyes, listening to the familiar sound of the summoning sequence.

Tap.

Tap.

He went through each pull one by one. His heart pounded as he reached the last summon in the batch.

"Alright, this is the last one…" he whispered, pressing the screen lightly.

But then—nothing.

No golden glow. No telltale chime signaling a five-star character.

Theo's eyes snapped open. "Damn it… Hard pity…" He groaned, rubbing his face. "There's no way my luck is this bad, right?"

Determined, he decided to pull one by one this time.

Skip.

Skip.

He rapidly skipped through the animations, watching as random four-star characters filled his screen.

By the ninth pull, he exhaled sharply. "Ugh… I take my words back."

He stared at his screen in disbelief.

"My luck is freaking bad today."

Still, he had one more chance.

Guaranteed pity.

This next pull was supposed to be the one.

He tapped the 1-pull button. The animation began, but… something was wrong.

Instead of the usual golden light, a notification popped up:

"Insufficient Primogems. Use 160 Genesis Crystals to exchange for the required amount of Primogems?"

Theo froze.

"What the hell?" He muttered, staring at the screen. "My Primogems ran out?!"

But I calculated everything perfectly just before I pulled this banner! Did I miscalculate?

Theo's eyes drifted toward his game's Exploration Completion screen.

100% Exploration.

Every region maxed out.

He had no more in-game free Primogems left.

He glanced at his bank account.

Balance: 0

He sighed. "This can't be happening…"

As if fate wanted to mock him further, he remembered something. He had money in his other account. But…

He had forgotten the password.

Because he had changed it just a few days ago, thinking his old one was too easy to guess.

He let out a bitter laugh. "What kind of cruel fate is this?"

There was only one choice left.

He sighed, shaking his head. "Guess I have no choice but to borrow from her…"

Flashback Ends

Theo rubbed his temples as he finished his story. "So yeah, that's what happened."

Silence.

Then, he heard the unmistakable sound of his friend holding back laughter on the other end of the call.

Theo's deadpan expression darkened. "Oi. Don't laugh."

His friend burst out laughing anyway. "Pfft—Hahaha! I'm sorry! I just—Ahaha! If I weren't at work right now, I'd probably be rolling on the floor laughing! And didn't you have money in your other account? You forgot your password too? Hahaha!"

Theo sighed. "Why did I even tell you this…?"

After a few seconds, his friend cleared her throat, regaining composure. "Alright, alright. Jokes aside… When are you coming back to work, Theo?"

"Ah… I still have a few days of work leave left," he replied. "Maybe after a few more days."

His friend scoffed. "You need to come back fast! After you took a day off, the workload here doubled! It's been chaos!"

Theo chuckled. "Didn't my assistant help you?"

"She did. But—ugh—she's way too fierce! She barely lets me rest!"

Theo smirked. "Well, that's her job. She's making sure you don't slack off."

His friend groaned. "I swear, she's scarier than you when you go 'boss mode.'"

Theo laughed. "No way I'm that bad. I'm a kind and generous boss, aren't I?"

"As if! You're more like a demon hiding behind an innocent face."

Theo shrugged. "What can I do? Work is work. I got tired of being boss, so I took some days off."

His friend clicked her tongue. "Even though you're the boss, you shouldn't abuse your authority at will! Or I'll report you for power abuse!"

Theo chuckled. "Ouch, so cruel. Where's my cute little sister who used to follow me around and call me 'big brother' all day long?"

"Damn it, don't talk about the past!" she snapped.

"Alright, alright, my bad. Anyway, if there's no problem, I'll return to work tomorrow."

"Huh? 'Problem'? What do you mean?"

Theo hesitated. "Ah… nothing. It's just… I've had this uneasy feeling all day."

"Tch. You're just overthinking it. Anyway, I gotta finish my work, or it'll pile up tomorrow. Be here first thing in the morning!"

"Yeah, yeah, dear little sister."

"You damn—"

Theo ended the call.

He slipped his phone back into his pocket and looked up at the night sky.

Then, his eyes widened.

Wait.

Didn't I forget something?

His face paled. "Damn it—ZHONGLI'S BANNER!!"

Theo took his phone back from his pocket and quickly tapped on the Genshin Impact icon. The familiar Hoyoverse logo appeared, followed by the white loading screen.

As the circular loading icon spun endlessly, he groaned. "Hell nah. What's with this loading time? Come on! Zhongli's rerun is about to end!"

Finally, the game finished loading. His in-game character spawned at Mt. Aocang, sitting on a stone chair. The tranquil mountain scenery spread before him, bathed in the golden hues of twilight.

Theo, however, had no time to appreciate the view. "Nope, not now. I gotta wish before the rerun ends!"

He hurriedly opened the wish menu and glanced at the timer.

Time Remaining: 0 days 0 hours 0 minutes.

His eyes widened. "All zeros?! That means there are only a few seconds left! Damn it, I need to pull—NOW!"

He slammed his finger onto the wish button.

The familiar summoning animation played. A blue star appeared, followed by a golden glow.

His heart leaped. "YES! GOLDEN! LET'S GO—"

But then—

The golden star suddenly turned white.

POOF!

His phone screen went completely black.

Theo blinked in confusion. "Eh? Why did my screen turn off? And what was with that white star?"

He squinted at his phone. Maybe he was just hallucinating.

Shrugging it off, he powered the phone back on. The Genshin Impact notification greeted him:

"Error. Please log in again."

Theo groaned. "Again?! Seriously, Hoyoverse? I've had this issue so many times already! Just let me see my Zhongli!"

After a moment of frustration, he sighed and went through the login process. The loading circle in the middle of the screen spun as he waited to enter his account.

He leaned against the wooden fence behind him, crossing his arms impatiently.

Then—

CRACK.

The fence snapped.

Theo's eyes widened. "Huh?"

Before he could react—

PLOP!

His back tilted, and he fell straight into the water below.

The icy sensation hit him immediately. Water rushed around him, pulling him down. His phone was still in his hand, the screen flickering.

As he struggled, his mind screamed. "I need to get out—NOW!"

But then—

He couldn't move.

"Eh? What…? I can't move my body? What's happening?!"

Panic surged through him.

The unease he had felt all morning… was it because of this?

A bitter chuckle escaped his lips as water filled his lungs. "So this was my premonition, huh? Damn… Alya's gonna be pissed when I don't show up tomorrow…"

His vision blurred.

"…Well, dying like this isn't so bad, I guess."

His grip on his phone loosened as he closed his eyes.

.....

...

.....

....

..

Genshin Impact Notification:

"Your account has been successfully logged in."

On the phone's screen, the door to Teyvat appeared—the one that always showed up before starting the game.

The door slowly creaked open.

A blinding white light flooded the screen.

Theo's mind drifted in an empty void.

Then—

The sensation of water disappeared.

He furrowed his brow. "Huh…? Why does it feel like I'm sitting?"

His eyes snapped open.

A breathtaking sight greeted him—tall mountains, floating platforms, lush greenery, and a sky painted in soft golden hues.

Theo's breath hitched. "This place is… absolutely beautiful."

Then, realization struck.

His hands trembled as he looked around. The stone chair beneath him. The floating clouds in the distance. The sacred, untouched landscape.

His heart pounded.

"Wait. Wait. WAIT. Isn't this—"

He swallowed hard. "…Mt. Aocang?!"

His pulse raced.

"Don't tell me… the transmigration trope is REAL?!"

His eyes darted downward. He was wearing black and white robes, adorned with intricate patterns. His hands, his body—they weren't his usual ones.

Cold sweat ran down his back.

"HELL NAH! Genshin Impact is way too chaotic—I'd rather stay in my normal world!"

(To be Continued•••)